The Tellico Village Ladies Golf Association held its annual member-guest tournament July 18 at Toqua Golf Course.
This year’s tournament theme was ‘Tame the Game’ and featured wild safari decorations.
“We basically put on four big events each year,” Meri Coles, TVLGA-18 vice president, said. “This is definitely one of those events, and it’s something we always look forward to having.”
The tournament drew 72 participants, split between three flights based on handicap.
“We usually hold this in June or July and will get anywhere from 70 to 90 players,” Jeff Harrington, The Links at Kahite golf professional, said. “A lot of the participants usually come from just the Knoxville area, but we also get some from out of state as well. I thought we had a great turnout today.”
Marty Raque, member-guest tournament chair, felt the event was a success.
“I thought it was a really good tournament,” Raque said. “I keep getting emails from people that played that have said how good it was. I’ve even gotten an email from someone who didn’t even play, but had heard about how good it was. That just shows you right there.”
TVLGA-18 president Sharon Vaughan also praised the tournament’s success. Vaughan and her partner placed first in the second flight.
“My experience with this tournament makes me extremely proud to be a part of Tellico Village golf,” she said. “We strive to make it a nice tournament for our guests, as well as the member with whom they play. I believe a lot of people would agree and feedback from our guests at this tournament is so rewarding. Also, my foursome won our flight, so that was super fun.”
The TVLGA is made up of three leagues, the 18-hole league and two 9-hole leagues.
“We have three unbelievable ladies organizations,” Harrington said. “The two 9-hole leagues each have about 200 members while the 18-hole league has about 150. All of them are very active, so that’s always good.”
Golf is regarded by some as the Village’s top amenity, and Harrington believes participation in groups like the TVLGA-18 shows why.
“To me, it’s the No. 1 amenity that Tellico Village offers,” Harrington said. “It’s the reason why most people come here. Out of 8,000 residents, we have somewhere around 3,500 that actively play golf. It’s really a big thing around here, especially among our female residents.”
Vaughan was happy to bring in guests for the tournament, which allowed LGA members to show off golf in the Village.
“Tellico golf courses are second to none in the area as far as I’m concerned,” Vaughan said. “Whether it be a member-guest or an invitational, outside guests love coming to our courses to play. Course management and maintenance is top notch here.”
The next major TVLGA-18 event will the group’s annual ‘Give Back Day’ tournament Aug. 15 at Kahite to benefit Habitat for Humanity. For more information, visit www.tvlga18.com.
