Exciting Things Are Happening

Wow – what a week Team McGladrey Member Davis Love III had at the Wyndham Championship, closing with a 6-under 64 for a one-stroke victory over Jason Gore! Congratulations on this exciting win from your friends at McGladrey, Davis!  

Davis now has three Wyndham Championship titles on his resume, and a total of 21 victories, including the 1997 PGA Championship. The win also extended Love’s 2014-15 season, as he moved from No. 186 to 76th in the FedExCup standings. It also puts him back in the Masters. The 2015-16 season will be Love’s 30th on TOUR.

In New Jersey this week for The Barclays, Davis is joined by fellow Team McGladrey Member Zach Johnson and a couple of other members of the extended McGladrey “family” -- past McGladrey Classic champions Chris Kirk (2013) and Robert Streb (2014). With an early start from tee No. 10, Davis teed off at 7:20 a.m. ET; not too far behind at 8:15 a.m., Chris teed from tee No. 1; both teeing off from tee No. 1, Zach started at 12:55 p.m. and Robert was at 1:06 p.m. Best of luck to our guys this weekend!

McGladrey, along with the Davis Love Foundation recently announced that music superstar Martina McBride will join us in the Golden Isles to perform live at The McGladrey Classic, an Official PGA TOUR Event, sponsored by McGladrey – the leading U.S. provider of assurance, tax and consulting services focused on the middle market. The concert, presented by Southeast Georgia Health System, will take place on Sat., Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. at McKinnon St. Simons Island Airport. Get your tickets soon – they’re sure to sell out fast!

Like McGladrey and Davis, McBride is dedicated to giving back to the community, as well. Among her many charitable activities, she and her fans have raised more than $50,000 to establish the Martina McBride Music Education Program, which provides a therapeutic music program for needy children at Covenant House La Alianza orphanage.

We’re excited about teaming up with Martina and bringing some great entertainment to The McGladrey Classic, as we’ve been able to do each year since its inception in 2010.

It’s been an eventful week for Team McGladrey and the 2015 McGladrey Classic, and we’re looking forward to more excitement as we grow increasingly closer to this year’s tournament. Stop by next week to learn more.

The Countdown Continues…

Time flies! It seems as if we were just congratulating Robert Streb on winning the 2014 McGladrey Classic, and it's now a mere 87 days (and counting) until the start of the 2015 tournament, which will take place at beautiful Sea Island November 16-22.  It's going to be an exciting year with quite a few changes: the player field expands to 156 PGA TOUR professionals, both the Seaside and Plantation courses will be played this year, and the tournament's name will change to The RSM Classic, following McGladrey's rebranding to RSM on Oct. 26. Of course, there will be lots more exciting aspects of this year's tournament, and we're looking forward to sharing those with you - here on our golf blog and throughout the tournament.

One thing that will remain unchanged with this year’s tournament, however: Birdies Fore Love (BFL), which will be a part of the 2015 event for the third consecutive year! BFL is a donation program, supported by McGladrey offices across the country. Over the past two years, employees from McGladrey’s 80+ offices nationwide have raised more than $860,000 for family- and children-focused charitable organizations through BFL. And that total continues to grow.

Last week, Team McGladrey member Davis Love III visited McGladrey's Schaumburg, Illinois office. Employees at that office won last year's McGladrey Classic Challenge, a friendly competition, which gave each of the firm's 80+ offices the opportunity to chose a golf fantasy team. The Schaumburg office, whose team had the lowest score, earned lunch with Davis. The putting contest raised $1,260. In addition to a meet-and-greet , speech and Q&A, Davis competed against 10 McGladrey employees in a putting contest. But that's not all... during the event last week, representatives from the office's BFL charity, Home of the Sparrow, were also in attendance and through a penny wars competition, an additional $398.41 was raised by collecting 7,389 pieces of currency. In total they raised $1,658.41 for Birdies Fore Love.

Interested in supporting Birdies Fore Love? It’s easy, and can be very rewarding. When you donate to participating charities through the BFL, everyone is a winner. That’s because your donation goes to the participating charity you select, and by guessing the number of birdies that will be made during this year’s tournament, you have a chance to win a trip for two to Sea Island! So don’t delay…support your favorite charitable organization through BFL today by visiting www.mcgladreybirdies.com.

This week, Davis is in North Carolina for the Wyndham Championship. Also playing in the tournament are a couple of other members of the extended McGladrey “family” – past McGladrey Classic winners Heath Slocum (2010) and Ben Crane (2011). Ben has an early start today (Aug. 20) at 7:40 a.m. from tee No. 1; from the same tee, Heath tees off at 12:10 p.m. ET; and Davis is at 12:40 p.m. ET from tee No. 1. Best of luck to our “guys” this weekend!

Dabbling in a different sport this week, Team McGladrey member Zach Johnson threw out the first pitch at the Chicago Cubs v. Detroit Tigers game on Tues., Aug. 18. While Zach was in Chicago, PGA TOUR Professional Jordan Spieth threw out his own first pitch at the Texas Rangers v. Seattle Mariners game. In the spirit of friendly competition, Zach and Jordan exchanged some lighthearted banter on Twitter beforehand. The challenge? Who would throw the best ‘first pitch’ – the loser would pay for dinner! Check out the video below and let us know who you think won!

