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ORIGINAL TEE GOLF CLASSIC CELEBRATES HISTORY WITH SPORTS, ENTERTAINMENT AND BUSINESS INFLUENCERS

 

Wendell Haskins, Beverly Johnson, Amari "Tigress" Avery, Lee Elder and Roland Martin attend the 16th Original Tee Golf Classic at Wild Turkey Golf Club in Hamburg, N.J.

 

Download/view all pics here: http://bit.ly/1gK0Z47

 

(NEW YORK) - July 20, 2015 - Yesterday, the Original Tee Golf Classic held its 16 th  tournament at  Wild Turkey Golf Club  in Hamburg, N.J. Over 250 VIPs from various industries participated in the all-day event which honored golf legend  Lee Elder  for breaking the color barrier at the Masters Tournament in Augusta, GA forty years ago.

Attendees included supermodel  Beverly Johnson , radio/tv host  Roland Martin, Wendell Haskins  (founder, Original Tee Golf Classic),  Iain Page  (FOX29 Philadelphia anchor),  Keith Clinkscales  (CEO, REVOLT),  Len Burnett  (Publisher, UPTOWN),  Sharon Harris  (Microsoft), golf phenoms  Amari "Tigress" Avery  and  Alona Avery , entertainment attorney  Matt Middleton ,  Jeff Sanchez  (NBA Senior Manager, Event Activation), designer  Tony Shellman, Derrin Woodhouse  (Samsung),  Michael Davis  (Philadelphia Eagles),  Shante Bacon  (founder, 135 th  Street Agency), Dres from Black Sheep, advertising exec Malcolm Gillian,  Byron Kirkland  (manager of Machine Gun Kelly),  Kevin Peck  (manager of Dru Hill),  Lenny Singletary  (BNY Mellon),  Kainon  Jasper  (Bridge Intelligence Group),  Latoya Finney  (Asst. VP at Barclays Capital),  Frank Fraley  (Mt. Vernon Chamber of Commerce),  Michael Vann  (former owner of The Shark Bar) and  Jim Kelly III.

 

Guests enjoyed on-site haircuts by  Denny Moe's Superstar Barbershop  from Harlem; an all-day open bar courtesy of  Zacapa Rum  and  Ciroc ; a silent auction of sports memorabilia; and clinics hosted by PGA professionals who introduced 25 novice attendees to the game of golf. Golf coach  Buddy Cooper  led the Nine-Hole Youth Competition along with several PGA professionals including NFPGA Section Member  Anthony G. Stepney  (UMES DiversitiTee Golf & ProjectNext Tee), New Jersey Section Members  Jim Famula  (Raritan Golf Center),
Bill Nightingale  (Life Member) and  Hal Myers  (Life Member).

 

Later that evening at the Awards Dinner hosted by Iain Page, Beverly Johnson - last year's True Original honoree - presented Elder with this year's True Original Award. Tournament winners included golfers  Henry Lopez  and  Greg Lewis for the adult competition, and  Khalid Page, Diana McCready  and  Alona Avery  for the youth competition.

 

Special thanks to our sponsors Chico's, Mercedes-Benz, National Basketball Association (NBA), Zacapa Rum, Delta Airlines, Times Square Communications, Ciroc, Bai Water and GIII by Carl Banks.

 

For more information on the Original Tee Golf Classic, visit www.originaltee.com.

 

Photos: Stephen Knight

 

 

Supermodel Beverly Johnson (left); radio/tv host Roland Martin (center); Lee Elder (right)

 

 

Wendell Haskins, Roland Martin and Matt Middleton (left); Lee Elder with Tony Shellman and Lenzi Shellman (right)

 

Kevin Peck, Len Burnett and Keith Clinkscales (left); Shante Bacon and Terri Haskins (right)

 

Byron Kirkland, Jeff Sanchez, Malcolm Gillian and Keith Solomon

 

Dres from Black Sheep (left); Lonnie Jones (center); Amari "Tigress" Avery (right)

 

 

Wendell makes introductory remarks (left) while Nicole and Matt Middleton look on (right)
 

A couple young golfers are ready for the youth tournament (left), while spectators ready themselves for the game (right)

 

Derrin Woodhouse and Matt Middleton (left); Michael Davis (right)

 

Kevin Peck and Kainon Jasper (left); Lenny Singletary (right)

 

Game time!

 

 

Lee Elder (left) and Amari (right) take their first swing

 

Roland Martin (left); Beverly Johnson (center); Keith Clinkscales (right)

 

Later on at the Awards Dinner...

 

Iain Page hosts the dinner (left); Lee Elder accepts True Original Award from Beverly Johnson and Wendell Haskins (right)

 

Lee Elder thanks Original Tee for the Award (left) and holds it up proudly on the green carpet (right)

 

Adult tournament winners Henry Lopez and Greg Lewis with Wendell Haskins

 

 

Youth tournament winners (from left) Diana McCready, Khalid Page, Coach Buddy Cooper, Wendell Haskins, Iain Page and Alona Avery

 

 

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ABOUT ORIGINAL TEE, INC.

Original Tee, Inc. was founded by Wendell J. Haskins -- director of sports and entertainment relations at PGA of America -- with a vision of paying homage to African American pioneers in the sport of golf. The company name and first product - the "Original Tee-Shirt" - was inspired by Dr. George F. Grant, the African American inventor of the golf tee. Original Tee's core objectives are preservation of the game of golf, education on African American accomplishments in golf and instructing and developing a pipeline of new golf enthusiasts - especially youth. Original Tee's competitive advantage is grounded in its broad reaching relationships within the entertainment and sports industries. The growing popularity of golf among African Americans, coupled with market understanding, provides a broad platform of opportunities for Original Tee within the leisure sports and the lifestyle brand marketplace including apparel, merchandising, event management and promotional partnerships. The Original Tee Golf Classic (OTGC), our premier golf tournament, is one of the cornerstones of the company and enables us to contribute to causes and initiatives whose goals and commitments match our own.

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Shante Bacon

Founder/CEO

shante@135stAgency.com

Twitter: @ShanteBacon

 

Saptosa Foster

Managing Partner

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Twitter: @Saptosa135th