Southwest Airlines is set to host the first-ever Southwest Airlines Showcase at Dallas’ Cedar Crest Golf Course in mid-November.
The event is a 54-hole amateur golf invitational that will showcase 21 men and 21 women golfers as they compete in a nationally televised tournament.
“The player field is shaping up to be even stronger than we originally hoped for,” said Chuck Walker, executive director of the I Am A Golfer Foundation and the lead tournament ambassador for players, coaches, and families, speaking with Texas Metro News. “With so many top players having committed to play, the competition for the men’s and women’s crowns should be intense and fun to watch.”
The field features representatives from 33 different colleges and 21 states and includes Shyla Brown, a 15-year-old from McKinney who is one of four high schoolers participating in the event.
North Georgia University’s Amari Smith, also a McKinney native, will play in the women’s tournament alongside fellow Texans Morgan Horrell (Carrollton), Kendall Jackson (Pearland), and Allyn Stephens (Houston).
Howard University’s Gregory Odom Jr., Everett Whiten Jr., and Marcus Smith Jr., San Jose State’s Kristopher Stiles, and Central Michigan’s Trey Rusthoven are some of the key players in the men’s field.
“These young amateurs will be walking on the same grounds and in the same footsteps of some of the most famous and trailblazing golfers of all time,” Dave Ridley, co-founder and chairman of the I Am A Golfer Foundation, told Texas Metro News. “Many of these players will become trailblazers themselves both on and off the golf course later in life. We view this event as a springboard for them.”
Cedar Crest was designed by World Golf Hall of Fame architect A.W. Tillinghast and has hosted many prominent golf tournaments like the 1927 PGA Championship and the 1954 UGA Negro National Open.
Now, it adds another event that can help grow the sport. It will be broadcast on the Golf Channel.
The week also includes a Saturday night gala and a Sunday teams competition before the main draw begins on Monday, November 13.
Fans can attend the event at no charge.
