Check out the summary below and photos in the Gallery under 2016 WAC Golf Classic.
The seventh annual Wichita Aero Club Golf Tourney was a memorable event with highlights that included great weather, great conditions, some great shots, the “Money Ball,” and a grateful scholarship recipient that greeted golfers who took their turns trying to win a brand new car! Accompanied by her father, Patrick, on Fathers Day, Talon Wanless, a senior at Wichita State University and one of two Wichita Aero Club Scholarship recipients for 2016, had the opportunity to personally thank the nearly 100 golfers who participated in this year’s WAC Golf Classic at Crestview Country Club as we kicked off a week of golf festivities that culminated in the 27th rendering of the PGA Tour’s annual championship event in Wichita, appropriately known as the web.com’s Air Capital Classic since 2012.
The tournament not only raised significant funds for the WAC Scholarship fund, it also allowed the Aero Club to contribute support to two of our members, Robin Laws and Tessa Roberts, who flew in the annual Women’s Air Race Classic last week! We plan to honor our scholarship winners, Talon Wanless and Zavier Luciano and Robin and Tessa at a later date this summer. Zavier, who’s enrolled in A&P classes at Wichita Area Technical College, wasn’t able to make it to the WAC Golf Classic, but he’s carrying a 4.0 GPA into the current semester and expressed his gratitude for the generosity of the golfers who added to the Stimpson and Humphrey scholarship funds.
Nearly $1,000 in additional contributions were raised on the day of the event by teams who purchased a “Money Ball” for $50 at the start of play–good for a “Mulligan” on any shot throughout the round. It was used to good advantage, as the winning team carded an impressive round of 53, 19 strokes under par! The “Money Ball” helped each member of the winning team win a $100 gift certificate at the Golf Warehouse for their outstanding play.
Meanwhile, we also did our part to support Wichita’s annual professional golf—and charitable event. One of only four tournaments on the PGA Tour web.com’s circuit that has been played in the same city continually over the past quarter century, the Wichita event boasts the Best Pro-Am, as voted by the players, and probably the most popular single hole on the tour, the raucous and rowdy 17th with its double-decker stadium seating, enthusiastic crowds, and great golf shots.
To say it was a “hot ticket” this year would be an understatement! Not only were the temperatures throughout the tournament hot, so was the calibre of play as the outcome came down to a three-way playoff that saw the leaders return to the 17th for a fifth time—for a playoff—and then settle the issue with a scintillating finish and a long birdie putt on the 74th hole that gave the win to Ollie Schiederjans. The Air Capital Classic generates significant funds for a variety of charities each year—including contributing to our educational initiatives, too!
