The Lakers Niners and members of the Hamilton Boys Golf Team. Photo taken by Jonathon Yu.
David Mork, Member, Niners League
In March 2015 there were 41 Niners and 15 Hamilton players and their coach for a fundraising event during our normal course play on the Palms Course in Oakwood, along with 22 empty pizza boxes and light refreshments served after the event. The initial setup was that each group of Niners would play with a member of the team. Due to other commitments (it was during the school’s spring break), three team members could not play. Handicaps of the Hamilton players ranged from 0 to 9, and that is their 18 hole handicap! The golf coach, Steve Kanner, was very proud of his players, as he should be, as they are the Arizona 2014 A1A Division 1 State Champions, achieving that ranking in the fall of 2014!
The event was discussed in November 2014 during a meeting with the coach and the principal of Hamilton when they were at a Sun Lakes Rotary Club meeting; I asked them if the team would like to arrange a day to play with the Niners League. The team had just won the state championship weeks earlier and they were happy to showcase their talents to a group of retirees who, on average, have a nine hole handicap that is two times any of the Hamilton Boys Players/Team 18 hole handicap!
Those groups who played as a foursome or a threesome (one from Hamilton and the rest of the group from the Niners) were amazed at the swing talent and the accuracy of the shots by the team! The lowest score was not by a Niner, but by a Hamilton player, who was one under par and he was a sophomore! There were pastries in the morning, and the entire team was assembled and on the driving range long before many of the Niners were in their slots at the cart lineup.
Needless to say, the boys certainly outscored the Niners, but it was all in the spirit of a fundraiser for their team. All of the Niners contributed to the team’s golf fund and all contributions were eligible for an Arizona tax credit. In all, the event raised $905 for use by the golf team, which is administrated by the coach and the school. At the conclusion of the event, Papa John’s had opened early and delivered, just in time, 22 freshly baked assorted pizzas, which were gone in a flash! The Clubhouse lawn was the perfect place for all to discuss the round and distribute the prizes to the Hamilton Golf Team, (provided by the Niners) and prizes to the Niners (provided by Hamilton) for the low gross, low net and closest-to-the-pin! The team has their own Facebook page, and later that afternoon, Mr. Yu (father to two of the players from Hamilton) had posted over 70 photos of the event. Thanks to all who participated and we will do it again next year!