Life, liberty and the pursuit of perfect par
– that’s what South Valley will celebrate next weekend at the
start of the local Fourth of July celebration
Morgan Hill – Life, liberty and the pursuit of perfect par – that’s what South Valley will celebrate next weekend at the start of the local Fourth of July celebration.
As the United States prepares to celebrate its 230th birthday, Morgan Hill’s FireCracker Golf Classic will celebrate its own birthday – the big 10. The popular annual sporting event – which will take place Friday – raises money for various Independence Day Inc. events such as the annual street dance, downtown parade and evening fireworks show.
Michele Naylor, Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce special events director, described how she, Bonnie Williams, Sheri Turner-Weber and Janey Murihead became the Founding Mothers of the Firecracker Classic a decade ago.
“We were four women that were becoming avid golfers and we thought that one way to satisfy our need for golf was to put on a golf tournament,” she said. “The first year (it) was held at the Gilroy Golf Course. It was a good time. We’ve turned a profit the first year and every year since.”
Alex Kennett, the founder of the “modern IDI,” said he liked the four women’s idea of a tournament to raise money for the non-profit group.
“I became sort of a facilitator,” he said. “I was president (of IDI) then and up to my hips in other stuff, and we were sitting around trying to figure out how to get money – we were really poor.”
Although other South Valley tournaments have been around longer, the FireCracker Classic, in its decade of existence, is the longest continually running golf tournament in the area, Kennett said.
Morgan Hill resident Monique Dubois has served as the chair of the tournament for the last two years. In 2005, she brought the game to the swank Coyote Creek Golf Course north of town.
“Last year, we determined to bring the tournament up a notch, and that’s why we decided to go to Coyote Creek,” she said.
The laid-back fun-spirited atmosphere of the tournament helps to make it a popular summer event for South Valley residents, she said.
“It’s a nice course, but we’re not the U.S. Open,” she said.
Registration for this year’s tournament starts at noon on Friday, and golfers will have the opportunity to buy raffle tickets for various prizes.
Participants must wear appropriate golf attire, Dubois emphasized. Men should wear shirts with collars and sleeves, slacks, golf or Bermuda shorts. Women should wear dresses, skirts, golf or Bermuda shorts and blouses or skirts with collars. Spikeless golf shoes are required on the golf course and practice areas.
“Golf is a ‘gentleman’s game,’ and I hate that term because it excludes us women,” Dubois said. “But it’s a game where you don’t come out in torn jeans and a T-shirt.”
A box lunch will be provided for everyone entering the tournament.
“Then they’re going to take off and go golfing and when they come back, we’re going to have hosted hors d’ oeuvres and then the raffle and award the prizes to the winners,” Dubois said.
Various golf packages are being offered:
The Freedom Golfer package for four players costs $2,500 and will include tee sponsorship and a banner displayed at all IDI events, plus print, ad and radio recognition, and VIP tent privileges for 10 people.
The Celebrate America Golf Event Sponsor for two players costs $1,500. The Liberty Golf package for two players costs $500. The Patriot Golfer is a package for a single player at $150.
A tee or pin sponsorship costs $250.
Each golfer receives a golf cart, 18 holes of play, range balls for practice, lunch as well as appetizers at the tournament presentation and raffle at 6pm.
Dubois got involved with the FireCracker Classic because she and her family have made the Morgan Hill Fourth of July events a tradition since moving here in 1976.
“It’s just a fun, fun family holiday,” she said. “It’s part of what makes Morgan Hill the town that it is and why we want to live here.”
Martin Cheek is the author of ‘The Silicon Valley Handbook.’ He can be reached at ma****@**********rs.com.
