London, England – Grand Slam Winner, 18-Time Major Champion golfer and the World’s Most Traveled Athlete®, Gary Player will meet with Fred Finn, The World’s Most Traveled Man for the first time during the Gary Player Invitational charity golf tournament being held at historic Wentworth in Surrey, England from 17-18 July, 2011.
“I’m looking forward to meeting Mr. Finn. There are not too many of us who have traveled as much as Fred and I have and it will be fun to exchange stories and get to know each other. Between the two of us we have logged more than 30 million miles (48 million kilometers). Can you believe that!” said Gary Player.
“I have always admired Gary Player not only as an amazing golfer but a true gentleman and sportsman as well. I am delighted to have the chance to meet The World’s Most Travelled Athlete® and share our travel experiences. May he and I continue to travel and experience this wonderful planet,” said Fred Finn.
Over the course of Gary Player’s hall of fame career and subsequently through his global golf course design business his desire to promote golf throughout the world has never waned. “Golf has allowed me to live an incredible life and one of the ways I can repay the sport is to do whatever I can to help promote it globally. I feel that we are doing that through our golf course design business as I did throughout my playing career. Experiencing so many different cultures, religions, and customs has been one of the most rewarding aspects of my life,” said Gary Player.
Fred Finn’s love of travel began at age 18 when he took his first flight from an airfield in Hampshire, UK to New York. Since then he has spent 52 years traversing the globe and in the process racking up over 15 million miles – the equivalent of flying to the moon and back 31 times.
He has kept a detailed log of every flight and train journey he has taken, which he had counter-signed by each driver and pilot to verify his achievement. Fred also holds the record for the most trips aboard Concorde, an impressive 718 flights – on which he always sat in the same seat.
About The Player Foundation
Over 25 years ago, the Player family established The Player Foundation in order to provide quality education, nutrition, medical care and sports activities to the less fortunate children living in rural areas outside Johannesburg, South Africa.
Today, through Black Knight’s four annual Gary Player Invitational (GPI) series of charity events staged in the USA, China, Europe and South Africa, the Foundation has expanded its efforts to bring hope, help and healing to impoverished communities around the world. The foundation has risen over $35 million globally, trying to make a difference for impoverished children. By partnering with local charities where GPI events are held, The Player Foundation has been able to make a real change in the lives of children through health and education initiatives.
Gary Player has always felt very strongly that we must look after our youth in order to ensure a positive future. What thus began as a small vision to educate a handful of children on Mr. Player’s farm outside Johannesburg, has now grown to support partner schools, as well as HIV orphans and crime-stricken communities in China, Europe and the USA.
Each year Black Knight International, in conjunction with The Player Foundation, manages and runs a series of prestigious golf events across the globe to raise funds for charity – the primary beneficiary being children’s causes.
Established in 1983, The Player Foundation operates as a 501 C (3) non-profit organization out of Palm Beach, Florida in the USA.
For further information, contact Debbie Longenecker, The Player Foundation at Debbie@garyplayer.com or +1 561 624 0600 or visit www.garyplayerfoundation.org.
About Gary Player
Gary Player has won 165 professional golf tournaments worldwide, including nine major championships on the regular PGA Tour and nine on the Champions or Senior Tour. He became the third man to capture golf’s coveted Grand Slam (after Ben Hogan & Gene Sarazen) when he won the US Open in 1965 at the age of 29. Since then, only Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods have joined this elite group.
Off the course, Player has an unparalleled resume that includes over 40 years in the golf course design business and a portfolio of more than 325 golf courses worldwide; his philanthropic efforts have raised over $35 million for underprivileged children’s education globally through the efforts of The Player Foundation; has bred over 2000 winning racehorses on the Gary Player Stud Farm in South Africa; and in 1995 he received an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree from St. Andrews University. In recognition of his achievements in golf and his dedication to charity, Player has also received numerous awards including the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award, South Africa’s Sportsman of the Century in 2000 and the 2006 Payne Stewart Award from the PGA Tour.
Gary Player also currently serves as the Global Ambassador to the World Golf Hall of Fame and has been dubbed the Black Knight and the World’s Most Traveled Athlete ™ with over 15 million miles or over 25 million kilometers traveled.
For further information, contact Debbie Longenecker, The Player Group at debbie@garyplayer.com or +1 561 624 0300 or visit www.garyplayer.com.
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