PGA pros come to town for Centre golf team fund raiser

RELEASED: Oct. 19, 2006

[Note: The following article contains information from an article written by Gary Moyers and published in Danville's The Advocate-Messenger. We are reprinting the information with Mr. Moyers' permission.]

DANVILLE, KY—Selected individuals had the opportunity last Monday to raise money for Centre College golf programs by partnering with three members of the PGA Champions Tour—Fuzzy Zoeller, Jim Thorpe and Dana Quigley—for 18 holes of golf and entertainment at the Danville Country Club.

The fundraiser came about due to a connection that Centre athletic director and director of golf Brian Chafin made during his days as a basketball coach at Clarkson University in Potsdom, N.Y.

"One of my players was Mike Lewis, who's Jim Thorpe's best friend and agent," Chafin says. "Mike and I stay in close contact, and Quigley is Thorpe's good friend. Lloyd Brummett from Perryville is Fuzzy's good friend and knowing the other two were here, Fuzzy threw his hat in. It's a real feather in our cap to have three celebrities like this help us out."

Zoeller, a New Albany, Ind. native, holds two PGA Tour Major Championships (1979 Masters, 1984 U.S. Open) and one Champions Tour Major Championship (2002 Senior PGA Championship). His 1979 Masters win made him one of only three golfers to win the prestigious tournament in his first appearance.

Although Zoeller is widely know for his locker-room humor and fan-friendly banter, all three golfers enjoyed themselves on the Danville course.

"We have a lot of fun together," said Thorpe, winner of 16 professional titles. "Fuzzy's the main attraction, but we figure if we can be like Fuzzy, we can be all right. We're just hitching a free ride."

Quigley, who has won 13 professional tournaments and has been referred to as the Cal Ripken Jr. of the Champions Tour for once playing in 278 consecutive tournaments, was very willing to participate in the event.

"We're just three guys who they want to have some fun," Quigley says. "It's a great group to have some fun with and get people to put up some money for the golf team."

Twelve donors, split into three groups of four, had the opportunity to play six holes each with the three pros. They not only were able to witness the talent displayed by the three, but also their senses of humor.

The three pros also realized the importance of helping young golfers.

"At my stage of life, I spent 50 years in obscurity, where no one knew who Dana Quigley was," Quigley said. "So I'm taking advantage of the platform I've been given to try and give back a bit. It's very important to work with the youth."

"I've been blessed, Jimmy's been blessed, Dana's been blessed," Zoeller said. "One great thing about the game of golf is we have the ability to raise money for different charities and events. I love the fact this is going to the college team. That's great for the kids and great for us."

Along with raising money for the golf programs, the event was an opportunity to have fun and enjoy an experience some may never have again.

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Founded in 1819, Centre College is ranked among the U.S. News top 50 national liberal arts colleges. Centre alumni, known for their nation-leading loyalty in annual financial support, include two U.S. vice presidents and two Supreme Court justices. For more, visit http://www.centre.edu/web/elevatorspeech/

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