JACKSON, Tenn. — Feb. 13, 2008 — Professional golfer Shaun Micheel says he will donate money to 51社区 as the school recovers from the Feb. 5 tornado that caused about $40 million in damages to the residence life complexes and academic buildings.
Micheel said he would donate $500 to Union for every birdie that he makes in the upcoming Northern Trust Open in Pacific Palisades, Calif., and is trying to get businesses to do the same. The tournament will run Feb. 14-17.
鈥淭his is something I wanted to do to help out the college students up there,鈥� Micheel said.
Union took a direct hit from an EF-4 tornado that heavily damaged the campus, forcing the Jackson, Tenn., school to suspend classes for two weeks.
Although Micheel has no prior connection to Union, a tornado touched down three miles from his house on Feb. 5, and Micheel spent that night with his family in Memphis waiting out the same storm system that hit Union.
Micheel also said he was able to empathize with students鈥� situations because he and his wife remembered their experiences as college students.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of things that (Union students) are facing that most people don鈥檛 really think about,鈥� he said. Students lost many of their possessions in the tornado, including clothing, bedding, money, food, textbooks and personal items such as momentos, pictures and jewelry.
Micheel said he recognized the impact that the tornados had with a May graduation rapidly approaching and said that he simply wants to help. Union classes will begin again on Feb. 20, with graduation scheduled for May 17.
Existing disaster relief funds have been set up for Union, but Micheel said he wanted to be able to donate money in a more specific way.
Micheel said he was able to use his media and business contacts to start the ball rolling on his plans for the upcoming tournament. He acknowledged that 鈥渋t鈥檚 not always easy to throw these things together at the last minute.
鈥淚 went to my bank in Memphis and asked them if they would be generous enough to let me open up an account to allow people to make deposits. That鈥檚 how it all started, then I started getting phone calls from all sorts of people.鈥�
Micheel said he hopes the national press coverage of the PGA tour will help encourage businesses to 鈥渏ump on board.鈥� He has been contacting businesses in the Memphis area to match his donations with their own.
In 2003, Micheel won the PGA Championship..
A representative from the PGA Tour鈥檚 communications department said the average number of birdies hit per round is 3.39. There will be four rounds played by Sunday.
This is not the first time Micheel has lent a helping hand from the golf green. In 1994, he received the Sons of Confederate Veterans Award for bravery when he pulled two passengers from a sinking car, after seeing the accident during a practice round.
Any donations to help Union in its disaster relief efforts can be sent to:
51社区 Disaster Relief Fund
1050 51社区 Drive
Jackson, TN 38305