Celebrity Golf Day Raises Vital Funds for Racing Welfare and Injured Jockey’s Fund
27 teams of four took part in a star-studded Celebrity Golf Day at Woburn Golf Club on 21st July by kind permission of the Duke of Bedford, raising vital funds for two of racing’s key human welfare charities. The event has generated in the region of £45,000 for Racing Welfare and the Injured Jockey’s Fund which will directly help the charities in their mission to provide crucial support to jockeys and anyone working in or retired from the racing industry.
One sporting celebrity was allocated to each team, with stars including Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Owais Shah and Richard Levi. There was of course a strong racing contingent supporting the day, including AP McCoy, Frankie Dettori, John Francome, Dan Skelton and Mick Fitzgerald.
Mick Fitzgerald said:
It has been a tough 18 months for a lot of charities, and for the two that are closest to my heart it has been really tough. They’ve had to work exceptionally hard – Racing Welfare especially – they’ve had a lot of people enquiring, needing their help, and without any events to hold they’re not able to raise the required funds so they need all the donations that people can give so if you can spare a few quid, they’d be very grateful.
There was plenty of competitive spirit and good humour, but the overall honours went to Johnno Spence’s team. Racing Welfare’s own Chief Operating Officer Gemma Waterhouse earned best individual, while Josh Apiafi achieved the longest drive and Owen Price produced an unbeatable result to take victory on nearest pin.
Headline sponsors Whitley Neill Gin – the UK’s number 1 premium gin, owned by Halewood Artisanal Spirits, provided refreshments throughout the day as well as fielding their own team. James Stocker, Marketing Director of Halewood Artisanal Spirits said: “We were delighted to be able to sponsor The Golf Day on behalf of Whitley Neill Gin. Great fun was had by all, and we were so pleased to hear that it proved to be such a successful fundraiser for Racing Welfare and Injured Jockey’s Fund, both of which are extremely important charities to our business”.
Media partners Sky Sports Racing attended the full day, exclusively capturing the action and speaking to celebrities about their involvement. All the footage can be seen on their social media channels.
Both Dawn Goodfellow and Lisa Hancock – Chief Executives at Racing Welfare and the Injured Jockey’s Fund respectively are incredibly grateful to all those involved who made the day such a roaring success. Special thanks go to Johnno Spence, as well as sponsors Whitley Neill Gin, The Racehorse Owners Association, Parkers Branded, and Apparel Partner Snowfinel.
If you would like to support the two charities, you can still donate to the event by texting GOLF to 70480 to donate £5.
