On May 16, the winner of the Rex Hospital Open Junior Invitational tournament will be thinking about more than where to place his crystal award. The fortunate player will be focusing his sights on the coming week at the Nationwide Tour's Rex Hospital Open. To earn this exemption he will have to beat several of the top ranked junior golfers in the country. The tournament field is among the strongest of the year and includes high school seniors playing in their last event before graduation and for many the last event before they move up to collegiate and top amateur golf.
2010 marks the third year of this event. Originally started and operated by the Rex Healthcare Foundation, the Tarheel Golf Foundation was selected to run the event in 2010. Moving the tournament responsibilities to the Tarheel Golf Foundation allows the Tournament Hosts to focus on expanding the reach and activities associated with the Rex Hospital Open. The Tarheel Golf Foundation operates one of the largest junior golf programs in the Southeastern United States. With over 900 members and most of the top ranked players in the region the TGF was prepared to take over as the presenting organization of the 2010 the Rex Hospital Open Junior Invitational. This year the event is expanded to 36 holes over two golf courses, Lonnie Poole Golf Course at NC State University and TPC Wakefield Plantation, the site of the Nationwide Tour event.
The Tarheel Golf Foundation will donate all proceeds from the Rex Hospital Junior Invitational to the Rex Healthcare Foundation. "This is about giving junior golfers an opportunity to compete at a higher level. The Tarheel Golf Foundation strives to provide affordable, highly competitive golf tournaments at great golf courses in the Carolinas. The two golf courses we are using at this event are among the best in the Southeast. The Field for the Rex Hospital Junior Invitational is among the strongest, so this is a great event for our young players.", stated Eric Murray, Tournament Director, " We hope to see this event continue to grow and benefit both junior golfers and the community served by Rex Healthcare."
About the Tarheel Golf Foundation
The Tarheel Golf Foundation was formed in 2008 to provide nationally ranked junior golf tournaments with a low total cost of participation. With nearly 1,000 members tournament fields are typically strong. Two day events are restricted to high school boys, a limited field of middle school division players and girls ages 12-18. Events open to juniors without residency restrictions. Players hail from 23 states and 5 countries. More information is available at www.tarheelgolf.org.
