CROWN GOLF HITS £14,000 JUNIORS JACKPOT

Golf Foundation cheque handed over at St Mellion Festival of Golf

CROWN GOLF PRESS RELEASE | www.crown-golf.co.uk

Crown Golf, Europe’s largest golf course operator, has shown its support for junior players with a £14,000 donation from its members to the Golf Foundation.

With 32 golf venues in the UK, Crown Golf asked all of its members to contribute to the Foundation’s Commit to Junior Golf campaign - which is raising funds to bring more youngsters into golf and protect the future of the game.

Crown Golf was the first large organisation to support the charity’s appeal, which urges clubs to introduce an optional £2 donation into their annual membership subscriptions.

It is intended as the simplest and fairest way to involve the highest possible number of club members in grass roots golf development. Other key supporters include the R&A and the PGA.

Crown Golf CEO Peter Manby said: “Crown Golf is committed to shaping the future of golf in the UK and showing its support to the junior game and the excellent work of the Golf Foundation. We want a modern approach to the game which makes golf accessible to all and we appreciate our members’ efforts to support junior golf.”

Peter handed over a £14,000 cheque to the Golf Foundation during the successful two-week festival of golf at St Mellion International Hotel, Golf & Country Club.

The Golf Foundation helps 500,000 children a year to experience golf for the first time and staged coaching sessions for 24 local junior competition winners as part of the festival.

Chief Executive, Mike Round, said: “We are delighted Crown Golf has made such a wonderful contribution for our vital work in junior grass roots development.”

The grand finale of the festival was The Midas English Seniors Open (17th-19th Aug) - won by Bill Longmuir - which drew impressive crowds throughout the weekend. More than 150 St Mellion International Hotel, Golf and Country Club members kindly gave up their time to marshal and help with live updates and leader boards.

While the competition took centre stage on The Nicklaus Course, former Trethorne Golf Club Captain Ivor Edmunds won The Captain’s Charity Hole in One Competition with an ace at the 10th hole of the Old Course.

Other highlights during the fortnight included The St Mellion International Open Amateur Championship (7th-9th Aug), which was scooped by Sam Hutsby of Liphook Golf Club; and the Crown Golf Members Pro/Am, where 100 members and visitors came to St Mellion to celebrate the Festival of Golf.

Despite the rain which lashed St Mellion, players in the Midas English Seniors Open were highly complementary about the condition of the course and the way course manager Mike Bush and his team had set it up for the event.

And players and officials welcomed Crown Golf’s decision to spend £13 million on remodelling and redeveloping St Mellion over the next 18 months, with the aim of bringing a main European Tour golf event to the region in 2009.

Peter Manby, CEO Crown Golf Group
Tel: +44 (0)1344 383975, Email: p.manby@crown-golf.co.uk