The Nicklaus Companies, founded and co-chaired by golf icon Jack Nicklaus, has announced a collaborative program to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® and the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation.
For every dozen Nicklaus Golf Balls sold, the Nicklaus Companies is committing a minimum donation of $1 to St. Jude and a $1 donation to the NCHCF. Nicklaus Golf Balls can be purchased on www.nicklaus.com. In addition, for every dozen shipped via FedEx delivery services under this program, Nicklaus Companies will donate an additional $1 to St. Jude. FedEx is providing some shipping as part of this effort, and Nicklaus Companies plan to provide purchasers of the golf balls shipping at no charge.
It is estimated there are more than 20 million dozen golf balls sold each year in the United States.
Jack Nicklaus, his wife, Barbara, and Nicklaus Co-Chairman Howard Milstein travelled to Memphis to make the announcement and visit St. Jude Children’s ResearchHospital.
“I’m really excited to collaborate with St. Jude and FedEx to create a program that raises funds for St. Jude Children’s ResearchHospital and the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation,” said Jack Nicklaus, who, along with wife Barbara, co-founded NCHCF. “Our mission has been to grow our Foundation to benefit children’s hospitals and programs around the country and this effort with FedEx and St. Jude enables us to accomplish that in a significant way.”
This initiative also will serve as a model for expanding the charitable focus of the Nicklaus Golf Ball program in association with other companies and programs nationwide that are dedicated to children’s health.
From its inception, the Nicklaus Golf Ball platform focused on generating funds for the NCHCF, an idea conceived by philanthropist Howard Milstein. Not only does a percentage of every golf ball sold on Nicklaus.com go directly to the Foundation, but also the wholesale pricing of golf balls available on the internet encourages web site visitors to make a voluntary contribution. Since the program was first announced last October during The Presidents Cup at Jack Nicklaus’ Ohio home course of Muirfield Village Golf Club, 80 percent of customers have opted to make a donation.
The new Nicklaus Golf Balls and this program put an emphasis on simplifying the selection process associated with purchasing a high-quality golf ball, as well as a focus on giving back to the game and to charity. Nicklaus introduced three golf balls-Nicklaus Black, Nicklaus Blue and Nicklaus White-to accommodate three skill levels of player, using the traditional tees from which they typically play.
The balls, which began shipping toward the end of 2013, are sold by Nicklaus exclusively online at www.nicklaus.com and through golf/pro shops at the more than 200 Nicklaus Design courses nationwide.
“A very small percentage of golfers know their swing speeds, but 100 percent of them know what tees they play,” Nicklaus said. “Our new balls solve the golfer’s dilemma of which ball to use; all you need to know is the tee you play from. The Nicklaus White ball is designed for the players who might typically play the forward white or red tees. Nicklaus Blue is designed for players who would typically play the middle or blue tees. And, finally, Nicklaus Black is designed for the single-digit or better golfer who generally plays from the back or black tees. We all know that the game of golf can be challenging enough, so we tried to simplify the decision-making process of selecting the right golf ball and at the same time providing consumers the highest-quality golf balls and at a price that encourages charitable support. By buying these balls, players will get the added benefit of supporting these wonderful charities that help children in need as well as the families that dearly love them.”
Shortly after the launch of the Nicklaus Golf Balls, Business News Daily listed the Nicklaus Companies among 15 socially responsible companies, which integrate philanthropy into their business model.
The Nicklaus Companies www.nicklaus.com
The Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation www.nchcf.org