Golf tournament benefitting Run the Dam comes to Electric City
IAN BIVONA | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 months, 3 weeks AGO
Garrett Jess, left, and Kelly Buche, right, pose for a photo outside the Jess Ford dealership in Grand Coulee. Jess Ford is hosting the Swing for the Good charity golf scramble early next month, benefiting Run for the Dam, which is run by Buche.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO/NIKKI STROCK
Ian Bivona serves as the Columbia Basin Herald’s sports reporter and is a graduate of Auburn University in Auburn, Alabama. He enjoys the behind-the-scenes stories that lead up to the wins and losses of the various sports teams in the Basin. Football is his favorite sport, though he likes them all, and his favorite team is the Jets. He lives in Soap Lake with his cat, Honey. | August 23, 2024 3:00 AM
ELECTRIC CITY — Those looking for a charity golf tournament next month can make the trip up to Electric City for the Swing for the Good charity golf scramble, hosted by Jess Ford and benefitting Run the Dam.
Jess Ford Dealer Principal Garrett Jess said he got the idea to start the tournament after visiting a benefit golf tournament organized in part by his mother-in-law in Texas.
“I’d seen they raised money for a good cause – a lot of local camaraderie,” Jess said. “We just thought, get people coming together to help raise money for a good thing, I thought it was good and why couldn’t we do something like that?”
The tournament, which will be held Sept. 7 at the Banks Lake Golf Course in Electric City, will benefit Run the Dam, a non-profit launched in 2016 that offers healthy outdoor activities in the Grand Coulee area.
Before becoming Run the Dam, it was originally referred to as the Over the Dam Run by local running enthusiasts who, according to the organization’s website, thought running over the Grand Coulee Dam at 4 p.m. in the August weather would be quite a feat. As the years went on the race came and went and was eventually moved into the spring. In 2014, the name was changed to Run the Dam before moving to the fall and becoming a non-profit organization two years later.
“When we were talking about, ‘Okay, let’s put on a benefit golf tournament, where do we start? Let’s start local,’” Jess said.
A few on-course contests and prizes will be available to competitors in the golf tournament; there will be a long drive and putt competition, with prizes including rounds of golf to other golf courses in the area.
Oh, and one for if a player records a hole-in-one.
“If someone gets a hole-in-one, they can get an F-150,” Jess said.
A grand reward for a great shot.
If the tournament proves successful in its inaugural year, Jess said it's possible for it to return in the future.
“That would be the idea, that it would be a big hit and something we can turn into an annual event,” Jess said.
Registration for the tournament can be done by visiting https://bit.ly/4cKmzkQ. The cost is $100 per player and includes green fees, a cart, lunch and a donation to Run the Dam. All proceeds from the tournament go to Run the Dam. Teams will be made up of four players each. The deadline to register for the tournament is Aug. 28.