Extol Sports September 2017 | Page 48

EVENTS Cowgill Valvano Scramble Fore Cancer All Proceeds Benefitted The V Foundation for Cancer Research Brendan Sweeney seems ready to get started. Celebrity onlookers react to a close putt. Aug. 7 Valhalla Golf Club Photos by David Harrison The Louisville Friends of V, in partnership with WLKY, hosted the 2017 Cowgill Valvano Scramble Fore Cancer to raise money for cancer research in the state of Kentucky. The scramble took place Aug. 7 with golfers enjoying a round at the famous Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville. This year’s event marks the 24th year that local sportscaster Fred Cowgill has hosted a charity golf event in the community. The first 17 years saw him raising money to benefit diabetes research. However, after losing his father, Ralph, to pancreatic cancer in 2009, Fred asked his friend Bob Valvano to partner with him to raise funds in an effort to support cancer research, programs, and services. Since then, the Scramble Fore Cancer has helped raise more than $300,000 to help fight cancer in Kentucky, the state with the highest rate of cancer in the United States. The event also featured an evening buffet dinner, live and silent auctions and a private show by country music recording artist JD Shelburne, another participant in the golf event. To learn more about the organization, go to www.jimmyvlouisville.org. 46 EXTOL SPORTS / SEPTEMBER 2017 Mark Crabtree, left, and Ted Shultz watch the others tee off in the celebrity challenge.