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 Jack Marin won last year's event with a 1-over-par score, the first time the winning total wasn't below par (COURTESY: Cox Celebrity Championship). But the desired feel for this month’s Cox Celebrity Championship at Morgan Run Resort and Club in Rancho Santa Fe is more like Sunday afternoon of a professional golf tournament, said Dave Miller, whose Integrated Sports Marketing founded the event in 1999. When the tournament was hosted by San Diego Chargers quarterback Stan Humphries, it was known as the Celebrity Classic. With this year’s passing of the torch to Drew Brees, another former Chargers signal caller, the event name was changed to Celebrity Championship to elevate the competitive profile. “What I think makes this tournament attractive to the celebrities is the competitive format, the emphasis on competitive golf,” said Miller, the president of ISM. “We want the Celebrity Championship trophy to be what these celebrities covet. They may already have a Super Bowl championship and they may already be in the Hall of Fame, but this is something they don’t have.” There are no bona fide majors on the celebrity golf circuit, although a case could be made for the Cox Championship. Some of the nation’s best celebrity golfers — including former major league pitcher Rick Rhoden, NHL goaltender Grant Fuhr and NFL quarterback Trent Dilfer — have already won at Morgan Run, and with four victories (2000, 2002, 2003 2007) Rhoden is the only golfer with multiple wins. The course is no pushover. Former NBA All-Star Jack Marin won last year’s 36-hole event with a 1-over-par total, the first time the winning score wasn’t in red numbers. That was a testament to difficult conditions — including thick rough and fast greens — as well as steady breezes. While former NFL quarterback Billy Joe Tolliver, actor Jack Wagner and former MLB Cy Young Award winner Bret Saberhagen are among the players looking for their first Cox title, one of the most notable storylines at Morgan Run is the appearance of actor/comedian Ray Romano. The “Everybody Loves Raymond” star is coming off a stint working with instructor Hank Haney on Golf Channel’s “The Haney Project” series. Besides the stars on the links, the most important aspect of the Cox Celebrity Championship remains the causes the tournament benefits. Funds raised benefit Rady Children’s Hospital, San Diego Armed Services YMCA, Friends of Scott and the Brees Dream Foundation. Plus, Saturday of the tournament will be the second annual Family Day, and Sunday is Military Appreciation Day, with free admission for San Diego’s military and their families with military ID, and free lunch for the first 1,500 active military personnel and their family members who register online. Cox Celebrity Championship Hosted by Drew Brees Where: Morgan Run Resort and Club, Rancho Santa Fe. When: Friday, May 21, through Sunday, May 23. Celebrity pro-am (36 holes) is Friday-Saturday; celebrity tournament (36 holes) is Saturday-Sunday. Saturday is Family Day (free autographs, popcorn and snowcones for the first 500 children) and Sunday is Military Appreciation Day (free lunch for first 1,500 military members and their families, free SportClips haircuts to first 1,500 military members). Purse: $100,000. Tickets: Three-day tournament tickets are $10. Children under 10 admitted free with adult. Military are free with valid identification. Show your Ralphs Rewards Card at the gate and get in for free. More info: (858) 836-0133 or visit celebritychampionship.com. Also on Facebook and Twitter. Notable: The 12th annual tournament, hosted by New Orleans Saints Super Bowl MVP quarterback Drew Brees, has been won by a former professional athlete each year. Baseball players have accounted for six of the 11 victories, with pitcher Rick Rhoden winning four times. Did you know: The only Hall of Fame athlete to win the event is NHL goaltender Grant Fuhr. ALSO SEE: Drew Brees talks golf and the Cox Celebrity Championship Brees ready to host Cox Celebrity Championship Drew Brees named host of Cox Celebrity Championship |
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