McGann raises diabetes awareness

21-year LPGA Tour member Michelle McGann held a meet and greet and clinic with several families affiliated with the Desert Southwest chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation on Wednesday. McGann was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 13 and has still managed to have a very successful golf career. The Michelle McGann Fund has a mission to further the efforts of organizations like the Diabetes Research Foundation and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. McGann will be hold several meet and greets throughout the season with local chapters of the JDRF.

McGann spoke to the children and their parents on the Papago Golf Course driving range about steps they can take to control their diabetes while continuing to lead an active lifestyle. She shared tips with them about what to eat, what to avoid, how to handle adrenalin boosts during competition and how important it is to stay hydrated when exercising. Diabetes can strike children suddenly, making them insulin-dependent for life. The mission of the JDRF is constant: to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research.

Families interested in registering with the Desert Southwest chapter of the JDRF can contact Sara Sparman at ssparman@jdrf.org or go to www.jdrfdsw.org. For more on Michelle’s daily struggle with diabetes, go to http://www.michellemcgann.com/diabetic_corner/.

Everything they touch turns to gold

Tuesday was a busy day at Papago Golf Course in Phoenix. Players, caddies and staff getting accustomed to new surroundings (the tournament moved from Superstition Mountain this season) while tournament officials are hastily tying up all loose ends. Papago is a city-owned golf course just a few miles from downtown Phoenix. It opened in 1963 and has hosted the U.S. Amateur Public Links, as well as qualifiers for the PGA TOUR’S Phoenix Open. The course is just four months removed from an extensive restoration project that began in April of 2008. Thus far, players and caddies have been very complimentary of the course, noting that the firm greens will wreak havoc on approach shots hoping to get close to the flag.

The media is out in full force this week. ESPN was in town filming preview interviews for next weeks Kraft Nabisco Championship, while Getty Images was on-hand doing player photo shoots. It really feels like we’re back in the swing of things… pun intended. U.S. Solheim Cup Beth Daniel – who also moonlights as an analyst on Golf Channel – is also in town in a dual role of scouting American players for the 2009 Solheim Cup and commentating on the overall event for television. It’s always interesting to see the American players on the bubble of making the team putting in a few extra words with Beth when they see her!

John Solheim (think The Solheim Cup) of PING was on-site to make a very special presentation to some of the top players on the LPGA. For their victories in LPGA major championships, PING awarded five tour pros that play PING equipment with gold putters to signify their accomplishments. Lorena Ochoa, Suzann Pettersen, Cristie Kerr, Karrie Webb and Sherri Steinhauer each received a solid gold putter head for major victories in the last three years. Take my word, those putters were heavier than your average club. All pros who play PING and won on the LPGA tour last year or this year also received gold-plated putters. Lorena led the league in putter heads with eight total!

Lorena Ochoa poses with her nine gold putters. Each putter has her name and a tournament she won from 2008 and 2009.	Doug Hawken of Ping poses with LPGA Major Champions Suzann Pettersen of Norway, Sherri Steinhauer, Ping President and CEO John Solheim, Cristie Kerr, Lorena Ochoa of Mexico, and Karrie Webb of Australia with their solid gold Ping putters.