Danville Man Keeping the Ball Rolling With Charity Golf Tourney

How appropriate is this?  The work of Bob Hammer's grass-roots charity organization sometimes spills over into his front lawn.

Hammer runs his "Have A Ball Tournament", a charity golf event, out of the garage of his family home in Danville, but sometimes the garage can't hold all the fun.  Sunday the operation flowed out of the garage and onto his driveway and lawn, and down the sidewalk.

"We had 30 people here yesterday stuffing goodie-bags for the golfers," Hammer said. "There were tables down the driveway.  We had friends, family, neighbors.  We had 6-year-old kids stuffing sunscreen into pouches. It brings people together, and everyone's feeling good."

This year's tournament, the sixth annual, is Friday, at Sunnyvale Municipal.  The entry field is full, about 300 golfers, but the truly-determined golfer can jump onto Hammer's waiting list by visiting haveaballgolf.com.

Friday's funfest will rake in about $180,000, to be distributed among at least 20 different national and local cancer-related charities.  It has become one of the nation's largest non-celebrity, public charity tournaments.

And while most charity tourneys are run by corporate folks out of corporate offices, "Have A Ball" is all about the Hammer family and their garage.

Bob started the tourney on a whim. 

A two-time survivor of testicular cancer (now cancer-free for 10 years), he set out to raise $2,500 for Lance Armstrong's foundation.  He simply wanted to say thanks to Armstrong's oncologist, whose advice spared Hammer from surgery that would have rendered him sterile.  Instead of surgery, Hammer — with the assistance of wife Kim — had a son.  Joshua is now 7. They also have a daughter, Shayna, 10.

In throwing the little tourney, Hammer underestimated his own salesmanship and the generosity of strangers.  The first event raised $50,000, making "Have A Ball" one of the biggest little charity events in the U.S.

"It's a little crazy," said Hammer, who still finds time for his day job, and for coaching his kids in softball, baseball, basketball and soccer.

But this week it's all about golf for the Hammers, the craziest week of their never-ending yearly cycle of prepping and planning for the next year's tourney.

As mom-and-poppish as the Hammers have kept their event, the concept is beginning to burst at the seams.  The field of about 300 is really a double-sized tourney, and now they're attracting wider notice.

"I'm getting people from across the country contacting me," Hammer said.

The American Cancer Society reached out to Hammer to explore possibilities, and Armstrong's foundation has approached Hammer about having him run three or four Have A Ball events in other states.

But for now, the Hammers and Have a Ball are Danville's own treasures.