2019 Wells Fargo Championship Raises Nearly $1.9 Million for Charlotte-Area Charities
Tournament’s impact on local charities grows to over $24 million since 2003
Charlotte, NC, November 26, 2019 — The Wells Fargo Championship, on behalf of Champions for Education, announced today nearly $1.9 million in donations to Charlotte-area organizations. In the past 17 years, Champions for Education has assisted with awareness and contributed over $24 million to charitable organizations.
As a result of the 2019 tournament, Champions for Education is making individual donations to its three primary charitable organizations—Levine Children’s Hospital, The First Tee of Greater Charlotte and Teach For America Charlotte. Levine Children’s Hospital receives $250,000, The First Tee of Greater Charlotte $100,000 and Teach For America Charlotte $100,000.
Levine Children’s Hospital was one of five finalist for the PGA TOUR Charity of The Year and will receive an additional $5,000 donation from the TOUR for this honor.
In addition, the tournament staff has visited 14 pre-determined worthwhile organizations in the Charlotte area since May of 2018, sharing both monetary funds and volunteer time. These visits include educational foundations, youth organizations and outreach programs.
In an effort to make a year-long impact on the Charlotte area, the staff will continue to distribute both time and money to pre-determined organizations on a month-to-month basis leading up to the 2020 Wells Fargo Championship.
“Since 2003, the people who have been involved with the golf tournament have shared a passion to make this a special event.,” said Wells Fargo Championship Tournament Director Gary Sobba. “There are a lot of kind and unselfish people who share their time and energy to help this tournament make a positive impact in Charlotte and around the region. With support from Wells Fargo, our corporate partners, volunteers, members of the Quail Hollow Club and our loyal fans, we are grateful we can continue to make an impact on other people’s lives either through awareness or financial assistance.”
Teach For America has been a primary charitable beneficiary since 2003; Levine Children’s Hospital and The First Tee of Greater Charlotte have been since 2011. In 2015, Wells Fargo became a National Trustee for The First Tee and pledged $1 million to the program. Wells Fargo also established the Succeeding Together contest for participants of The First Tee around the country to earn the opportunity to attend the tournament and play in the Wednesday Pro-Am.
The 2019 Wells Fargo Championship earned the “Players Choice” award. The award, voted on exclusively by PGA TOUR members, is based on players’ experiences during tournament week, and considers tournament services, hospitality, player and family amenities, the golf course and more.
Testimonials from those impacted by the Wells Fargo Championship
“As a TFA alumna, now in my seventh year of teaching, I’ve seen what thoughtful community support and engagement does for my students. The Wells Fargo Championship has sent PGA Tour golfers to our school to talk, mentor, and play games with my students. As their teacher, I am so grateful to the Wells Fargo Championship for providing my students with positive role models and exposure to opportunities beyond the classroom.”– Nancy Bullard (Jacksonville ’12), Teacher at Huntingtowne Farms Elementary
“For a family like ours, who calls Levine Children’s Hospital our second home, we’re so thankful for the ongoing support of community partners. Children like my daughter Wren have access to the best cancer treatments possible – right here in our community – thanks to generous support from the Wells Fargo Championship. We didn’t realize how valuable this was until we needed it. Thank you!”–Brandi Jansen, Mom of Wren Jansen, pediatric cancer patient
“My time at the First Tee has been really good because I learned some great values. I also met Phil Mickelson and I caddied for him. I learned from Phil to keep calm after making a bad shot and think what you can do better. The First Tee has taught me to make good choices.” — Kahele S., age 10
About the Wells Fargo Championship
The Wells Fargo Championship is one of the largest, most prestigious sporting events in the North Carolina region. The tournament’s charitable arm Champions for Education has donated over $24 million to local and regional charities since 2003. The 2020 tournament will be held April 27-May 3 at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, NC. It’s list of champions include David Toms, Joey Sindelar, Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk, Tiger Woods, Anthony Kim, Sean O’Hair, Rory McIlroy, Lucas Glover, Rickie Fowler, Derek Ernst, J.B. Holmes, James Hahn, Brian Harman, Jason Day and Max Homa. The Wells Fargo Championship received the “Players Choice” Award in 2019 for the Best Tournament of the Year as voted on by the players. The tournament has twice won Overall Tournament of the Year and has been among the top-five in this category each year since the awards were created.