Strokes_hope

Jeff Green | Apr 24, 2008

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AndrewFazackerly and Edward Goodfellow tee off

When members of the Rivendell Golf Club gather this Friday evening for their annual meet and greet event to celebrate the opening of the golf season (the course actually opened last Saturday) they will see a couple of familiar faces, those of Edward Goodfellow and AndrewFazackerly.

The two 24-year-olds say they basically “grew up at the club”, and they are a little more excited than anyone else about the season getting underway because they will be kicking off a golf-related fundraising drive at the event.

The two young men are getting ready to play a marathon golf game. As a fundraising event to raise money for the Eastern Ontario Cancer Centre renovations KGH, the two intend to play eight rounds of golf at Rivendell within a 24-hour period on June 19 and 20, and in so doing cover the same distance, 60 km, as people cover in the popular weekend “Walk for the Cure” events.

“Our family and friends have been hit with cancer and I've been thinking for a while about something that can be done to raise money. I love golf, so when this idea came together it seemed like a natural fit,” said Edward.

When another family friend, 14-year-old Jessie Arthur from Perth Road died from leukemia early in March, Edward felt even more compelled to make this event happen. “I immediately thought of asking Andrew to play with me, and of course he didn't hesitate when I asked him,” Edward said, in an interview at his family home in Tichborne on Monday.

“I just said, when do we go?” said Andrew.

“The first piece was Rivendell,” said Edward’s mother Cathy, who works at the course, “and they came on board right away.”

Pledges are available now at Rivendell, and will be at other locations as well in the run-up to the event. Because all of the money being raised is going to the redevelopment of the Cancer Centre in Kingston, donations will be matched by the government on a 9 -1 ratio, so every pledged dollar raised will bring $10 to the project.

Cathy Goodfellow has contacted the Guiness World Records organization, and it turns out there is no record for marathon golf games, so Guiness is looking into whether they should consider this event.

Whether Guiness gets involved or not, the goal of playing 8 games in succession over a 24-hour period is a daunting one, but the two men will not be taking power carts. They are commited to carrying or pulling their golf bags throughout, and to putting out on every green, even in the middle of the night.

“We are playing on one of the longest days of the year, and the moon will be full as well. After dark we will be using balls that glow and the pins will be be lit as well. We already have headlamps too.”

Although it is a fundraising event, the two golfing buddies will be competing against each other. They both have handicaps under 10, and although Edward admits Andrew might be a bit of a better golfer, they will be keeping score throughout.”

“We have talked about what kind of score we might get to,” Andrew admitted.

The score on the first three holes will be particularly important, because there is quite a steep hill from the thrid green to the fourth tee at Rivendell.

“Whoever has the highest score in the first three holes will have to carry the other player’s bag to the fourth tee, each time,” Edward said.

Speed of play will also be a factor. At a good pace, a round of golf takes four hours. It takes spepdy play to get around in three hours. To play in three hours eight times in a row, might turn out to be another question.

“We won't have a lot of time in between rounds,” admitted Edward.

A website has been set up for the event, strokesforehope.ca, and corporate sponsors have come forward, including Titleast Golf and the clothing company Gracie’s Gear, which will donate a portion of online sales to the cause over the next two months.

The Central and North Frontenac Relay For Life will take place on June 6 at the Parham ballfield, and the Strokesforehope campaign will be heating up after that event. In only one year the relay has already established itself as the major annual fundraising event in the region, involving hundred of participants.

“The Relay for Life raises money for the Cancer Society and we are working for the Cancer Centre, but it is all the same cause; it's all about fighting cancer,” said Edward.

For further information and to donate, go to Strokesforehope.ca or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or phone 613-375-6651