George O’Grady, Chief Executive of The European Tour, welcomed almost 100 guests to the annual European Tour International Media Dinner on Tuesday evening hosted for a seventh successive year by the Augusta Country Club.
Golf Writers and media personnel from all over the world including the United States joined executives from The Golf Channel at the dinner which has become a firm fixture in the build-up to the Masters Tournament.
Two time Masters Champion and 2012 European Ryder Cup Captain José María Olazábal arrived during the evening from the Champions Dinner at Augusta National, where the first Major Championship of the year starts on Thursday.
O’Grady’s speech included referencing the sad loss to the sport during the last year of many leading players, administrators and golf writers including Seve Ballesteros, Masters Champion in 1980 and 1983, Mario Camicia, the Tournament Director of the Italian Open for many years and regarded as “Mr Golf” in Italy, and respected writers and nonagenarians Furman Bisher, the highly acclaimed columnist of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution who covered 62 successive Masters Tournaments, Roger Barry and Alan Booth.
Guests of honour at O’Grady’s table are pictured (left to right): Jerry Tarde, Chairman and Editor in Chief of Golf Digest; Jon Litner, President, VERSUS and SportsNet within the NBC Sports Group; O’Grady, Olazábal; Renton Laidlaw, Golf Channel commentator and President of the Association of Golf Writers; and Derek Lawrenson, Golf Correspondent of The Daily Mail and Deputy Chairman of the Association of Golf Writers.
