Press Releases

METROPOLITAN GOLF WRITERS ASSOCIATION TO HONOR

JIM FURYK, PGA OF AMERICA, SHOPRITE AND OTHERS

AT 68TH NATIONAL AWARDS DINNER

 

Elmsford, NY (May 8, 2019) – 17-time PGA TOUR champion Jim Furyk will headline the group of award winners at the MGWA’s 68th National Awards Dinner next Monday, May 13th at the Westchester Marriott in Tarrytown, NY.  Other luminaries scheduled to be honored are PGA HOPE, ShopRite, Larry Dorman, Kevin Purcell and the Tuxedo Club.

 

The Gold Tee Award – the MGWA’s highest honor – will be presented to Jim Furyk for “career achievements that exemplify the best spirit and traditions of the sport of golf.”  Furyk, who has been one of the TOUR’s most consistent and successful players, holds the record for the lowest single-round score in a tournament (58).  In addition to his 17 PGA TOUR victories, he has played on seven President’s Cup and nine Ryder Cup teams, and captained the 2018 Ryder Cup team.  His contributions to golf, both on and off the course through his Jim and Tabitha Furyk Foundation, made him an easy choice for the coveted Gold Tee Award.

 

PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere), the flagship military program of PGA Reach, will be honored with the MGWA’s Distinguished Service Award for their “contributions and service to golf, and for inspiring others who love this great game.”  PGA HOPE was developed by PGA REACH, the PGA of America’s 501 (c)(3) charitable foundation, to introduce golf to our nation’s disabled Veterans in order to enhance their mental, physical, social and emotional well-being.  In 2018, an estimated 2,000 Veterans benefitted from the PGA HOPE program.

 

ShopRite, the title sponsor of The ShopRite LPGA Classic presented by Acer, will be presented with the Bing Crosby Tournament Sponsor Award, which is “presented to an individual or organization that promotes and supports the game of golf through commercial sponsorship of quality events.”  The tournament, played at the Bay Course at the Seaview Resort near Atlantic City, NJ, brings in over $19 million in new economic activity each year, and supports 183 annual jobs in Atlantic County.  Proceeds from the Classic have enabled ShopRite to donate over $34 million to local Atlantic City charities since becoming its title sponsor in 1992.

 

Esteemed former NY Times sportswriter Larry Dorman will be the recipient of the Lincoln Werden Golf Journalism Award, which is “presented to a writer, broadcaster, photographer, artist or other individual for outstanding contributions in the field of golf journalism.”  Dorman has covered 98 major golf championships and eight Ryder Cups in addition to college football, multiple Super Bowls, the Olympics and World Boxing Championship matches.  Dorman currently contributes to a number of national publications.

 

The Mary Bea Porter Award, named in honor of the LPGA player who saved a toddler from drowning in a swimming pool during a golf tournament, “recognizes an individual in golf who, through a heroic or humanitarian act, saves or betters the lives of others.”  This year’s recipient is Kevin Purcell, the Executive Director of the New Jersey State Golf Association, who came to the aid of a fellow golfer who had suffered a massive heart attack and collapsed to the ground at an adjacent hole during a round of golf at the Forest Hill Field Club.  Had it not been for Purcell’s quick response and continuous administration of CPR until paramedics arrived, that golfer (Carlos Tapia) would not have survived.  Happily, Mr. Tapia has made a full recovery.

 

The Tuxedo Club of Tuxedo Park, NY, will join a distinguished list of clubs that have earned the MGWA’s Club of the Year Award.  The award is presented to a Metropolitan-area club “for upholding the spirit and traditions of golf through energetic support and consistent dedication to the game.”  The Tuxedo Club has hosted every MGA major championship and has been a gracious host to USGA Qualifying rounds and to all of the Met-area golf associations.  Tuxedo is a long-time supporter of the Westchester Caddie Scholarship Fund, and in recent years has been one of the top fundraisers for the Folds of Honor Veteran’s charity.

 

Director of the Met PGA Foundation Kelli Clayton, Former Director of MGA Foundation Operations Jeanne McCooey, and former Executive Director of the Westchester Golf Association and the WGA Caddie Scholarship Fund Bob Thomas will each be recognized for their exemplary service to the golf community with the Dave Anderson Spotlight Award, named in memory of the Pulitzer Prize-winning former MGWA Board member. 

 

The MGWA has recognized the game’s greatest players, contributors, and organizations at its National Awards Dinner – the longest-running and often the largest golf dinner in the U.S. each year – since 1952. This annual event is attended by nearly 600 guests, representing golf’s leading organizations, corporate supporters, Met Area Clubs and Club leaders, as well as local and national golf media. This year’s Dinner is sponsored by Rolex, PGA of America, RBC, USGA, ShopRite, Eiger Marketing Group, Tourism Ireland, Sterling National Bank, Broadridge, Callaway, Stifel, LPGA, and MGA and will be hosted by MGWA Vice President/PGA Professional and Sirius XM Radio Personality Brian Crowell.
 

 

The MGWA has raised well over two million dollars for Caddie Scholarship programs in the Metropolitan New York area; the MGA Foundation; and the Dave Marr Journalism Scholarship at Columbia University. 

 

Tickets to the Dinner, as well as raffle tickets, may be purchased at www.metgolfwriters.org (you need not be present at the Dinner to win a raffle prize).  For additional information, please contact Robin Sauerhaft at (914) 347-4653 or rsauerhaft@mgagolf.org.