Community Corner

Nick Watney Donates Funds from Presidents Cup to Dixon Teen Center

Nick Watney shows some support for his hometown by donating $60,000 to the Teen Center.

Talk about giving back to your hometown.

Dixon native Nick Watney, a four-time PGA TOUR event winner, recently designated a check in the amount of $60,000 to Dixon Family Services for the Dixon Teen Center.

"The Dixon Teen Center is so incredibly grateful to Nick Watney and his family," DTC Board member Jamie Myers said.

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"It's huge, it will make a big difference in the level  of service and the quality of programs that we can provide in Dixon," DTC Board member and Dixon Police Chief Jon Cox said. "This is something that's been in the works for months."

This contribution is a portion of the charitable proceeds generated from The Presidents Cup 2011 at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, in which Watney participated as a member of the victorious U.S. Team for the first time in his career. 

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The Presidents Cup is a unique golf event in that there is no purse or prize money.  Players are not personally paid for their participation; instead, each competitor, captain and captain’s assistant allocates their portion of the proceeds generated to chosen charitable causes.

Dixon Family Services/the Dixon Teen Center was one of four organizations chosen by Watney.

The opened in January of 2011 to serve the teens of the community, giving them a safe environment in which to gather for games and activities on Friday and Saturday evenings.

The Center plans to expand to after school programs in the fall. The Presidents Cup donation is a vital contribution to the Center’s current and future program. Nick Watney grew up in Dixon and his parents still live in the community. His father, Brent Watney, is one of the Teen Center’s dedicated volunteers.

"Nick’s father donates time every month to the teens by physically being at the center and helping as a regular volunteer," Myers said. "We are grateful for the time he gives, we are also grateful to Nick for donating the money. He could have chosen any organization that he supports, but he chose the Teen Center. We just cannot express our gratitude enough."

Myers said the board would be meeting about how to best facilitate the funds. Some of the items on the Teen Center's wish list include an afterschool program and to pay for regular staff members, she said.

"There's infinite possibility in what we can do," Cox added. "It will enable us to increase the staff. The Watney family, we are so very thankful for their support not only of Nick's finances , but of their time and energy. We will make sure that this investment has many returns."

A total of $4.5 million will be distributed to charitable causes around the world from The Presidents Cup 2011, a record-setting amount for this prestigious competition and part of the more than $27 million raised since the inception of event in 1994.

The Presidents Cup is a biennial match-play competition between the United States Team and the International Team, which was first contested in 1994. The International Team includes the world’s best players from non-European countries.  The ninth playing of the event occurred November 15-20, 2011, at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, which was the first international venue to host this prestigious competition more than once.

The U.S. Team captured The Presidents Cup for the seventh time, led by Captain Fred Couples and a 5-0-0 performance by veteran Jim Furyk.  Tiger Woods, one of Couples’ two captain’s picks, clinched the Cup for the United States with a 4-and-3 win over Australia’s Aaron Baddeley in Sunday Singles. 

For Woods, it was the second consecutive time he had scored the winning point at The Presidents Cup, becoming only the second player to accomplish that feat (Couples, 1994, 1996) and the first captain’s pick to do so.  Greg Norman’s International Team played well, but was undone by the Foursomes competition.  The Internationals were outscored 8-3 in foursomes and eventually lost the Cup by four points (19-15).

The U.S. holds a 7-1-1 record in The Presidents Cup overall.  The International Team last won The Presidents Cup in 1998 when it was held outside the United States for the first time, also at Royal Melbourne Golf Club. A historic 17-17 tie came in 2003 when the event was held in South Africa. For more information on The Presidents Cup, visit www.PresidentsCup.com.


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