COSMOPOLIS — PGA tour golfer Andres Gonzales had never played at Highland Golf Course before, but when he heard Grays Harbor College was putting together a fundraiser to benefit its golf program, the Olympia native jumped at the chance to participate.

Gonzales was one of several golf pros to participate in the 2018 Grays Harbor College Golf Team Pro-Am tournament. Proceeds from the event, which included a raffle and a silent auction, went to the GHC golf team.

Gonzales’ lack of familiarity with the course didn’t stop him from shooting a low score as he won the $1,000 prize for winning the tournament with a round of 68.

The oversized check didn’t stay in his possession for long as he announced he would be donating the winnings back to the GHC golf program.

The PGA pro said the tournament was a great opportunity to give back to the local golf community.

“I never actually played here and when I was asked to play it was an easy decision for me to come,” he said. “It’s in support of local golf which I’m always a huge fan of supporting where you came from.”

In addition to the 18 holes played by pros and amateurs on Friday, golfers also had a chance to win an additional $200 in a closest-to-the-pin contest on the 18th hole.

After some hesitation on which club to pull out of the bag, Austin Abbott won the shootout by placing his ball three feet, three inches from the pin.

Abbott said ending the day with a well-placed drive helped make up for a day of shaky putting.

“I would have liked to play better in the tournament. I don’t feel like I putted very well but to be in the in the shootout and hit a close one the first shot was pretty fun,” he said.

Abbott, who works at Riverside Golf Course in Chehalis with members of GHC’s golf team, said it was an easy decision to put together a team for the tournament as he hopes fundraisers like this will help the game grow locally.

“We need to do anything we can do to grow the game of golf and support the kids trying to play,” he said. “Most of the people who play golf tend to be older so if we can help the kids and involve scholarships, I’m all for it. I want more people playing golf more often.”

GHC golf coach Ann Swanson was encouraged by the turnout and hopes events like this will help build a winning culture around her program.

“I am working very hard to build a championship culture at GHC. Today was a great day for our program in having so many come to support,” she said. “I was the first female to play golf for GHC and first female to play in the Northwest Athletic Conference. It is very fun to come back to the harbor and give back to GHC and the great game of golf.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: The amount of funds raised by the tournament was not available at the time of this writing.