Most people would consider it inconceivable to play 135 holes of golf in a day, but that’s just what 12 pros from local golf clubs managed to do last Monday at the 26th annual Golf-A-Thon to benefit the VNA Hospice Foundation. This year John’s Island Club hosted the event for the first time, inviting the pros to play at its challenging West Course.
Members from the various clubs contribute on behalf of their respective pros at what has become the VNA’s single largest fundraiser. Organizers announced Monday evening that the event had raised $305,000, but they were still hoping to best last year’s record-breaking total of $340,000. The event has grown considerably since its first year, when four pros tested out the links of the then-new Orchid Island Golf Club course, playing 100 holes and raising $26,000.
This year’s players were Ken Weyand, John’s Island Club; Pat Cerjan, Pointe West Country Club; Matthew Challenor, Windsor Club; Pat Gorman, Bent Pine Golf Club; Randy Hedgecock, Vero Beach Country Club; Joe Kern, Indian River Club; Casey Cox, Hawks Nest Golf Club (Moorings); Don Meadows, Quail Valley Golf Club; Frank Mentzer, Grand Harbor Club; Bela Nagy, Sandridge Golf Club; Mike Schuette, Riomar Country Club; and Rich Waage, Orchid Island Golf Club.
“Ba Stone brought this idea from Connecticut. Pat Gorman from Bent Pine is the only pro who has participated in all of them,” said Kerry Bartlett, foundation vice president.
“I love playing golf and the interaction with the other pros, the VNA staff and the support I get from the Bent Pine members all make for a great day,” said Gorman. “The VNA is a great organization. I have firsthand experience because my mother was at Hospice House. The care was so incredible that I’ll always be indebted to them.”
“These members love their club pros. The opportunity to support them is the reason they participate,” said Bartlett. “It’s kind of competitive. The members watch what the others are doing and try to see if they can beat them.”
Other than some good-natured rivalry among the pros and a chance for bragging rights, there was no award for low score. The only true competition among the dozen players came at the very end, with a shoot-out (best of three) on No. 13, a par-3, 135-yard hole. John’s Island’s own Ken Weyand made his members proud, hitting closest to the pin.
“I think the most important thing is they have such fun; they love the idea of playing 135 holes in one day,” said Carrie Trooboff of John’s Island Club, who co-chaired with Robbie Saxton from Indian River Club. “Once they start doing it, they don’t want to give up their spot to another pro at their club.”
“They get to play with their fellow pros, which is something they don’t generally get to do,” added Saxton.
Saxton describes their role as that of liaison, “the glue that puts it together,” noting that more than 100 volunteers help out in one fashion or another. Some relish the chance to zip around the course with each player, taking turns in two-hour shifts as “pro caddy” drivers.
“There’s another golf cart with two volunteers in it from any club, following along raking bunkers and fixing divots, which is very important,” said Trooboff. “The guys are driving like 100 miles per hour nonstop; they don’t even stop for lunch.”
Funds raised through the event help enable the VNA to provide compassionate care to everyone they serve and continue with its mission to never turn a patient away because of an inability to pay.
