On August 6th, the Herb Brooks Foundation held the annual Celebrity Golf Classic at the Victory Links Golf Course on the National Sports Center campus.  The golf course was in terrific shape and the weather was ideal for all in attendance.  

Golfers, along with many celebrities, arrived around 11 am for registration and a delicious barbecue cookout sponsored by Cambria. There was a shotgun start at noon as the golfers set off on the challenging 18 hole course.

Each foursome was paired with a celebrity guest as they tackled the course. The day was filled with laughter, stories, and of course great golf. Each hole was sponsored, and some even offered great hole in one prizes, like winning an iPad, or even a weekend with a Maserati!

At the end of the round, a special ceremony posthumously inducting Bob Suter into the Herb Brooks Youth Hockey Hall of Fame was held. His son, Ryan Suter of the Minnesota Wild was in attendance to accept the award on his behalf. This award is given annually to a member of the hockey community who strives to grow the game of hockey at the youth level.

Ryan also took time to hang out with the Rink Rats participants who were at the course for a field trip. The Rink Rats got to experience the Herb Brooks Training Center, practice their putting skills and have a meet and greet with Ryan.

After the ceremony, a dinner banquet was held in the Welcome Center and the winners of the tournament were announced.

Coming in 3rd, shooting 12 under par was the team of Jim Freytag, Brian Wasserman, Mark Richman, Tom Shaver, and celebrity guest Michael Brodzinski of the San Jose Sharks.

The 2nd place team, also shooting 12 under par but winning the tie breaker was, Steve Tix, Ryan Alstead, Tim Gould, Marty Wheeler, and celebrity guest Grant Besse, former Wisconsin Badger men’s hockey player, and currently with the Norfolk Admirals of the AHL.

Finally, coming in first shooting 13 under par was the team of, Michael Gergen, Matt Donna, Tim Babbich, Michael Johnson, and celebrity guest Thomas Vanek of the Detroit Red Wings. 

In addition to the overall winners, other awards were given. There was one skin awarded for an eagle on #16 to the team of Mike McAnally (NordicClick),  Mark Bahr (Lorenz Bus Company) , Mike McKay, and Bill Robertson and Katie Million, WCHA Men's & Women's  Commissioners, respectively. The men’s longest putt on hole #18 went to the University of Minnesota Men’s Head Hockey Coach, Bob Motzko, closest to the pin in one shot on #17 was Marty Scheier, men’s longest drive on #3 went to Craig Rosenthal, closest to the pin on #8 and winning a Maserati for a weekend was Jamie Wright, and last, but not least, women’s longest drive went to Julie Yeazle Cherney.

Other celebrities in attendance included:

This day wouldn’t have been possible without the many sponsors and players who came out for the event. Other major sponsors of the event included, RBC Wealth Management, United Properties, the Minnesota Wild, RJM Construction, Gems Up, National Sports Center, Platinum Bank, The Moments Memory Care, Dave’s Sport Shop, Lorenz Bus Service,and FHIT.

Hole sponsors included:

We’d also like to thank our major donors, Judy Schmid, Principal Financial, Da Beauty League, and Ross Bernstein. Without the help of sponsors and donors, the Herb Brooks Foundation would not be able to continue to grow the game of hockey and provide no cost hockey opportunities for local youth. For that, the Foundation is very thankful. We look forward to seeing everyone next year!