Week of community golf clinics and charity fundraising adds to legacy of UBS Hong Kong Open
Thousands of youngsters will have the opportunity to experience the game of golf and meet some of its star players this week, as the organisers, title sponsor, and official charitable partner of the UBS Hong Kong Open once again place community at the heart of the event.
With free access to the public on Thursday and Friday, and for all four days for visitors under 21, the Tournament will feature a series of youth-focused golf clinics and community outreach efforts.
International stars, Matt Fitzpatrick and Hong Kong Golf Club professional, James Wong, started the week-long initiatives by headlining a golf clinic for over 200 children from the Hong Kong Golf Association’s local schools programme, at the Tuen Mun Golf Centre today.
On Thursday and Friday, the Hong Kong Golf Club, UBS and the Hong Kong Golf Association will host 500 children from local schools in the environs of Fanling and other districts, who will benefit from a comprehensive golf experience.
The youngsters will tour the Spectator Village to participate in family-focused activities on-site, engage in some basic golf knowledge and etiquette programmes, and participate in golf clinics run by professionals from the Hong Kong Golf Club.
Clinics will also be hosted for the Hong Kong Blind Sports Federation on Thursday, and Special Olympics Hong Kong on Friday. The former will be co-hosted by, Alfie Plant, winner of the silver medal for leading amateur at The Open Championship earlier this year.
The tournament’s fund-raising initiative, the UBS Hong Kong Open Charity Cup, will be a constant theme throughout the championship.
In just two years, the UBS Hong Kong Open Charity Cup has raised nearly HKD 6 million and is one of the top grossing fund-raising initiatives on the global European Tour calendar. Around 200 will compete on the tournament’s championship course on Wednesday 29 November, following the conclusion of this year’s tournament.
Further funds will be raised at a golf clinic held for the InspiringHK Sports Foundation’s GOLF Inspires! programme on Saturday afternoon. The charity, which seeks to enhance social mobility for youth from under-privileged backgrounds, has been a beneficiary of the UBS Hong Kong Open Charity Cup since 2015 using proceeds to create a successful golf development programme.
With the generous support of the Hong Kong Golf Club, which provides facilities and coaches, the programme continues to go from strength to strength.
The InspiringHK Sports Foundation Rope Skipping team will entertain the crowds in the Spectator Village on Saturday afternoon, while other Charity Cup beneficiaries, Benji’s Centre, Chicken Soup Foundation, the Internet Learning Resources Centre, and the Music Children Foundation, will all be present in the Spectator Village.
UBS has also confirmed that for the first hole-in-one hit on the 12th hole of the composite Championship course during tournament play (23-26 Nov.), it will donate HKD 78,000 to the UBS Hong Kong Open Charity Cup campaign.
Amy Lo, Chairman and Head of UBS Wealth Management Greater China and Country Head of UBS Hong Kong commented on the wide-ranging community activities on offer in 2017: “Whether in fine arts or world-class sport, giving back to the communities in which we operate is an essential part of UBS sponsorships worldwide.
“We are grateful that our event partners at the Hong Kong Golf Association, Hong Kong Golf Club and the European and Asian Tours, as well as Friends of Asia, the official charity of the UBS Hong Kong Open, share our commitment to use the platform for the betterment of the local community.
“We look forward to not only enjoying another thrilling week of world-class golf at the UBS Hong Kong Open but to seeing the impact the tournament has on the local community,” added Lo.
Arnold Wong, Captain of the Hong Kong Golf Club reiterated the club’s ongoing commitment to the local community: “The UBS Hong Kong Open is the flagship event in the Hong Kong Golf Club’s calendar of events and, once again, we are pleased to be able to welcome all members of the community to enjoy this very special occasion.
“In addition to providing free public access to the tournament on Thursday and Friday, we look forward to welcoming the tournament’s charitable partners and the children from the Hong Kong Golf Club’s schools programme back to the club this week. The tournament is a wonderful opportunity to promote the game and its values to the wider community, and will,
I’m sure, be a very memorable day out for everyone.”
The UBS Hong Kong Open is co-sanctioned by the European and Asian Tours as well as the Hong Kong Golf Association. For more information see www.ubshkopen.com To register for free tickets for the tournament or to purchase tickets for the Saturday and Sunday, go to www.ticketflap.com
The 2017 UBS Hong Kong Open is an accredited event celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). The HKSAR Government and HKTB fully support the UBS Hong Kong Open.
To share the joy of the 20th Anniversary, the HKSAR Government is joining hands with different sectors to organise a wide variety of activities and events under the theme “Together, Progress, Opportunity”. For more details on 20th Anniversary events and activities, please visit: www.hksar20.gov.hk/eng
The UBS Hong Kong Open has also been recognized as an “M” Mark event to help enhance the image of Hong Kong as Asia’s sports event capital. “M” Mark is awarded by the Major Sports Events Committee, symbolizing an intense, spectacular and signature event in the territory sports calendar.