Golden Bear, Palmer, Watson and Miller team up for the first time
In a rare media opportunity to discuss an even rarer gathering of four golf legends, Jack Nicklaus joined friends Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson and Johnny Miller on Tuesday for a teleconference to discuss the Aug. 10 grand opening of The Golf Club at Harbor Shores—a Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course in Benton Harbor, Mich., which will be unveiled and celebrated by a charity skins game between the foursome. The Harbor Shores Champions for Change Golf Challenge will feature the first-ever grouping of this foursome, as they compete in an 18-hole scramble skins format, with rotating two-man teams.
Tickets for the event, which concludes the night of Aug. 10 with a roundtable discussion between the four called “Evening for Champions,” sold out in less than four weeks, with proceeds going back to Benton Harbor community charities.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” Miller said. “It will be nice to have a good time, number one, support a good cause and be able to be in these guys’ presence. They have a good attitude about the game and represent the game properly. I’m looking forward to a great day.”
Comprising 530 acres and highlighted by the 18-hole, public Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course, Harbor Shores will enhance and beautify the already popular vacation and second home destination of Benton Harbor and St. Joseph. The development will also serve as a catalyst for ongoing community transformation—economic, environmental and social.
“As you all know, I’m obviously excited about the Harbor Shores project,” Nicklaus said. “It is more than just a golf course; it is a community revitalization project that I deeply believe in.
“It is a project that is going to make a difference, and that’s what it’s all about. That’s what the opening and the Champions for Change event is all about, and I’m excited to be a part of it.”
The legendary foursome, which collectively has 199 PGA TOUR wins and 35 major championship victories, will tee off together for the first time ever in competitive play at The Golf Club at Harbor Shores. For the first six holes, Nicklaus will be paired with Miller. He will then partner with Watson for the next six, before finishing up the skins game with long-time friend and rival Palmer. Although the event is for charity, competition won’t be put at bay.
“We’ve all been competitive for years, trying to beat each other’s brains out on the golf course,” Nicklaus said, before Watson goodheartedly chimed in, “And it hasn’t changed!”
Listen in on the teleconference for more as Jack and his fellow competitors, friends and champions express their excitement and hope for The Golf Club at Harbor Shores.
