Flagler College golf tournament raises $35,000 for scholarships

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Photo Caption: President's Golf Classic winners (from left to right) Luke Detering, Tom Lawrence, Bernadette Twardy, Kirk Irvin, along with Flagler College President Dr. William Abare, Jr.

ST. AUGUSTINE, FL (10/20/2010)(readMedia)-- The 2010 Flagler College President's Golf Classic raised $35,000 this year for the Flagler College Athletics Scholarship Fund. The tournament was held on Oct. 4 at the Dye's Valley course in TPC Sawgrass and attracted 115 players.

Laura Stevenson, director of College Relations, said that this year's Golf Classic was one of the best in its 10-year history.

"The weather was beautiful, the course was in pristine condition, the players had a wonderful time, and thanks to our sponsors and players, we raised the most money in the history of the tournament," she said. "I am so pleased with the outcome of this year's tournament, and I look forward to another great President's Golf Classic in 2011."

"What made the event so nice was that all the proceeds go to our Athletic Department," said Flagler College President Dr. William T. Abare, Jr.

Bill Hughes, general manager of TPC Sawgrass, said that the President's Golf Classic is very important to TPC Sawgrass, and it's very important to Flagler College.

"TPC Sawgrass stands for many things, but one of the main components of our mission statement is the culture of giving back, making change and saving people's lives through charity and giving," said Hughes. "Flagler College changes students' lives through the culture of family, through the culture of teamwork, through the culture of community and through the culture of excellence."

The first place team with a low score of 55 was Bernadette Twardy, Tom Lawrence, Luke Detering and Kirk Irvin. Twardy is the Sport Management Department chair, and Lawrence, Detering and Irvin are all Flagler College Sport Management alumni.

The seven teams with the lowest score as well as the team with the highest score were awarded prizes.

At last year's classic, a new tradition was started – The Abare Cup. The Abare Cup is a perpetual trophy that was established by the Flagler College Board of Trustees on February 18, 2009, as a tribute to William T. Abare, Jr., who has served Flagler College in various administrative positions since 1971, and as president since 2001. Each year, the winning team's names are added to the Abare Cup.

TPC Sawgrass was the course sponsor. The specialty gift sponsors were The Bailey Group and Baker's Sporting Goods. The St. Augustine Alligator Farm was the practice range sponsor. Batson-Cook Construction was the photography sponsor. Prosperity Bank was the beverage sponsor. Gold sponsors included Innovative Mechanical Services, Kresge, Platt & Abare CPA, Orthopaedic Associates of St. Augustine, Higher One, Nanak's Landscaping, Thompson Baker Agency, Inc., Total Office Solutions, Inc., Village Key and Alarm, KnowNow HQ, Burkhardt Sales and Service, A.D. Davis Construction, Casa Monica Hotel and Jack Wilson Family of Dealerships. The silver sponsors were Life and Love Studios, Flagler's Legacy, Axela Government Relations, Bozard Ford, Converged Communications, Curtis 1000, Inc., Rick and LeighAnn Groux, Hauber Fowler and Associates LLC, Aramark and Signs Now. Hole sponsors included Fairfield Inn &Suites; Courtyard By Marriott St. Augustine, Chick-fil-A, Craft's Trophies and Awards, Camachee Cove, Florida Power and Light Co., Zaxby's, Marineland's Dolphin Conservation Center, JimLin Properties, Inc., The Hardy Group, Dalton Direct Carpet, Regency Electric and Allen and Delores Lastinger.

Before heading out to the course, players enjoyed a breakfast courtesy of Glenmore/Vicar's Landing.