Mishall RehmanA new world record has been set thanks to various individuals connected to the military community. On Thursday July 21, 2016, 239 people set the record for the most people to hit a golf ball 100-yards in one hour.
Sponsored by Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services (CFMWS), the record attempt was held to build up anticipation for the the second annual National Capital Open to Support Our Troops Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada, to be held in August.
“It became a nail bitter. Basically you get ten seconds with someone on the mat taking a swing and to see if they get it over and people get a bit nervous, three hundred people in your gallery watching you do this, and you don’t know if it’s going to work out and then you’re trying to count as you go. Well we made it,” Mike Ward, Tournament Director, National Capitol Open, told CTV News.
Guinness Worlds Records representatives were on hand yesterday to present CFMWS with an official certificate at Hylands Golf Club in Ottawa.
The golf tournament and Guinness World Records both have a broader aim and focus: raising awareness on the issue of veterans homelessness.
“The big win this year is that we’re seeing much more community support coming out to look at this not just as a golf tournament but as a charitable fund raiser for the Canadian Forces Support Our Troops program… This year what we decided to do is use those funds, the proceeds, to help mitigate something which is really a difficult issue for many of us to appreciate and and that’s veterans homelessness in our community,” said Ward.
Though the Government of Canada released statistics earlier this year that an estimated 2,250 former soldiers are homeless, CFMWS and other organizations estimate that the actual number for veterans at risk for homelessness is much higher.
CFMWS hopes to raise $100,000 during the Support Our Troops Mackenzie Tour to mitigate veterans homelessness.
The tournament consists of a week-long celebration of golf, entertainment and activities to raise awareness and funds for the cause and about the challenges faced by Canadian Armed Forces members, veterans and their families. The previous Guinness World Record was held by 199 individuals who came together on August 1, 2015 at the Nine Eagles Golf Course Hong Kong, China.
