Play golf with PGA pros

Hardyston — On Saturday, Aug. 13, the Ballyowen Golf Club in Hardyston will host the Saturday Series Pro-Am, an official PGA Tour event where amateurs play with the professionals. This is the first time such prestigious golfers will play in Sussex County. Played on only the best golf courses across the United States, this event invites amateur golfers to play side-by-side with professionals that have missed the cut at major PGA events. These professionals will come straight from qualifying rounds at the PGA Championship at Baltusrol. The Saturday Series Pro-Am is an 18-hole charity event, a combination of hospitality, golf and fun. It is a "players pro-am," were the professionals share their knowledge of the game and experiences on the PGA Tour with their amateur playing partners. Additionally, the PGA Tour and the Saturday Series Pro-Am raises money for charity. A large part of the proceeds goes to benefit The First Tee and other local charities throughout the country. Groups of five will play, with one PGA Tour professional and four amateurs per team. Each team member's net under-par score is counted on each hole in the form of points: 1 point for every net birdie, 2 points for eagle. The highest medal score possible on each hole is par, so "par is your partner" in this competition. The team with the most points wins the event. The professionals are either from the tournament field or are PGA Tour members. All amateurs will play nine holes, with two different tour players. The Saturday Series Pro-Am package includes one amateur playing spot, shared cart, breakfast, an awards luncheon with the Tour professionals, unlimited practice, autographed team photos, and a gift package including brand new equipment. Registration, practice and breakfast begin at 7 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 13. An 8 a.m. shotgun start will be followed by an awards luncheon. The price is $2,000 per amateur. Prizes of golf equipment and other items will be awarded to the first, second and third place teams, and to the winners of the longest-drive and the closest-to-the-pin competitions. The winning team will be invited to the year-end Finals Event in Las Vegas from Oct. 14 to 17, during the Michelin Championship, to compete against other Saturday Series winners. The Saturday Series Pro-Am is a PGA Tour official event. Under PGA guidelines, the highest allowable USGA handicap for men is 21 and 27 for women. All amateur participants must provide handicap verification in the form of a current USGA golf handicap index card, a USGA GHIN number, or a signed statement of handicap from their local PGA professional. If none of the above is available, an official representative of the Saturday Series Pro-Am will determine a temporary handicap for the participant, and will reserve the right to verify all handicap information. Ballyowen Golf Club has been recognized as the number one public golf course in New Jersey by such notable publications as GolfWeek, New Jersey Golf, PubLinks Golfer, Zagat, New Jersey Monthly and The Jersey Golfer. The club is part of Crystal Springs Resort, located at 105-137 Wheatsworth Rd. in Hardyston. For registration and further information, call 973-827-5996, ext. 1.