TWO of the biggest names in modern golf, Jason Day, the world’s number one golfer and Rory McIlroy, former world number one and five-time major winner, will stage an exhibition match in the Philippines on Nov. 29 at the brand new Pradera Verde Golf Club (official partner venue) in Lubao, Pampanga and it’s all in the name of charity.
While most of the money raised will go to both golfers’ foundations (Rory Foundation for McIlroy and the Brighter Days Foundation for Day), an agreement with both golfers has been reached to make sure the monies will be donated locally.
This event also represents a chance for half-Filipino Jason Day (his mother, Dening, hails from Leyte) to reconnect with his roots.
Day is dealing from a position of strength these days. He rose to the top spot in the world on the back of great golf made possible, in large part, to his prodigious ball striking abilities.
Although Day is as long as they come but his real strength is on and around the greens where he leads the PGA Tour statistical categories for putting and scoring. He is a fighter and nowhere does it show more than on the golf course.
As invincible as he may seem, Day will have his hands full with McIlroy. The Ulsterman is the best driver of the golf ball in the world today. He is longer than Day with the driver which presents a lot of scoring possibilities. Where he has struggled recently is with the putter and around the green, both areas in which Day is dominant. McIlroy, however, recently picked up a new putter and a new putting coach in American Phil Kenyon. The move immediately paid dividends when Rory won the Deutche Bank Masters last week leading the putting stats to do so.
With both men at the peak of their respective games, the Rory vs. Jason match-up is definitely one for the books.
Produced by Dolphinfire and CAA, the charity event will be on Nov. 29, with the charity gala dinner and memorabilia auction happening the night before.
VIP ticketholders will also be given the chance to play the course with the golf superstars on Nov. 30.
Salvador Zamora of Menlo Renewable Energy Corp or MREC, promoter and executive producer of this event, put the wheels in motion to have the two agree to this charity event.
Over the years, Filipinos have developed a love for golf – a sport that has been in the country for over a hundred years and has since been rising to prominence in the local sports scene. The Filipinos have evolved from being mere spectators and enthusiasts of the sport, to professionally competing with golfers around the world.
In recent times, the game’s popularity in the Philippines was propelled by a single event staged 20-years ago when Tiger Woods arrived in the country for an exhibition with local golf stars. This year, thanks to a man whose passion for the game is matched with the willingness to grow the game he so dearly loves, another landmark sports event is to be staged in the country that could launch golf into a new age of popularity.
Schedule
Nov 28 (Monday) – Shangri-la at the Fort, Manila • VIP Cocktails • Dinner Gala • Charity Auction
Nov 29 (Tuesday) – Pradera Verde Golf & Country Club • Media Press Conference • Jason Day Vs Rory Mcilroy
Battle For A Cause:
Exhibition Charity Match
Nov 30 (Wednesday) —Pradera Verde Golf & Country Club • Beat The Pros Challenge
