How many holes could you play in one day at Chambers Bay? Golfers will find out Sunday
How many holes could you play in one day in 100-degree heat at Chambers Bay Golf Course? Nearly 140 golfers will find out this Sunday, during the second annual Chambers Bay Solstice, a golf tournament and fundraiser benefiting First Tee, a non-profit organization.
The tournament’s concept is simple: Participants will aim to play as many holes as they can, from sunrise to sunset. Some golfers have their sights set on playing 72 holes, which equates four 18-hole rounds in one day. Playing Chambers once is a workout in itself, with the length of the course and elevation gain. But four times, in what’s shaping up to be one of the hottest June days ever on record in Western Washington (in 2009, Sea-Tac Airport hit 103, and JBLM hit 104), is another beast entirely.
Scott Dennis, 60, played an age-matching 59 holes last year at the inaugural event (which was pushed to July, because of the pandemic). He’s gunning for 72 this year.
“I think I’ll be OK,” he said. “I’m carrying a spray bottle, which is something I learned growing up playing golf in Wenatchee. I might bring a mister, a couple towels. Lots of sunscreen and lots of water. … I’ll go until they kick me off. Growing up in Wenatchee, I’m used to hot weather golf. But maybe this will be a little too hot.”
Dean Davison and Michael Lynch founded the Solstice event. Davison, the tournament director, drew inspiration from a similar event held annually at the Bandon Dunes Golf Course in Oregon. His first thought was to connect with First Tee to make it a fundraiser.
“They loved it,” he said. “We started racing from there.”
First Tee is a nonprofit organization that teaches life lessons and skills to kids through golf instruction. The organization has chapters across the country, including a Greater Seattle chapter and a South Puget Sound chapter, based here in Tacoma. The organization aims to make golf accessible to all kids, regardless of socioeconomic status.
Last year’s Solstice event raised about $40,000 for First Tee. This year’s event has already raised $82,000, according to First Tee - Greater Seattle Director of Programs and Development Evan Johnsen, who handles registration processing and other logistical duties for the Solstice. The goal is $100,000. To put that into perspective, $200 provides a full scholarship for a kid to receive golf instruction at a local course in the region for an entire six- to eight-week season. First Tee also provides partial scholarships.
“That’ll give you an idea of how many kids ($100,000) can impact,” Johnsen said. “About half our kids are on a partial scholarship. Some can’t afford to pay any, some can afford to pay some. (With fundraising), we can continue to serve kids from all walks of life. We can continue our recruitment and training of great coaches and mentors, who are almost all volunteers. And the cost of driving ranges, green fees — we do pay the courses for all of our use.”
Davison said they have to buy out Chambers for the day to hold the Solstice Event, which is paid for through a combination of the $499 per person registration fee, and sponsorships. This year’s presenting sponsor is Tommy Bahama.
From there, each golfer raises funds individually, 100 percent of which go directly to First Tee. Each golfer has an individual profile on pledgeit.org, and solicits donations from friends, family, co-workers. Even some employers have offered to match contribution totals. Collaborating with First Tee has made it an easy sell for Davison and his team.
“They do such great work in the golf business,” he said. “Ultimately, it’s about the cause.”
And that’s why golfers like Dennis will be there for the second consecutive year. He and his wife, Kathy, set up a charitable fund and are personally sponsoring the event this year. Between their contribution and some pledges from friends and family, they’re hoping to raise at least $7,000 for First Tee.
“A couple hundred dollars pays for a kid to be in the program,” he said. “That’s pretty motivating.”
Johnsen said the tournament’s staff will be keeping an eye on the heat. While they want people to embrace the challenge, they also want to keep it safe.
“We’ll have in excess of 2,000 bottles of water on site,” he said. “We’ll be paying close attention, and have a plan in terms of watching the heat index and determining the safe zones to play in. … We might suspend play for a bit to bring everybody’s body temperature down. We take that seriously. A lot of players want to play 72 holes, but not at the risk of our health. If we don’t reach 72 holes, that’s OK, for the sake of safety.”
Johnsen played in the event last year. He’ll be out there again.
“I’m as bullish as anybody,” he said. “I have a goal of 72 holes myself. My campaign goal is $2,000. It’s always more rewarding when you do it for a good cause. I enjoy a personal challenge, but also like to play for something bigger than myself.
“The camaraderie of the field that results from that ... One of the coolest things: At sunset, walking up the 18th hole with about 16 people who had all congregated around the green, everyone sharing stories, feeling united by all the good we’ve done for the kids and program, it was a blast. There was no doubt we’d be bringing the event back and it’d be even more successful.”
This story was originally published June 25, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
