By Marcia Love
Golfers and hockey enthusiasts alike converged at the Maple Creek Golf Course for the first annual Zack Smith Golf Tournament July 17.
The tournament was organized by Dave Eng as a fundraiser for the golf course, raising over $6,700 through the tournament and silent auction.
The event kicked off with a game of street hockey at the tennis court between the Ottawa Senators’ Zack Smith and local children. Also in attendance were former WHL players Clay Harvey, who plays for the Quinnipiac University Bobcats in Quinnipiac, Conn. and Andrew Bailey and Brett Ward of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies.
The Medicine Hat Tigers’ general manager and head coach Willie Desjardins made an appearance with two IIHF World Junior Championship medals and championship rings. Desjardins was the assistant coach for Team Canada when the team took gold at the 2009 World Juniors and the head coach when the team earned silver in 2010.
Smith signed complimentary Ottawa Senators caps for golfers. Prize draws also included autographed Senators jerseys and sticks.
Kim Wellings, an organizer of the tournament, said it was a great fundraiser for the golf course, which suffered losses in revenue with cancellations of tournaments and reunions due to the flood.
Don Lewis, master of ceremonies for the event, said he was impressed with the number of participants who signed up for the golf tournament.
“It was a tremendous success. We had a waiting list a week before the tournament, which is unbelievable,” he said. “That just shows you what the community thinks of Zack and his family. It’s nice everyone got behind him like this.”
Smith was also pleased with the turnout and funds raised.
“It was a great day. We weren’t sure we’d get all 72 entries, but it was pretty cool to see how quickly we filled up,” he said. “Everyone had fun and raised a lot of money for the golf course.”
Lewis said the tournament was a good opportunity for the community to meet Smith as a hockey player.
“He’s a super nice guy and he’s totally committed to being an NHL player,” he said. “What a great young ambassador for our town.”