If you can’t wait for Memorial Day to arrive and announce the unofficial beginning of summer, get a head start on Monday when the Alabama Senior Open Pro-Am and championship stops at Cullman’s TP Country Club.

Monday marks the first round of the three-day tournament, as well as the Pro-Am event. On Tuesday an Wednesday, golfers from across the U.S. will be out on the links at TP, vying for a top spot when trophies and checks are awarded after Wednesday’s third-round action.

Proceeds from the tournament’s entry fees benefit Ministries to Children, a nonprofit outreach that helps fund local programs like Victims Services and Cullman Caring for Kids, along with similar programs in other states.

“This is really a big deal, what’s coming to Cullman this week,” said Tournament Chairman Bob Kurtz. “We’ve got golfers coming from California, New Mexico, Texas, Minnesota, West Virginia, both the Carolinas, Florida, and a lot of other states I can’t even think of. It’s for a very good cause, and the quality of competition is really pretty impressive.”

Pro-Am entry is open to professionals 47 years or older, and to amateurs 50 and older with a handicap of 9 or lower. Senior Open champions will take home their earnings as winners of an official event on golf’s Sunbelt Pro Tour.

Kurtz said Cullman offers a nice challenge in an especially appealing setting — one of the reasons next week’s stop on the tour attracts so many professionals.

“Terri Pines [TP] is sort of a version of Augusta National,” he said. “It’s a great course for the Senior Open, and really for the 27-hole, Ryder Cup-style Ironman championship that we’ll be having there on Saturday.”

For schedule information and steps on how to register, visit alabamasropen.com.

 

The fun stuff starts today

Can’t get enough golf?

You don’t have to wait until Monday to check out the tournament buzz at TP County Club. The fanfare leading up to Monday’s Alabama Senior Open starts today, and goes strong all weekend long.

Kicking things off today at the club is the Ironman Team Championship tournament. The Ironman pits two-man teams in a fast-paced, 27-hole scramble, after the fashion of the Ryder Cup format.

Then on Sunday, Myrtle Beach pro and trick shot master John Whitty will stage a trick shot exhibition, alongside a kids’ clinic. Sponsored by USA Healthcare, both events are free.

Saturday’s Ironman tournament will last all day; Sunday’s trick shots with Whitty get started at 2 p.m.

For more information, visit alabamasropen.com.