North Carolina State University Athletics
TIM PEELER: Clark, Pettersson lend a helping hand
10/3/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Oct. 3, 2005
BY TIM PEELER
CARY -- Tim Clark and Carl Pettersson signed their scorecards Sunday afternoon at Forest Oaks Country Club in Greensboro, hopped in the car and arrived here just in time to drum up some support for NC State's long-awaited on-campus golf course.
The two former Wolfpack golfers, who played together Sunday as they both finished in the top 11 of the Chrysler Classic of Greensboro, are the honorary chairmen for the "On Course for Distinction" campaign that hopes to raise the $16 million needed to build the Arnold Palmer-designed course on Centennial Campus, and they came back to pay honor to the Wolfpack's legendary men's golf coach, Richard Sykes, who is in his 35th year on the job.
"I think it is pretty ironic that Arnold Palmer designed the course," said Clark, who tied for sixth at Greensboro. "I remember Coach Sykes telling me how he recruited Arnold Palmer to come play golf here. Arnold didn't come, so Coach Sykes went out and got Sam Snead instead."
OK, maybe Sykes hasn't really been around that long, but many of the 150 or so people in attendance Sunday night at the dinner at Prestonwood Country Club were in agreement that NC State, with its competitive men's and women's golf teams and the nationally prominent Professional Golf Management program, is overdue for an 18-hole home.
"Why doesn't NC State have a golf course?" said senior associate athletics director Nora Lynn Finch, the co-chair for the fundraising campaign. "It's time to say enough is enough. Let's get it done, so we can continue to do what we do well at NC State."
Chancellor James Oblinger promised - threatened? - to take up the sport again when the course is completed.
And Clark, who was the night's most entertaining and impromptu speaker, committed $1 million of Pettersson's money to the course.
"And I vow to match with one dollar for every $100,000 that Carl gives," said Clark, who is now well over $2 million for the year on the PGA Tour. Clark has also won in excess of $1 million this year by winning a pair of tournaments overseas, the South Africa Open and the Scottish Open.
Pettersson, whose 11th place tie is his fourth Top 20 finish in the last eight weeks, wasn't as off-the-cuff with his comments, but he had the perfect excuse.
 Carl Pettersson has finished in the Top 20 in four of his last eight tournaments  |
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But Clark and Pettersson both vowed to the crowd, which included members of the current men's and women's golf teams, to do whatever they could to help raise money for the golf-course project.
That includes playing golf on Monday with potential donors at Prestonwood Country Club. Clark and Pettersson are slated to join former NC State golfers Vance Heafner, David Sanchez, Chris Mundorf and Justin Walters to help raise awareness for the campaign, which is part of the university's recently announced drive to raise $1 billion. So far, the school has pledges for $836 million.
"I think it is pretty special that these guys would come back here and give their time to help us raise money," Sykes said. "Playing golf is a business for them now, and coming back here keeps them from doing that. I think it shows that they have a commitment to what we are doing."
You may reach Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
