GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 16 - May 2011

Charity golf tournament aims to make giving back fun I n2006, abrilliant Europeangolf squad captained by Ian Woosnam trounced the USA in the Ryder Cup 18.5-9.5 at The K Club in Ireland. Five years later, teams of online gaming professionals are teeing it up on the same course to settle golfing supremacy – and raise money for charity in the Fairway Charity Golf Open. The event, sponsored by FremantleMedia Enterprises, kicks off at 11 a.m. on May 24, and the proceeds of the event will go to the Children First Foundation, a charity that tries to help children escape poverty in Ireland. The GPWA is a media sponsor of the event, as is GPWA sister organiza- tion APCW. “We wanted to find a local charity in Ireland,” said Gian Perroni, affiliate pro- gram director for Fairway Casino, when asked why Fairway Casino had decided to donate the proceeds of the tournament to the Children First Foundation. “And of course providing funds to a charity that works with children is an easy decision.” “Many of the larger, higher profile (and better funded) charitable organizations are hesitant to accept funds from the gam- ing industry,” Perroni added. “In my opin- ion [that] is a little shortsighted of them, but [it] provides an opportunity for us to support a deserving group that otherwise might not have been on our radar. Funds raised will be used by them to help sup- port families in need in Ireland.” As the online gaming industry matures, Perroni believes it’s vital for companies to start giving back to their communities. “I have been fortunate to have been in- volved in the online gaming industry since ’97, and have witnessed the tremen- dous growth in both the number of par- ticipants, and in the money generated,” Perroni said. “What I have not seen, with few excep- tions, is much of an effort by companies to give back to the communities that support them. We, as an industry, have an oppor- tunity to do good things, and I think that the Fairway Charity Golf Open is a good early step in this direction.” And Perroni understands that it’s hard to get involved in supporting charities. “To be honest, like many people I have always felt too busy to get involved much with charities. My family supports the usual popular charities: Greenpeace, Western Wilderness, Canadian Cancer, but only when someone comes knocking on the door. Lately I have met a number of peo- ple that have reached out to help others and they have inspired me to try and get involved as well.” And while giving to charity is serious and important business, Perroni wants to make sure everyone playing in the tourna- ment has fun. “While this event is going to be a great net- working event, with many C-level gaming executives participating, as well as affili- ates and affiliate managers, we want every- one to come out, relax, have fun, and enjoy what will prove to be a memorable day, and what will hopefully the first of many simi- lar events that we host,” Perroni said. The golf tournament will be played using Texas Scramble rules. Under these rules, golfers will form teams of four and select a captain. Each golfer will hit a tee shot. The captain picks which shot was the best shot, and each player hits his or her sec- ond shot from that position. This contin- ues until the hole is completed. Perroni said there will also be several closest to the pin contests and other awards. And he has full faith that the on- line gaming industry will turn out to sup- port the event. “Even though many of us are terrible golf- ers – well, OK, maybe just me – I believe you would be hard-pressed to find some- one in our industry that doesn’t appreciate the opportunity to get out from in front of their computers. Golf has become such a popular pastime, played by people of all ages, that I felt that we would have a lot of interest.”