There’s a very cool event coming June 8th and 9th, where celebrity athletes from the four major U.S. sports (football, baseball, basketball, hockey) will be competing against each other on the golf course. Now we can finally put to rest the questions about which pro athletes make the best golfers.

The Format

The “Team Challenge” is a unique format to say the least. There are elements of Ryder Cup, Skins Game and “accelerated scoring” which gives a team more points if they win by a larger margin.

Commissioner Charles Barkley

Charles Barkley, all star basketball player and one of the NBA’s top 50, is the commissioner of the Challenge. He’s also a non playing captain of the Challenge’s basketball team. Having seen his golf swing, “non playing” is a good thing…

Purse & Charity

The purse is $250,000, $100K to the winner. Each team’s winnings are donated to the charity of their choice.

Players

Football:
John Elway, Michael Strahan, LaDainian Tomlinson, Drew Brees

Basketball:
Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, Jason Kidd, George Gervin, Clyde Drexler

Baseball:
Ozzie Smith, George Brett, Vince Coleman, Bret Saberhagen

Hockey:
Mario Lemieux, Brett Hull, Grant Fuhr, Pierre Larouche

YOU Mr. “ProCoach,” will call the shots

The Team Challenge will have a very cool feature which hasn’t been done before. “ProCoaches” are people who sign up and act as interactive coaches from their computers or mobile devices. ProCoaches will have input on strategy decisions and have an actual real impact on the outcome of the match! The charities will also benefit as $1 of revenue will be added to the prize for each ProCoach.

The all star blog/media team

Not to be outdone by the sports superstars, a superstar golf blog team has been assembled. For the first time ever, the two “queens of the golf blogosphere” will be in action on scene. Yes, Jay Flemma and I will be there blogging, broadcasting, announcing, interacting, and who knows what else. Wait a second, Jay and I have teamed up for golf blogging events around the country numerous times. So that can’t be what I’m talking about. Ok, you guessed it… Kristen “The Golf Chick” and Patricia “The Golf Girl” will be there with Jay and me as well!

Images

For images of all the players and the tournament, go to the HOG Team Challenge Photo Gallery.

Where and when

Team Challenge Matches: June 7 & 8, 2008.
Host Resort: Fantasy Springs Resort Hotel & Casino, Palm Springs
Host Golf Course: Eagle Falls Golf Course, Palm Springs
Broadcast: Fox Sports Net

Press Release

Click below to read the official Team Challenge press release.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Mike Paul
April 17, 2008 MGP & Associates PR
T: 917-359-1431; email: mpaul@mgppr.com

Team Challenge Unites All-Stars from Football, Baseball,
Basketball and Hockey for Charity Golf Competition

New Social Networking Platform Offers
Fans Participation in Coaching Decisions

NEW YORK – Sixteen legendary all-stars – four each from football, baseball, basketball and hockey - will collide on the golf course in a two-day Pro Sports Team Challenge in golf at beautiful Eagle Falls Golf Course at Fantasy Springs Resort in Palm Springs, California on June 7 and 8, 2008. Tournament Commissioner Charles Barkley is bringing together four superstars from each sport and pitting them against one another in a struggle for both bragging rights and the top charity prize of $100,000.

“Athletes from each sport think that they are the best golfers. It’s high time we found out who really is: baseball, football, basketball or hockey,” said Team Challenge spokesman, Mike Paul.

The sports superstars already committed to participate include:

Baseball Basketball Football Hockey

Ozzie Smith* Charles Barkley* Drew Brees* Mario Lemieux*
George Brett Jason Kidd LaDanian Tomlinson Brett Hull
Vince Coleman Julius Erving, “Dr. J” John Elway Grant Fuhr
TBA TBA Michael Strahan Pierre Larouche
TBA

Barkley will also serve as the non-playing captain of the Team Challenge basketball team.

“The playful smack talk regarding which sport and athlete are the best started months ago,” said Tom Belton, founder and managing partner of Team Challenge, LLC. “These sports legends look forward to the challenge and to raising significant money for charity. Nothing makes them happier than playing sports to raise money to help others in need. Moreover, this competition might also depend on who has the most loyal and knowledgeable fans.”

Belton is right. In an inspired twist using a new technology known as Strat.e.golf TM, fans can directly participate in coaching decisions for their favorite team by logging on to the Internet or using their cell phone text messaging to vote on coaching strategies for a team of their choice. “It’s sort of like American Idol,” Mike Paul explained. The fan vote will determine which player in each of the four rounds of competition will play for double points. Fans, called “ProCoaches™” in the Team Challenge vernacular, can log on to www.teamchallenge.com, or text on their cell phones to sign up to coach their favorite Team Challenge team, vote on coaching decisions, and engage in social networking with other ProCoaches™ on their Team Challenge team website and through text messaging. “This is a tremendous chance for fans to not only support their favorite athletes in the competition, but to have a direct impact on the outcome. The earlier they sign up, the more influence they can have in coaching decisions, so man up everybody!” continued Paul.

“Fantasy Sports just became Reality Sports,” said Tom Belton. “The Team Challenge will, for the first time ever, provide fans with the opportunity to make real strategy decisions in a high profile sports competition. Blogs and chat rooms will allow fans to strategize together to make their choices. Strat.e.golf TM brings the fan inside the locker room as a true coach.”

“It’s as though half of the action will be on the golf course and the other half of the action with be online or from mobile advices,” echoed Mike Paul. Additionally, the total purse for the event, already $250,000, will increase by $1.00 for each fan that registers as a paid ProCoachTM for the winning team. “The more people that sign up and participate, the more money we can raise for worthy charities, so sign up and play,” he finished.

Team Challenge will release more information soon about the additional sports legends participating, the charities, our television broadcasting partner, super sweepstakes, the Pro-Am in Palm Springs on June 6, 2008, more online and mobile participation info, future events and much more.

About Team Challenge, LLC

Team Challenge, LLC was founded in 2008 to develop and implement turnkey event planning, marketing, software and technology solutions for all types of team competitions with a mission to enhance the online experience of sports ad entertainment fans. Team competitions highlight friendly rivalries among celebrities, colleges, corporations, countries, nonprofit organizations and global affinity groups of all kinds. For more information, visit us online at www.teamchallenge.com.