By:Nick Buglione
The weeklong Long Island Classic kicked off on Monday in East Meadow's Eisenhower Park, the first PGA tournament to be held in East Meadow in 77 years.
Monday, Wednesday and Thursday were devoted to the pro-am phase of the 17th annual tournament, which is part of the PGA's Champions Tour, formerly known as the Senior Tour.
The pro-am phase gives amateur golfers a chance to play with the pros and is the prelude to the tournament, scheduled for Friday through Sunday.
Over the final three days, a field of 81 Champions Tour golfers will compete for a $1.5 million purse on Eisenhower Park's Red Course. Hubert Green will defend his Long Island Classic title against the likes of Lee Trevino, Dana Quigley, Bobby Wadkins and Bruce Fleisher.
The classic will be televised live on Friday on the Golf Channel, from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. There will be tape-delayed broadcasts of Saturday's and Sunday's action each night from 7 to 9 p.m. on CNBC.
Tickets for the tournament will be available at the gate and cost $22. All proceeds will benefit Schneider Children's Hospital. "All PGA tour events are for charities," said Joan Marcello, marketing director of the Classic. "Schneider has been our charity since 1989."
To date, the Long Island Classic has raised nearly $3 million for the hospital.
Parking will be available at Nassau Community College, the Nassau Coliseum and Eisenhower Park's parking fields 6 and 6A. The park's Stewart Avenue entrance, however, will be closed during the tournament.
An estimated 50,000 to 70,000 people will turn out to see the tournament, which should generate between $5 million and $6 million in commerce for the county.
This marks the first time the Long Island Classic is being held in Eisenhower Park, and it's the first PGA tournament to come to East Meadow since 1926. That year, the course, then known as the Salisbury Country Club, hosted the PGA Championship.
Though some 55,000 people already play the Red Course each year, it's hoped that the tournament will increase its popularity. As demonstrated with last year's U.S. Open, which was played on Bethpage Black, staging tournaments on public rather than private courses seems to be mutually beneficial for both the tournament and the course. More fans turn out and tune in to see how pros will handle their local course, and are more interested in playing there after the tournament.
The Red Course and its surrounding facilities received a complete facelift over the past few months in preparation for the Classic. If all goes well, it's hoped that Eisenhower Park will become the tournament's permanent home.
