AT&T Golf Tournament Prep Revving Up

The whole Monterey Peninsula is beginning to gear up for the AT&T Pro-Am golf tournament that's coming to town soon.  After the Super Bowl of course.

Many folks around the area are very devoted golf fans and not only play the game frequently but love to volunteer at this traditional tournament that was begun years ago by Bing Crosby.  Locals called it The Crosby, and that was that.  As a matter of fact, those of us who heard the tournament referred to by that name for so many years still automatically call it that.  Officially it's The AT&T for short.

The unique format of the tournament and the early date on the pro golf calendar made the tournament a special favorite for pros and a chance for autograph hounds to get an up close and personal view of not only those pros but celebrity performers and famous people who also played golf.  Mr. Crosby was himself a big fan of the game and rounded up a good number of his celebrity friends to play, too.  Traditionally, a hefty amount of money was donated to local charities, a tradition that continues to this day.

Dozens of volunteer groups perform all manner of preparatory service duties to help the tournament run smoothly, and hundreds of volunteers put in a lot of time making sure the logistics and needs of the fans and players are handled smoothly.  There are a few senior citizens who have been volunteering at the tournament nearly every year since its inception, mostly doing clerical work or helping set up.

Our local swim club has for years had the assignment of passing out golf tournament programs to all the local hotels and motels that asked for them.

With so many citizens pitching in to help, the whole area feels a part of it all.  There is no denying that golf is an expensive game and requires a huge investment by those who have a great deal of money to produce and maintain courses.  Cost often excludes the local blue-collar segment of society from really participating in the game much.  So, the effort of the AT&T tournament to at least donate money to service clubs to benefit kids and underprivileged people takes the sting out of feeling excluded by virtue of economic hardship.

If the weather cooperates and behaves itself this year, golf fans and players will have an excited gallery of fans to cheer their play, and the teens, kids and older locals will be doing their best to help make it all look easy and beautiful.