As part of its commitment to help grow global golf and drive positive community impact, DP World has collected used and unwanted balls from tournaments across the DP World Tour this season.
DP World has partnered with five organisations around the world, who will receive the balls at the end of the season: South African Disabled Golf Association (SADGA), The Junior Golf Foundation, European Disabled Golf Association (EDGA), The Golf Foundation (India) and an all-female golfing group in the UAE, ‘Chicks with Sticks.’
As the official title partner of the DP World Tour, DP World has joined forces with several golf organisations to support initiatives that provide a platform for the game of golf to grow around the world, making golf more accessible to all.
Unveiled in January, DP World created a revolutionary shipping container to collect and redistribute used, lost and unwanted golf balls, giving them a second life in grassroot golf projects.
Global supply chain
The golf balls have been collected in numerous ways, with donations from DP World Tour players, fans, professional golf ball divers, ball-collecting dogs, and children on golf ball hunts.
Following the season-ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai in November, DP World will use its expertise as a leader in global supply chain solutions to redistribute the golf balls to five organisations around the world.
DP World has focused on three key areas of growth for the sport – golf for the disabled, junior golf, and women’s golf – hoping to inspire and encourage more people to take up the sport. Each organisation will receive a proportion of the tens-of-thousands of golf balls that are currently filling up the second life container.
Daniel van Otterdijk, Chief Communications Officer of Group Communications at DP World, said, “Through our sponsorship of the DP World Tour, we wanted to find both a meaningful and memorable way to give back to the sport. This initiative is a great way for DP World to showcase our logistics and supply chain capabilities and expertise. By distributing the golf balls to the organisations that need them most, we are supporting initiatives that help to share the joy of playing golf. We look forward to hearing about how the balls have been used to grow the game around the world.”
A proportion of golf balls will be distributed to the South Africa Disabled Golf Association (SADGA) and the European Disabled Golf Association (EDGA), two organisations working to ensure the sport is fully inclusive.
As part of the announcement, a first donation of golf balls was made by DP World Tour star, Tommy Fleetwood, to the EDGA as part of the G4D Tour taking place at the 2022 BMW PGA Championship.
Next generation
Hoping to inspire the next generation of golfers, DP World has also partnered with two organisations promoting the sport among young people. The Junior Golf Foundation in Kenya and The Golf Foundation in India, both aim to encourage and support more children to play golf and compete in tournaments, regardless of their background.
Finally, DP World has partnered with ‘Chicks with Sticks,’ an organisation promoting women’s golf across the UAE, where the company is headquartered. The female golfing enthusiasts are excited about receiving the golf balls, their founder Jenny Hennessy claims, “I promise we will put the golf balls to great use – growing the game, one woman at a time.”
DP World’s golf ball container will be onsite at this week’s BMW PGA Championship and fans are being encouraged to bring unwanted golf balls along for donation to be in with a chance of winning prizes including a set of Callaway golf clubs and a trip to the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.
