Club ‘Masters’ the Art of Supporting Georgia Southern

When the Greater Augusta Eagle Club set out in search of a way to support Georgia Southern and have a little fun doing it, they hit upon an idea that was a natural for alumni who live in and around the home of the famed Masters golf tournament.

What would be more fitting than a fundraising golf tournament on the heels of the internationally famous annual professional event?

“That is our big fund raiser held in the spring after Masters week when golf’s still in the air, the weather’s getting warmer and everybody’s into it,” said Club member Matt Griffin (’00), one of the event organizers. “We get a lot of local sponsors and we have a lot of local business owners who are Georgia Southern alumni. “We touch base with them and they have been more than willing to sponsor a hole and different contests and try to raise as much money as possible.”

Held at Jones Creek the past two years – though in the past it has also been at Forest Hills, the River Club or Bartram Trail – the tournament averages 70 to 80 players each year, Griffin said.

It usually raises anywhere from $3,500 to $5,000.

Contributions have gone to the football program’s recruitment fund, the soccer stadium construction, J.I. Clements Stadium, Eugene M. Bishop Alumni Center, and even to provide megaphones and pom pons for the cheerleading squad.

The Club also sponsors an annual banquet the first or second week of March for area alumni that features speakers from the University athletics staff, creatures from the Center for Wildlife Education, and, of course, barbecue. “Usually attendance is between 130 and 150 people,” he said. “It’s growing each year.” He said a more formal dinner was tried early in the event, but the group found that alumni preferred a casual atmosphere, so now it’s “family-style.”

“Kids can come and check out the wildlife expo,” Griffin said. “There might be just one person in the household who graduated from Georgia Southern and they end up bringing the whole family.”

This year’s golf tournament is being planned for early May, said Griffin. “I like to keep it as close to the Masters as possible.”
As for future plans, Griffin said there have been discussions about funding a scholarship for a student-athlete or providing a scholarship for an Augusta-area student.