Deere, Birdies and Trees – Nature in the World of Golf

This has been a busy week in the world of golf.

Team McGladrey Member Zach Johnson is in Arizona for the World Golf Championships. Zach started the competition yesterday with a match against Richard Sterne and unfortunately, it wasn’t Zach’s day.  Sterne beat him 5 and 4 to eliminate him from the competition.  Zach will be back in action next week at The Honda Classic in Florida. John Deere released some exciting news on Tuesday (Feb. 18) regarding Zach Johnson as well. John Deere has become a multi-year corporate sponsor for Zach. You’ll notice Zach sporting a new golf bag at this week’s tournament with John Deere’s trademark. Find out more about on this sponsorship in John Deere’s press release. We think the John Deere logo is a nice addition to the McGladrey logo that Zach sports. J

Speaking of new looks, have you seen the PGA TOUR’s new website? They have a new layout and enhanced functionality. If you haven’t checked it out yet, head over to www.pgatour.com and let them know what you think.  

On a somewhat sad note, the snow and ice storm that hit the South last week caused unrecoverable damage to the Eisenhower Tree at Augusta National. “Ike’s tree” was a course landmark, full of history and the subject of hundreds, if not thousands, of pictures over the years. The Atlanta Business Chronicle covered the loss in detail in a recent article. Below is an interesting tidbit on how the tree got its name:

“The…tree got its name because former President Dwight D.Eisenhower often hit into it, and at a club meeting in 1956 he proposed cutting it down. Masters co-founder Clifford Roberts ruled him out of order and adjourned the meeting, and the tree has been linked to Eisenhower ever since…”

Goodbye, Ike’s tree – the course won’t be quite the same without you!

On to happier news, Gavin Martin, 2013 Birdies Fore Love winner, picked up his Buick Encore from Nalley. (Gavin won the car by being the person to most closely guess the number of birdies at the tournament.) Congratulations, Gavin – we hope you enjoy your new “ride!” The McGladrey Classic team is already working on the 2014 Birdies Fore Love program. Watch for details soon on how YOU can enter to win.

Remember: Team McGladrey Member Chris DiMarco takes center stage on SiriusXM’s oPINionated every Tuesday morning. Tune in to listen each week. Want to join the conversation? Call 866.469.0026 to talk with Chris directly.

Finally, before we wrap up this week’s update, we want to let our readers know that Mon., Feb., 24 is Zach’s birthday! You can share your birthday wishes with him via Twitter (@ZachJohnsonPGA) or, if you prefer, you can leave your birthday greetings here on our blog, and we’ll be happy to pass along your wishes!

Check back next week to find out the latest regarding Team McGladrey and the 2014 McGladrey Classic (Oct. 20-26).