April 14, 2014. Louisville, KY. – The King Southern Bank Derby Festival Foundation Pro-Am Golf Tournament tees off at noon on TODAY at Big Spring Country Club. This Kentucky Derby Festival Foundation event is a fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Said Jim King, President of King Southern Bank, “We are once again excited to host the Pro-Am at Big Spring this year. The course is a professional quality venue that will challenge our players.”
King Southern Bank has been title sponsor of the event since 2005. The tournament benefits the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, a special charity for the King family. “We were very pleased to select the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society as the beneficiary of the tournament profits,” said King. “Our family has been impacted personally by these diseases and we know the importance of their work.”
University of Louisville Women’s Head Basketball Coach Jeff Walz is Honorary Chair. The tournament includes lunch, golf with a local pro, silent auction, participant gifts and a cocktail reception following the round. There are several prize packages and cash prizes for the teams and pros. Cellar Door Chocolates is providing the Closest-to-the-Pin Prize. This year’s Hole-in-One prize includes his/hers Rolex watches from Davis Jewelers. The first place winner receives a Horseshoe Southern Indiana golf package. KPGA and 1450 AM The Sports Buzz are contributing sponsors of the event.
COVERAGE NOTE: Tournament is scheduled to play, despite the wet weather. The Awards Ceremony will be held at 5:30 p.m. at Big Springs Country Club.
Since it was first held in 1974, the Pro-Am Golf Tournament has raised more than $300,000 for a wide variety of charitable organizations. The Derby Festival Pro-Am Golf Tournament started in 1974 as the Philip Morris/Kentucky Derby Festival Pro-Am Golf Tournament and has been a popular and elite tournament in Kentuckiana ever since. Over the years, the event has featured celebrities such as Pee Wee Reese, Pee Wee King, George Blanda and Denny Crum.
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) is the world’s largest voluntary health agency dedicated to blood cancer. LLS funds lifesaving blood cancer research around the world and provides free information and support services. Founded in 1949 and headquartered in White Plains, NY, LLS has chapters throughout the United States and Canada.
The Kentucky Derby Festival Foundation, a 501 (C) 3 not-for-profit charity, receives and manages charitable contributions on behalf of the Kentucky Derby Festival, Inc., its supporters and the general public. The Foundation perpetuates the Festival’s impact on the community by developing projects that highlight the Festival’s influence on the area’s cultural heritage. It works to further the Festival’s educational and charitable mission through exhibitions and performances.
Since 1956, the Derby Festival has worked to bring the community together in celebration. The Festival is an independent community organization supported by 4,000 volunteers, 400 businesses and civic groups, Pegasus Pin sponsorships and event participation. This involvement has made the Festival the largest single attended event in Kentucky and one of the leading community celebrations in the world.
