Registration Opens for Celebrity Golf Classic

The first day of spring has arrived, although the springlike weather has been with us throughout much of the winter. The unseasonably warm conditions have people thinking about hitting the links, and the traditional start to the area's tournament schedule is the Enfield Athletic Hall of Fame 16th annual Celebrity Golf Classic.

This year's event tees off Saturday, May 5 at the Oak Ridge Golf Club in Feeding Hills, MA. The day begins at 11:15 a.m. with registration and a cookout lunch, then the four-player, scramble-format tournament kicks off with a shotgun start at 12:30 p.m.

Following the afternoon on the fairways and greens, golfers will feast on a full-course buffet dinner. Prizes will be awarded to the low gross teams in both the open and mixed divisions (mixed division includes any team with at least two women).

Other competitions include the Amy Romano Memorial Long Drive contest on hole 16, the Eddie Lapponese Memorial Closest-to-the-Pin contest on hole 8, and a 50/50 drawing on each of the five par-3 holes. Great raffle prize packages donated by area businesses will also be up for grabs.

Celebrities scheduled to appear are World Series champion and major league All-Star Dick McAuliffe, former Milwaukee Brewer first baseman Billy Jo Robidoux and longtime NHL/WHA forward Doug Roberts. Two cast members from the 1977 hockey movie "Slap Shot" are also slated to play: Paul D'Amato, who portrayed Tim "Dr. Hook" McCracken of the Syracuse Bulldogs, and Chris Murney, who was featured as Hanrahan, the Long Island Ducks goalie who has a memorable fight scene with Paul Newman.

Entry fee is $110 per player, which includes 18 holes of golf with cart, lunch, dinner, prizes and a tax-deductible contribution to the Hall of Fame. Non-golfers may enjoy dinner for just $20 per person. Proceeds from the tournament benefit the Hall of Fame scholarship fund and the Amy Romano Memorial scholarship fund.

Volunteers are also needed to help out at the tournament. For more information, to register a team or to volunteer, contact Tim Jensen at 860-798-6194 or Scott Marek at 860-916-0655.

Tim Jensen is vice chairman of the Enfield Athletic Hall of Fame, and editor of Enfield Patch.