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Tambellini and Nicklaus Win as Le May Doan Beats Gretzky in a Scorecard Playoff

THORNBURY, ON, July 12, 2009 – Wayne Gretzky’s second annual Nationwide Tour golf tournament finished today with Roger Tambellini earning the victory with a  20-under 265 score, taking the $144,018 USD prize purse and the coveted Gretzky champion’s ring.

Other winners included Olympian Catriona Le May Doan who took the celebrity title in a scorecard playoff with a 42-under 243 score (edging out tournament host Wayne Gretzky) to win the keys to a brand new 2010 Ford Mustang. Cassie Campbell finished third with a 40-under 245. The Amateur title went to Steve Nicklaus, son of golf legend Jack Nicklaus, who shot a 39-under, 246 winning a brand new 2010 Ford Taurus.

“Congratulations to Roger, Catriona and Steve – they all played an impressive couple of rounds this week,” said Wayne Gretzky, who was narrowly beaten by Le May Doan.  “Catriona put the pressure on and made it tough to keep up –we’ll hope for a rematch next year.”

As with the 2008 event, celebrities drew large crowds during the first two rounds, with notable names not making the cut including Charles Barkley, Brett Hull, Todd Bertuzzi, Donovan Bailey, Damon Allen, Mike Keenan, Janet Gretzky and many others. Also making a massive contribution was the local community, as more than 700 volunteers rallied around the event, providing support on the course and through hospitality, security and transportation responsibilities.

“Last year, we were overwhelmed with the support from the friends, volunteers and local communities,” said Gretzky. “There was no way we could have hoped for more this year but we have been completely blown away, with more people helping us make this event something special.”

As the 15th of 29 events of the 2009 Nationwide Tour season, fans were treated to some of golf’s next ‘great ones’, as the pros competed at the mid-way point of their season. With the Nationwide Tour’s top 25 earning a spot in the PGA TOUR next year, competition is fierce, with much more at stake than just tournament winnings.

“The Nationwide Tour is thrilled to come back to Canada this year,” said Jim Duncan, Nationwide Tour Tournament Director. “The fans, staff and community made this a very popular event for players in 2008, and this year is no different. The courses are in perfect shape and the players really love competing here.”

As with any major event, corporate sponsors have played a major role, with Ford and Samsung participating as title and presenting sponsors respectively. Other sponsors include Scotiabank, Crescent Point Energy Group, Corona, Marquis Jet, Grey Goose, Boston Pizza, Tim Hortons, PepsiCo, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Callaway, Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs, IMI, Hockey Canada, Bruce Power, OLG Casino Brantford, Liquidation World, PAH (II) INC., Roots, Y&R, Liquidation World, PAK-MAN Disposal Services, The FAN 590 and Rogers Sportsnet.

“This event couldn’t happen without the support of our sponsors,” said Gretzky. “It’s been a very humbling experience to see their commitment to helping make this tournament great. I can’t thank them enough.”

Proceeds from the tournament go to the Wayne Gretzky Foundation whose mission it is to provide less fortunate youth with the opportunity to experience the sport of hockey.

For information, please contact:

Mark James, Cohn & Wolfe
647-924-5700
416-400-5263 (cell)
Mark.james@cohnwolfe.ca

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ABOUT THE TOURNAMENT

Coming to Thornbury, Ontario, July 6-12, 2009, the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic presented by Samsung will provide fans with the opportunity to watch 160 professionals play with celebrities and amateurs in a pro-am style tournament. As an official Nationwide Tour stop, players will be competing for one of the year’s largest purses at $800,099, with all four rounds televised LIVE on the Golf Channel. Two courses will host the tournament – the Georgian Bay Club and The Raven Golf Club at Lora bay – with proceeds from the tournament to benefit the Wayne Gretzky Foundation. Further information, including tickets and volunteer opportunities, can be found at www.gretzky.com/golf.

Article by Don Schwartz, WG Authentic / Visit Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic presented by Samsung

Wayne Gretzky understands the power of an assist – after all, he tallied 1,963 during his NHL career. His charitable foundation also makes plenty of assists, coming to the aid of less fortunate youth, having raised more than $1 million to date for kids in hockey.

One of the Wayne Gretzky Foundation’s largest fundraisers – the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic golf tournament – makes an annual assist to the Foundation in large part from the work of approximately 650 volunteers, who make countless assists of their own.

“We couldn’t run the tournament without volunteers,” said Kelly Dixon-Boldt, director of volunteers for the Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic. “It wouldn’t exist without a volunteer base.”

Volunteers are the lifeblood of the tournament, providing the necessary manpower to make the fundraising event come together. Volunteers are called upon to fulfill a variety of duties from registering players to marshalling the course to doing the individual scoring to caddying and all points in between.

This year’s tournament is scheduled to tee off on July 6 at the Georgian Bay Club and the Raven at Lora Bay in idyllic Collingwood, Ontario. The pro-am style tournament is a stop on the PGA Nationwide Tour and pairs amateurs and celebrities along with professional golfers. The unique format not only entertains the galleries in attendance, but provides a memorable experience for volunteers who get to work alongside notable athletes and entertainers from the past and present.

“We always call these jobs ‘getting inside the ropes,’” Dixon-Boldt said. “Anything that gets you inside the ropes and gets you closer to the players are usually the jobs that require the most number of volunteers. If somebody’s caddying for one of the pros or celebrities, they get to be right with that group the whole time. They get to watch them and interact with them and talk with them and all that kind of stuff.”

Celebrities at past classics have included the likes of Charles Barkley, John Elway, Alan Thicke and Mark Messier. Confirmed for this year’s Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic are five-time World and Olympic Champion Donovan Bailey, former NHL star Scott Thornton and current member of the Calgary Flames, Mike Cammalleri, with more to be named later.

The chance to be ‘inside the ropes,’ along with the opportunity to give back to less fortunate youth and simply enjoy summertime in the Blue Mountain countryside, are reasons why the Classic has a volunteer retention rate of nearly 80-percent from last year’s event. However, there are still plenty of openings for people willing to give of themselves to help raise money for charity, regardless of their golf knowledge.

“Those who just want to get involved because they know it’ll be a fun event and they have friends who perhaps are involved in the event as well generally get involved in the non-golf related committees,” Dixon-Boldt said. “That includes registration and helping to organize the volunteers. We need to have a volunteer group in charge of the volunteers themselves, making sure everyone gets fed, has drinks on the golf course and those types of things. There are certainly committees that are more related to people who know the game of golf, so people who feel confident and know the game would normally fall into the walking, scoring and/or marshalling and caddying positions.”

Dixon-Boldt also notes that volunteering at the Classic is not limited to individual commitments.

“We’re also getting non-profit groups and groups of friends to take on the responsibility of marshalling a hole,” she said. “You can gather 10 of your friends and take on responsibility of marshalling a specific hole on one of the golf courses for the entire tournament. So you kind of make it kind of like your own hole.”

While money raised at the tournament goes towards the Foundation as a whole, local Collingwood-area charities also benefit from the assist volunteers provide.

“There are a lot of people supportive of the tournament because it does give back to some local charities as well those that many of the volunteers are involved with,” Dixon-Boldt said. “It’s nice for people to know that the money goes back to the Foundation but there’s also some part of it that stays locally in the community.”

People wanting to make an assist of their own can register to volunteer and select their area of interest at www.gretzky.com/golf.

Article by Don Schwartz, WG Authentic / Visit Ford Wayne Gretzky Classic presented by Samsung