We’re big believers in doing our bit to help folk going through tough times, and that’s why Wild Horse Turf has been sponsoring a charity golfing event for the past eight years. Each year up to 150 golfers converge at Twin Waters Resort for the annual Sunshine Coast Men of League Golf Day.
A national charity, the Men of League Foundation was established in 2002 to provide support to the tight-knit rugby league community. Whether it’s for surgery, rehab, specialist care, mental health or those who find themselves down on their luck, the league supports them.
We’re passionate about this cause, and not just because chief grass grower Dean is former player and thinks rugby league is the best sport in world. But because we’re a family-run turf business in a supportive Sunshine Coast community and we know the value in helping others.
You might also be interested to learn that Dean’s uncle, Bob Hagan and wife Laurel, have been involved with the Men of League since its inception and are heavily involved in the Sunshine Coast branch. Bob has a long association with league, having played for the Bulldogs and the Australian team and later in life being appointed the CEO of the Bulldogs.
So, you can see that we’re a league family through and through, well that and we also have a soft spot for golf, hence our passion for sponsoring this event. As well as donating a $200 cash prize, we also sponsor a hole-in-one challenge to the value of $30,000! And this year one of the players missed out by a mere 26cm – we hope next year this prize will be snapped up.
Event organiser and MC is Tony Durkin, a prominent rugby league journalist who also used to work for the Broncos. He says 144 golfers teed off during the charity day, and as for the hole-in-one, only eight players landed on the green, including himself.
“Wild Horse Turf’s sponsorship of the golf day is a major contributing factor towards our most successful event ever – both financially and socially. Our local committee is most grateful for this support, which has allowed us to continue our welfare work for Sunshine Coast families with ties to rugby league,” says Tony.
In its 12th year, Tony says the event is growing in popularity and was again sold out this year, with people on the waiting list to take part. He says the response from the Sunshine Coast community is overwhelming but players also travelled from Brisbane, Gympie and the Gold Coast to take part.
“We were also pleased to have two local amateur golfers attend, they were 23-year-old Charlie Dann and 17-year-old Sarah Wilson; they hit tee shots for some of the players. The Sunshine Coast Men of League committee couldn’t be happier with the result,” he says.
Overall this year’s charity event was a smashing success and Dean and the team at Wild Horse Team are proud to be in the position to help local footy players and their families. We can’t wait to be involved in this event next year, and hopefully be able to gift someone $30,000.
Speaking of giving things away, we’re always up for sharing our turf knowledge with you, so drop us a line or call us on 5496 9790 and we can have a chat.
