Ernie’s Latest News – 2 November

02 Nov

Last week I mentioned that I had played with Hideki Matsuyama at the CIMB Classic and my belief that he has the game to win a major championship.

Well…he didn’t let me down! Winning last week’s WGC – HSBC Champions by seven shots, becoming the first Asian winner of a WGC event and the youngest ever winner of that particular WGC event, will have given Hideki a massive boost of confidence. That’s sometimes the catalyst you need as a player to push on and win your first major.

So let’s push on here, then, and talk about what’s happening this week. We have a very busy schedule ahead and lots of really good stuff to look forward to, not least playing in the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas. It’s my second tournament on the 2016/17 PGA TOUR schedule and I’m keen to get out there and make some positive things happen.

Aside from the tournament scene there is a strong charitable thread running through all of this week’s activities. The action started soon after we’d touched down in Las Vegas, with me teeing it up in Charley Hoffman’s annual charity Pro-Am fundraiser on Monday. Charley has been a great supporter of Els for Autism events over the years and I’m obviously happy to be able to return the compliment. He and his wife Stacy set-up the Charley Hoffman Foundation in 2009 and they’ve raised almost $2 million for a variety of children’s charities; this year the beneficiaries being Blessings in a Backpack, Goodie Two Shoes, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Shriners Hospitals and Cystic Fibrosis LV Chapter. It was a really enjoyable day and hats off again to Charley and Stacy for all the great work that they do with their Foundation.

Next on my agenda was hosting another of our #GameON autism clinics at TPC Summerlin on Tuesday afternoon. The #GameON program was launched in collaboration with The First Tee and PGA Reach and it is aimed at developing life skills, building self-esteem and confidence, and encouraging social interaction and healthy living through golf for individuals on the spectrum. The program has been running for a couple of years now, with events held across the US and South Africa, and in fact since the golf facility at The Els Center of Excellence opened earlier this year that has become the physical hub for this ever-expanding program. I really enjoy being involved in these clinics and to see the incredibly positive effect they have on all of the participants and, by extension, their families. It’s a wonderful initiative that is seeing huge demand globally and we’re grateful to all of the organizations and individuals that have supported us so far.

On Friday evening, after I’ve completed my second round in the Shriners, I’ll join Liezl and the rest of the team to get the celebrations started for one of the highlights of our year, the Els for Autism Golf Challenge Grand Finale. This is the sixth year that we’ve been running The Golf Challenge, the largest charity-driven, amateur golf tournament in history, and every year we are pleased to welcome new faces to the Grand Finale. At the same time it is awe-inspiring to see how many of our teams come back year after year to support us. Our Golf Challenge ‘family’ of golfers, fundraisers and sponsors has been instrumental in every step of making The Els Center of Excellence everything we dreamed it would be; a hub for best practices with a core mission of connecting the global autism community. The Grand Finale is our way of saying thanks…in a big way, which they deserve.

The evening begins with a VIP reception and welcome party at Encore Beach Club at the Wynn Las Vegas. My buddy Todd Lewis of the Golf Channel is once again generously giving his time to play the role of MC and there will be lots going on throughout the evening, including a prize draw and silent auction.

Saturday is packed with more entertainment and activities for our Grand Finale guests, including the 5th annual Els for Autism ‘Best Practices Best Outcomes’ conference at the Encore Hotel here in Vegas. The theme this year is ‘Helping Dreams Take Flight: Putting Theory into Practice’ and will feature Els for Autism Foundation program staff presentations and talks from other distinguished speakers. For the first time ever we also have a webinar facility, which provides access to live streaming of the event. If you’d like to attend the seminar, or you want to watch it online, please click here for registration details.

The amateurs then play at Wynn Golf Club and Bali Hai Golf Club. I will then rejoin our guests in the evening for the main event of the Grand Finale, a gala dinner and awards ceremony. It’s a real joy for Liezl and me to host this spectacular event. It’s a lot of fun and, as I said, it’s really our way of saying thanks to everyone who has played their part in helping us smash our annual $2.5 million fundraising target in 2016. As I write, we’re actually on the brink of breaking through the $3 million barrier. Amazing!

Honestly, the dedication from all of our donors, teams and sponsors in events right across Canada and the United States this year has been incredible. On that note, a special mention must go to this year’s top fundraising team, Ken Ohrstrom and Jack Barrett from First Tee, who raised an impressive $61,500. They just pipped another two of our most dedicated teams, Moe Bajaj and Vic Verma with $59,276, and Gregory and Jeffrey Poor of Tanner’s Team 1 on $56,126. Seriously, that’s incredible guys.

Honorable mentions go to Joshua and Andy Deer for their fundraising efforts, too. Joshua, an inspiring young man, was also the recipient of last year’s Els for Autism Spectrum Award which recognises an individual with autism who is realising their dreams and aspirations through excellence in character, attitude and contribution. Our 2016 recipient is SAP employee Gloria Mendoza. Many congrats to Gloria on this well-deserved award.

Finally, it’s important for me to take this opportunity to give a big thanks to our Golf Challenge presenting sponsor SAP; event sponsors RBC, Wine Spectator and Adams Golf; contributing sponsors IRISH LINKS, Maui Jim, The Boeing Company, The Honda Classic, The PGA TOUR, Bali Hai Golf Club, The Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and Rich Harvest Farms Golf Club; platinum sponsor EY and all of our other sponsors from throughout the 2016 series. We obviously couldn’t do any of this without their unwavering commitment and support.

So, in closing, I suppose a part of me now hopes that in reading this report you’ll feel inspired to jump on board and take part in the 2017 Golf Challenge. It’ll be a while before we are in a position to announce exact details, but you’ll know by now what the Golf Challenge is all about and how much fun there is to be had in taking part and raising funds for a great cause. Click here for to find out all the details you’ll need to know.

And don’t forget you can follow me on Twitter @TheBig_Easy.

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