Golf is best played under sunny skies with moderate temperature and wind, and those conditions were met, as 140 participants teed off at the 20th annual Fredericktown-Willie Davis Youth Football Golf outing Saturday, July 9, at Chapel Hill Golf Course.
Brad Mast and Jim Davis, the event organizers, said the outing was sold out with 34 teams and 140 golfers participating in a scramble format. Participants traveled in from many states, including California, Colorado, New Jersey, Kentucky, Indiana and Maryland, in addition to Ohio.
When asked why the organizers and participants supported the program, Mast said, “Someone did it for them; they just want to support the kids”.
While presenting multiple awards and donated door prizes, Mast and Davis thanked all of the volunteers, the golfers and the 22-hole sponsors, saying that 100% of the proceeds would go to support the third- through sixth-grade youth football program.
Sherry Wilson, who handles the finances for the organization, added that the golf outing “is our only fundraiser. We count on this event to fund most of the annual expenses to keep the participants' annual fees to only $60. We could not do this without the outing and all the volunteers."
Several prizes were awarded to participants and included honors for longest drives, closest to the pin and longest putts, along with door prizes donated by the sponsors.
Ty Thomas led the winning foursome, with that team posting an 18-under-par score in the scramble format.
The Fredericktown-Willie Davis Youth Football Association was established in 2001 to provide third through sixth graders the opportunity to participate in an organized and structured full competitive football program. Each participant learns the basic football fundamentals, plus important life skills such as enthusiasm, discipline and team work.The family of the late Willie Davis contributed many assets in creating this organization. One of the best elements of the Fredericktown-Willie Davis Football Association is the George Wilson Davis Memorial Scholarship. The fully endowed scholarship is awarded annually to an FHS senior football player who continues his education beyond the high school level. Through June 2022, scholarships totaling $47,150 have been awarded.The scholarship committee reviews each eligible senior interested in receiving the award against the criteria of work ethic, attitude, team focus and heart. To renew the award, all the recipient is asked to do is annually address the players and coaches of the Youth Football League to share his knowledge and experiences.
Jim Davis concluded by saying that information on next year’s golf outing, along with information on team schedules, scholarships and more are posted at Willie Davis Youth Football - Fredericktown Ohio. (williedavisfootball.com).
