Tiger Jam Rocks Another Epic Weekend in Las Vegas
Tiger Jam returned to Las Vegas Friday, May 19 and Saturday, May 20 for another unforgettable weekend at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino. From golf at Shadow Creek to a poolside concert from Darius Rucker, the 19th annual exclusive event was a definite success. All proceeds from the sold-out, two-day charity event help the Tiger Woods Foundation equip underserved students with the ability to exceed any and all expectations.
Tiger Jam kicked off Friday morning at the exclusive Shadow Creek Golf Course where guests were treated to breakfast and a question and answer session with PGA TOUR professional, Wesley Bryan. Bryan provided insight on everything from club selection, to tips on how to warm-up and what to eat before, during and after a round of golf. Professional golfer Paige Spiranac, Miss America 2015 Kira Kazantsev, musician Kid Rock and professional basketball player Chris Paul also joined guests for a memorable day on the bucket-list course.
That evening, guests had the opportunity to knock out the world’s top poker players as they hit the tables at Tiger’s Poker Night, presented by the World Poker Tour® (WPT®), inside Whiskey Down at MGM Grand. Poker legend Phil Hellmuth emceed the exciting event, which included celebrity participants Chris Paul, supermodel Kate Upton and Japanese music star Gackt, as well as professional poker players Daniel Negreanu, Maria Ho, Daniel Weinman, David Williams, Scotty Nguyen, Mike Sexton, and Tony Dunst, along with WPT® Anchor Lynn Gilmartin. Businessman, television personality and philanthropist Mark Cuban, Sevendust drummer Morgan Rose, Kid Rock and Wesley Bryan also stopped by the event to support the Tiger Woods Foundation. Three players went all in on the final table, which resulted in crowning daily fantasy sports contributor and DraftKings analyst Peter Jennings as Tiger’s Poker Night amateur champion and Nguyen as Tiger’s Poker Night professional champion.
The festivities continued Saturday morning as Tiger Jam’s guests got to test their skills in the Sponsor Golf Tournament at Shadow Creek before making their way back to MGM Grand for the chic reception and thrilling live auction.
Upton welcomed guests and spoke about what an honor it was to be a part of such an amazing long-standing and charitable event. She then introduced Rick Singer, president and chief executive officer of the Tiger Woods Foundation, who played a video from Tiger Woods thanking all of the guests for their continued support and assured them he would be back in 2018. Afterward, our Earl Woods Scholarship recipient, Adrian Arias, took to the stage to address the crowd. Arias is the foundation’s first lawyer, who graduated from Ohio Northern University and will be returning to his hometown of Washington D.C. to take the bar exam. Arias thanked the sponsors and guests for all the support they give to the foundation and its scholars. He ended his speech by quoting Woods, “As long as we’re trying, we’re not failing and we’re still in the game.”
Kazantsev then jumped on stage with auctioneer Jake Parnell to co-host the live auction as “The Bachelor” and “The Twins: Happily Ever After?” reality TV stars, Haley and Emily Ferguson, presented items and experiences. Guests were able to bid on one-of-a-kind, luxury items including a Full Swing golf simulator, 2017 ACURA MDX SH-AWD™, Lacern Performance Golf Car, international getaways, rounds of golf on elite courses and more.
Following the bids, country star Darius Rucker performed an intimate, poolside concert for guests. Rucker performed some of his top hits including “If I told You,” “Let Her Cry,” “Only Wanna Be With You,” “Wagon Wheel” and paid homage to past Tiger Jam performer Prince with a rendition of “Purple Rain.”
To cap off the night, attendees headed to the official post-party at Topgolf Las Vegas where they played interactive golf games, danced the night away to beats by DJ Suga Ray and enjoyed signature cocktails and delectable late-night bites. The epic post-party also featured an interactive photo booth, a mermaid and a bubble contortionist.
As Tiger Jam expands its charitable impact, TGR Live continues to set the bar for premium charity events. Those who were not able to attend in-person can see all of the weekend action from Las Vegas exclusively on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter via @TGRLiveEvents.
Registration is now open for the 2018 VIP list, which guarantees entry to next year’s events. For more information on Tiger Jam, call Matt Cusick at 949-725-3003.