 

This weekend is also Team McGladrey Member Chris DiMarco’s birthday (Sun., Aug. 23)! Leave a comment wishing him a ‘Happy Birthday’ and we’ll be sure to pass along your wishes.

Check back next week for more updates on Team McGladrey and The McGladrey Classic!

Ready for a challenge?

Team McGladrey members Zach Johnson and Davis Love III are in Wisconsin this week for the PGA Championship. Davis teed off at 12:20 p.m. CT from tee No. 1 and from the same tee, Zach teed at 1:20 p.m. CT. Best of luck to our “guys” this weekend!  

Are you up for the challenge? This year’s McGladrey Classic fundraiser for local charities is known as the Friends of the Foundation Challenge, presented by Nalley Automotive of Brunswick. Approximately 30 participating charities are 501 (c)(3) non-profit organizations whose missions align with that of the Davis Love Foundation's focus on children and families in need. The Friends of the Foundation will be selling raffle tickets at $20 each for a chance to win a 2015 Buick Verano, which will be awarded during Tournament Week. Participating charities will receive 100% of their raffle ticket sales, and in addition, the Davis Love Foundation will disburse $50,000 to them based on their percentage of ticket sales!

#DidYouKnow there are, give or take, more than 1.2 million shots hit during any given season on the PGA TOUR? These are the shots PGA TOUR players consider to be their best shots. The below excerpt from a recent PGA TOUR article features our very own Team McGladrey Member Davis Love III.

Davis Love III: 1996 Presidents Cup, Sunday singles, par-5 15th hole at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club

“I hit a 4-iron against Jumbo Ozaki and I said, ‘I'm just going to cut it in over the water. And I hit it in there, like, eagle putt. (My caddie) says nobody's ever hit a 4-iron that good. So I always claim that one. Everybody always says the shot out of the woods at TPC Sawgrass on 16 but I like that 4-iron. Whenever I pulled a 4-iron out he'd try to give me confidence – ‘remember that 4-iron you hit against Jumbo.’”

Mark your calendars! The 2015 McGladrey Classic has shared the week’s activities so you can start making your plans for the week of Nov. 16-22!

Monday, November 16 §  Gates open at 10am §  Community Day – grounds open to the public FREE of charge §  Youth Day sponsored by Southeast Georgia Health System, Special Activities, 2 – 4pm §  Monday Pro-Am Event §  Practice rounds for PGA TOUR professionals

Tuesday, November 17 §  Grounds closed to the general public §  Practice rounds for PGA TOUR professionals §  Wiffle Ball Classic presented by Krispy Kreme featuring PGA TOUR Players & Wives – open to the public – Frederica Academy Baseball Field – 5pm

Wednesday, November 18 §  Gates Open at approximately 8am §  Yamaha Pro-Am Event – located on Seaside and Plantation courses §  Charity Putting Event featuring PGA TOUR Players – Sea Island Golf Performance Center Practice Putting Green, 4pm §  Live Under the Oaks Concert Event presented by Southeast Georgia Health System (Time and Artist TBA)

Thursday, November 19 §  Gates Open at approximately 8am §  All hospitality venues open at 10am §  Round 1 of The McGladrey Classic – Tee Times TBD

Friday, November 20 §  Gates Open at approximately 8am §  All hospitality venues open at 10am §  Round 2 of The McGladrey Classic – Tee Times TBD

Saturday, November 21 §  Gates Open at approximately 8am §  Military Appreciation Day, Special Activities TBA §  All hospitality venues open at 10am §  Round 3 of The McGladrey Classic – Tee Times TBD

Sunday, November 22 §  Gates open at approximately 8am §  All hospitality venues open at 10am §  Final Round of The McGladrey Classic – Tee Times TBD §  Trophy Presentation on the 18th Green immediately following completion of play

 

Check back next week for more updates on Team McGladrey and the 2015 McGladrey Classic, which will be renamed The RSM Classic on Oct. 26.

Different Kind of Passion

Team McGladrey member Zach Johnson is back on the golf course this week in Ohio for the World Golf Championships – Bridgestone. Zach tees off at 2:15 p.m. ET from tee No. 1. Best of luck this weekend!  

Team McGladrey member Davis Love III is in the news – not for golf but for a different passion of his. #‎DidYouKnow that the McGladrey Classic tournament host, Davis Love III, has quite the passion for vintage cast-iron cookware? We sure didn’t! It all started when he was just a kid with a love for his mother's fried bologna. Read the full article on Garden & Gun.

We have another #DidYouKnow for you – Did you know that August is National Golf Month? It’s true! In honor of the month, how do you plan to celebrate? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Before closing this week’s post, we wanted to congratulate Patton Kizzire for winning the 2015 Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank! The victory in Utah was Kizzire's first win on the Web.com Tour. We look forward to seeing you at the McGladrey Classic in November, Patton!

Check back next week for more updates on Team McGladrey and the 2015 McGladrey Classic (Nov. 16-22).