The DHL Swing Against Cancer Golf Series’ first foray outside of the United Arab Emirates proved to be a huge success as 120 local golfers and evening guests joined Liverpool FC legend John Barnes at two stunning Scottish venues, Newmachar Golf Club and Mercure Ardoe House Hotel & Spa, in Aberdeen to raise over US$15,000 for CLAN Cancer Support.
“This is the second event that I’ve done as part of the DHL Swing Against Cancer Golf Series, the first one was in Dubai and the weather was a little bit different but that’s what golf is all about – sunshine, rain, it doesn’t matter, people still come out and play!” said Barnes whowon two league titles, the FA Cup and the League Cup during a glittering spell at Liverpool during the 1980s and 1990s.
“Most people in the world have been touched by cancer – my dad died of prostate cancer – so it’s a very important cause for people to try to help do something about and the organisers of this series do a terrific job with these events raising lots of funds and awareness. If my profile helps in some way that’s great, but the most important thing is for all of us, as individuals, to do what we can.
“Golf is a great sport for bringing people together to support causes like this and they love the sport in Scotland so this beautiful course at Newmachar is the perfect venue for the first international event they’ve done.”
The afternoon golf event saw Symon Wadsworth top the leaderboard with 38 Stableford points and he will now be flown to Dubai with three night’s accommodation at official Hotel Partner, Fairmont Dubai, to compete in the DHL Swing Against Cancer Golf Series Grand Final on November 7th on the Fire Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
Seven other competitors including the top two finishers from the two UAE qualifiers – the DHL Open, which took place last month at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club, and the DSA Open at Emirates Golf Club on September 19th – will join Wadsworth at the Grand Final as they compete for a ‘money-can’t-buy’ golfing experience playing alongside the likes of Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose and Sergio Garcia in the Pro-Am for the European Tour’s season-ending DP World Tour Championship as well as two VIP hospitality tickets for the opening day of the prestigious event.
“It’s a bit of a shock to be honest, usually you’re expecting someone to come in with a really big score and beat you,” said Wadsworth. “I played very well today and was very pleased but I never expected to win so I’m really chuffed and very excited to be going to Dubai. It’s an amazing prize.”
After the golf day, players and guests were treated to a sumptuous gala dinner presented by Apex Tubulars at the stately Mercure Ardoe House Hotel & Spa, where some fantastic items were snapped up in the live and silent auctions that had been supported by a of host of partners including DHL Express, DSA Architects International, the ENTERTAINER Scotland, DP-Master Manufacturing (S), Pre Ltd, OGV Energy, Tee Video, Titan Torque & Tools, QA Travel, Sixteen10 and Integro Search.
International hotels and resorts including; Soneva (Maldives), Fancourt Hotel & Golf (South Africa), Impiana Private Villas (Bali), Aurora Village (Lapland), RixosSaadiyat Island, Elounda Beach (Crete), Aberdeen Football Club, Verdura Resort (Italy), Dreamland Baku, the Westin Abu Dhabi and John Barnes himself also donated some fantastic holidays and experiences which attracted some great bids and helped boost the fundraising total for CLAN Cancer Support.
Next up came the live Q&A with Barnes who had the crowd in stitches with some hilarious tales from his football days which included anecdotes on his First Division triumphs for Liverpool, early days at Watford and his brief stint of managing Celtic between 1999-2000.
Fearnley International Group Ltd, who were hosting an event on the DHL Swing Against Cancer Golf Series, organised by Worldwide Golf and charity event specialists Sixteen10, for the first time having previously been a support sponsor of the Grand Final at JGE, were delighted with how the day went.
“It’s was a fantastic day and the sun even came out which is what it’s like here in Aberdeen, you can get all four seasons in one day!” said CEO Kevin Fearnley Sr.
“We sponsored one of the holes at the Mike Clark Golf Day last year and it was very well run, for a fantastic cause. We lost our global operations manager Martin Ellins to cancer a few years ago which hit us really hard and I also lost my sister to the disease so we were looking for something to get involved in where you could actually see what was being done with the money raised and that’s exactly what you get with this series and the guys from Worldwide Golf and Sixteen10 are so passionate about what they do.
“I live out in Dubai now but Aberdeen is where I started the company in 1993 – we’re in 13 countries now but this seemed like the perfect place for us to host an event.”
The DHL Swing Against Cancer Golf Series has proved a huge hit with golfers in the UAE since its launch in 2017 and has raised over US$200,000 for local cancer patients in the UAE. The series was inspired by Mike Clark a much-loved member of the local golfing community who sadly lost his battle with bowel cancer in 2012 and the Grand Final of the series is also played in his memory alongside the Mike Clark Golf Day.
A wide array of stars from the worlds of sport and entertainment have lent their support, including former Tottenham Hotspur manager and ‘King of the Jungle’ Harry Redknapp. Fellow ex-footballers Teddy Sheringham, Matt Le Tissier, Robbie Fowler, Gary McAllister, Didi Hamann, Dean Holdsworth and Lee Sharpe have also joined in to help the cause.
Others to have made the trip to the Middle East to get involved include 2005 US Open golf champion Michael Campbell, England rugby World Cup winner Mike Tindall, England cricketer Ian Bell and former Westlife singer Brian McFadden.
Sixteen10’s Managing Director and Co-Founder of the series said: “The series has grown so quickly and we’re overwhelmed by the continued support we receive. It has been an ambition of mine since the beginning to take the event overseas and help cancer charities worldwide, so to finally see that come to fruition is a wonderful feeling. Kevin Fearnley Sr. and the Fearnley International Group have been incredibly supportive and instrumental in making this happen. We’re already looking forward to building upon our success in 2020 and hope many other companies and individuals will join us to make a difference to cancer patients in Aberdeen.”
Co-founder Rick Bevan, General Manager of Worldwide Golf, added: “To have such a great turnout and such fantastic support for the first event we’ve done outside the UAE is wonderful and shows how much people all around the world care about trying to do something to fight back against cancer. We can’t wait to go back again next year!”
To enter any DHL Swing Against Cancer Golf Series event or to attend any of the evening events, please email: [email protected]
