July, 24th 2004
Several of Florida's finest players — Jennifer
Capriati, Chris Evert, Mardy Fish, James Blake, Todd Martin, Mary Joe
Fernandez and Aaron Krickstein — will participate in Swingtime, a
pro-celebrity pro-am tennis and golf tournament benefiting the Tim and Tom
Gullikson Foundation at Ibis Golf & Country Club in West Palm Beach, Florida
December 11-12, 2004th.
Jim Courier, Justin Gimelstob, Robby Ginepri, Stan Smith, Jenny Hopkins and
Carly Gullickson have also committed to participating in the event.
Three-time Grand Slam champion Capriati will compete against
another player from the WTA Tour in an exhibition singles match. A plus
doubles matches featuring the other participating tennis professionals will
also be held. For the hardcore tennis fan who wants to play with some of the
best players in the world, Swingtime offers a three-hour, round-robin tennis
pro-am that consists of over 24 tennis stars on 12 courts at IBIS' world
class tennis center.
Once the tennis is done, fans have the chance to mingle and dine with all
the players at the Swingtime Gala at the Palm Beach County Convention
Center. The Swingtime Gala offers a cocktail reception, gourmet meal, silent
and live auctions and entertainment.
For golfers, Swingtime will stage a Golf Tournament on the second day of the
event that features many of the tennis stars, plus legends from other sports
including Olympian Bob Beamon, NFL Hall of Famer Paul Warfield, Baseball
Legends Keith Hernandez and Bill Gullickson, Carly Gullickson's father,
among many others. Each foursome has a celebrity join as its fifth player in
this shotgun tournament.
The annual event, which is in its sixth year, has raised nearly half a
million dollars and, more importantly, has significantly increased awareness
of the Foundation’s mission — to assist brain-tumor patients and their
families in managing the physical, emotional and social challenges presented
by the illness.
The Tim & Tom
Gullikson Foundation was founded in 1995 by Tim Gullikson, former tennis
professional and coach of Pete Sampras, and his identical twin brother, Tom
Gullikson, a former tennis professional, coach and captain of the United
States Davis Cup team. Tim was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 1995 and lost
his battle with the illness in 1996 at the age of 44.
The Sunshine Network will televise a 90-minute highlight program across the
state that will showcase Swingtime as one of the state's top charity
celebrity events.
Swingtime is managed by C & H Events of Boca Raton. The official host
sponsor is IBIS Golf & Country Club. Official Sponsors include: Adelphia
Media Services, Clear Channel - Palm Beach, JetBlue Airways, Nike, The Palm
Beach Post, Rado, Tennis Week and TIAA-CREF.
Tennis Exhibition tickets are $300 for Box Seat Package, $55 for Individual
Box Seats and $35 for General Admission. Invitations for the Swingtime Gala
are $300 and a few spots remain available in the Tennis Pro-Am and Golf
Tournament. Prices vary for the pro-ams depending on your complete package.
For information on how to participate or become a sponsor of Swingtime,
please phone C & H Events at (561) 394-9190.
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