Image taken by TTU student Javier Aguero Gonzalez
By Urvi Dalal, The Hub@TTU
Several notable figures visited Lubbock over the weekend for the Chip in for Children Golf Tournament.
Among them: Tim Tebow, Josh Abbott, Juli Inkster and Grant Boone who all participated in the fundraiser at Lubbock Country Club to help raise money for the Covenant Children’s hospital.
Covenant Children’s CEO Amy Thompson, who is also a physician, said the funds raised at the Weekend of Giving event, sponsored by Texas Tech, would go toward three new programs focused on pet therapy, music therapy and education.
Thompson said one of the primary goals for Covenant Children’s is to keep kids in Lubbock.
“If we can continue to grow programs and services, it is easier for families (to stay)” Thompson said.
Texas Tech Head Football Coach Joey McGuire and his wife, Debbie, were co-chairs for the event. The McGuire Family visited the hospital and stayed with the children for hours — something he wants to get the Tech athletes involved in.
McGuire said when moving to Lubbock he and Debbie made a commitment to help the community.
“We’re lucky in West Texas to have a children’s hospital of this quality,” McGuire said, noting that the Lubbock community is made up of the “greatest people in the world.”
Thompson said they have had a long existing relationship with Texas Tech’s medical school and this year, with the help of the McGuire Family, Covenant Children’s has been able to extend its relationship with Texas Tech even further.
“We always talk about having an attitude of gratitude and making sure we understand that things are so much bigger than just us,” McGuire said when talking about the giving character he hopes to see in his athletes. “Whenever you get to volunteer and be a part of something like this, it’s good for your soul. (It’s a) reminder that some of your bad days and some people’s best days, you know.”
In addition to the golf tournament, the weekend hosted many other events including a storytellers’ event, Texas Tech’s spring football game and a caregivers event with Tebow.
The Celebrities
During the event, Juli Inkster, a professional golfer, shared that she began playing the sport after she got a job at a nearby golf course when she was 15 years old. Growing up from a modest background, with her father working as a firefighter and her mother as a stay-at-home parent, she had no choice but to begin working at a young age.
One day, she discovered a set in the lost-and-found and began to play the sport that would change her life forever. She remarked that, while her journey of becoming a professional player was quick, it required extensive work.
During her time as a student-athlete in college, Inkster equated her responsibilities to having two full-time jobs, developing strong time management and organizational skills early on that would later send her to a successful career.
Now a 31-time LPGA winner, Inkster fondly remembers her first tournament victory but notes that she quickly learned that in professional golf, there is little time to bask in accomplishment.
Inkster explained that after winning, players only have around 12 hours to celebrate before moving on to the next tournament and compared golf to being a hamster on a wheel, where despite achieving something great, the next week, every player starts from scratch.
“It’s a great feeling that you’ve accomplished something but the next week you start at zero just like everybody else,” she said. “You’re always going around in circles.”
After spending several decades in the golf industry, Inkster shared that the most significant lesson she learned was that women can still pursue their dreams even while being a mom. Although challenging, she has had a fulfilling career and aspires to leave the game of golf better than she found it.
Inkster also offered a piece of advice to young golfers, emphasizing the importance of hard work and enjoying the journey. Golf involves numerous setbacks, and it’s crucial to overcome these obstacles.
“If you win once a year, you’ve had a great year,” she added. “If it ever becomes a job, it’s not for you.”
But, she said, more than winning, the greatest thing about golf is that every tournament gives back to charities and the communities that host them.
Another LPGA Tour player, Kim Kaufman — who is also a Texas Tech alumna — said she loves any excuse to come back to Lubbock, attributing a lot of her success to her time here.
“They just made [me] a better player,” Kaufman said.
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