Golf event combines a little business with a lot of fun

Golf is an impressive sport, but it becomes more than just a game when it becomes "Business on Course."

Doing business while attending to an enjoyable endeavor such as aiming for a hole-in-one is what the Hoffman Estates Chamber of Commerce strives for when it prepares for the event.

This year, the Business on the Course golf outing will be May 13 at the Hilldale Golf Club, 1625 Ardwick Drive, Hoffman Estates. Registration and breakfast begin at 7:30 a.m. followed by a shotgun tee-off at 9 a.m. Players head to the cocktail hour at 2 p.m., and dine from a dinner buffet from 3 to 4:30 p.m.

Jill Blodgett is guiding the golf outing one last time as chamber director -- she retires in May. She's found it to be one of the most successful of the annual chamber events.

"It's an opportunity to promote your business to the leaders of your business community," Blodgett said. "Not only is it a relaxing and fun day on the golf course, but it might be the most profitable day of the year for your business."

Celebrating its first year in the community, Citibank in Hoffman Estates' Poplar Creek Crossing Shopping Center is the benefactor of the event for the second time.

Players may purchase up to four mulligans to enhance their chances for a better score. In golf terms, a mulligan "is a second chance on an errant drive," according to one pro. Players who purchase a passport for $25 get to participate in all the on-course games and receive one mulligan as well.

Chairman Frank Witczak of Harris Bank works with a committee of Ray Kincaid II of the Chicago Shamrox Indoor Pro Lacrosse; Ron Greenberg, Jimmy Johns; Pete Justen, Just 10 Insurance; Paul Blaze, Millrose Restaurant; Ron Irion, Plum Grove Printers; Stephanie Chappell, Romano's Macaroni Grill; attorney Bill Flotow; and Syed Husaini and Jane Nicholson of Harris Bank.

Muller's Woodfield Acura reserves an Acura for a lucky player who scores a hole-in-one.

As sponsor of the first tee, chamber member Tony Saviano of the Exchange Networking Group has a golf bag loaded with golf balls to give away. Always a fun game, the "toilet-bowl chip" lends a lot of laughs thanks to sponsor Attorney Allen Gabe.

For information, call the chamber office at (847) 781-9100.