After a one-year hiatus, the CWGA Chapman Championship returns this weekend, complete with a tweaking of its name to honor a woman who had a key role in launching the tournament in the first place.
The “Dunham” portion of the CWGA Dunham Chapman Championship pays tribute to Jo Ann Dunham, a longtime CWGA volunteer whose brainchild was the Chapman, which was first contested in 2007. Dunham passed away last Sept. 28 just shy of her 77th birthday.
The Lakewood resident served on the CWGA’s volunteer board of directors from 2004 through ’09, chairing the tournament committee during that period and serving on that same committee for years before joining the board. Besides the Chapman, she was instrumental in the creation of the CWGA Niblick Tournament, another team event.
While Dunham volunteered countless hours for the CWGA, her volunteerism went far beyond association events. For instance, she played a key role in a longtime Girls in Golf fundraiser.
The 2017 Dunham Chapman will be held Saturday and Sunday (Sept. 16 and 17) at Raven Golf Club at Three Peaks (pictured) in Silverthorne. The format calls for two-person teams, with each golfer hitting tee shots, then playing her partner’s ball for the second shot. After that, a scoring ball is chosen, and that ball is played alternately into the hole.
A total of 61 two-person teams are signed up for the 36-hole event, competing in seven flights (championship and first through sixth).
Ten teams will tee it up in the championship flight, which is guaranteed a first-time winner as no former champs are entered.
Among those who are playing are Deb Hughes, the 2016 CWGA Senior Stroke Play champion, and teammate Kelly Martin; and Kathy Malpass, who last weekend competed in the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur, and partner Bev Hoffenberg.
For Saturday’s pairings, CLICK HERE.
