UNCA will host former Ladies Professional Golf Association member Brandi Jackson at the university’s Our Turn to Play luncheon. The annual event — scheduled for Monday, May 11, at 11:30 a.m., at the Wilma M. Sherrill Center on campus — “honors women as champions and leaders and generates support for the UNC Asheville student-athlete scholarship fund,” according to a release from UNCA.
Tickets for the event, which start at $75 per person, are available at at uncabulldogs.com/tickets or by calling Donna Peek at 828-232-5655.
Here is the full event release from organizers:
Former LPGA golfer and Furman University alumna Brandi Jackson will be the featured speaker during the Our Turn to Play Luncheon on May 11, 2015, at the Wilma M. Sherrill Center on the campus of UNC Asheville. The annual event, hosted by UNC Asheville’s Athletics Department, honors women as champions and leaders and generates support for the UNC Asheville student-athlete scholarship fund.
Registration begins at 11:30 a.m. with lunch served at noon, followed by a speech from Jackson. Longtime Asheville resident, business owner and celebrated golfer Ann Brandis also will be honored during the luncheon, as the recipient of the 2015 Trailblazer Award.
A coach and consultant as well as a committed community volunteer, Jackson established Brandi Jackson Golf after discovering a talent for recruiting and mentoring young female golfers and their families through the collegiate recruiting process. She began her golf career at the age of 8, and has since enjoyed a successful athletic career in college and as a professional. She played in every tournament during her four years at Furman University. During her time as a Paladin, Jackson claimed a Southern Conference Championship in 2002 and Player of the Year in 2003. She earned an individual bid to the NCAA National Championships and was named 2nd Team NGCA All American in 2003. The highlight of her amateur career came at the 2002 U.S. Women’s Amateur where she finished runner-up and earned an exemption into the U.S. Women’s Open.
Jackson turned professional in 2004, becoming one of only two recent college graduates to earn full LPGA status that season. She competed in what is now called the LPGA Symetra Tour from 2005-08 and held partial LPGA status in 2008 and 2009. In 2012 Brandi was inducted into the Furman Athletic Hall of Fame and the Palmetto High School Hall of Fame.
In addition to working as a college recruiting consultant and performance golf coach, Jackson lends her time and talents to Big Brothers Big Sisters, Crusader Golf and The Blade Junior Golf Classic.
Our Turn to Play Luncheon tickets for individuals are $75. A corporate table costs $600, while a group table costs $420. Tables will seat seven plus a student-athlete or Symetra Tour player. You can purchase tickets at uncabulldogs.com/tickets or by calling Donna Peek at 828-232-5655.
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