Richmond Hill, Ontario’s Adam Shaw experienced the trip of a lifetime recently as a guest of HSBC Bank Canada at the HSBC World Match Play Championship in Wentworth, England.  Adam had his name successfully drawn from hundreds of entries across Canada as part of the HSBC TransAtlantic Tee-Off Contest conducted in 2007 on the CJGA Junior Tour.  Below, he chronicles his trip overseas where he rubbed shoulders with some of the world’s best professional golfers. 

Shaw (second from right) met Ernie Els among others at the Pro-Am

On the day of the Pro-Am we had breakfast at the Wentworth Club and then got to hit balls on the practice range before the event started. As I was hitting balls, Ernie Els came and started hitting balls directly beside me on the range. He was very friendly and it was neat to watch how he warms up and hits balls.

Once the Pro-Am started I went with several HSBC representatives to the Par-3 second hole with the winners of the United Kingdom’s HSBC Wee Wonders Competition. There were two boys and two girls from aged 11 and 12. They even put a special sign up on the hole with the CJGA logo and my name as the winner of the contest.

As the groups came to the second hole with one pro in each group we took turns playing with them in a scramble and I had my picture taken with each of the pros that played and got a chance to meet and talk to them. I played the hole with Ernie Els, Anders Romero, and Woody Austin. They were all nice but Woody was the funniest and his caddie was real great too. Maybe because I was from Canada, they spent a lot of time talking with me and having fun. Also I had two Wentworth golf hats that I got each of the pros to sign.

The next day, which was the first day of the tournament, we got to watch and follow the groups. I spent most of my time with Woody Austin’s group because he was funny and his caddie asked me to stay with his group as he said I would bring him good luck! During the day I also took pictures of some of the huge homes around the golf course. Ernie Els lives along the 16th hole. Wentworth is a beautiful course and everything is kept up perfectly.

The last few days of the trip my mother and I spent in London visiting friends and sightseeing.

I want to thank CJGA and HSBC for this great trip and I hope to get another chance to experience one of these events.

- Adam Shaw

ABOUT HSBC BANK CANADA
HSBC Bank Canada, a subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc, has more than 170 offices and is the leading international bank in Canada. With around 10,000 offices in 83 countries and territories and assets of US$2,150 billion at 30 June 2007, the HSBC Group is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organizations.

ABOUT THE CJGA
Registered federally as a not-for-profit association, the Canadian Junior Golf Association (CJGA) is dedicated to providing Canada's junior golfers with the necessary skills and knowledge required to lay a foundation for a future in competitive golf. Through its six-stage competitive development program that focuses on tournaments, clinics, international competitions, and mentoring programs with PGA Tour professionals, the CJGA introduces the game to juniors as young as five and offers competitive multi-day events for the more advanced golfer.  The CJGA acts as a feeder system to provincial and national competitions, collegiate and university golf, as well as professional and recreational golf. For more information please visit www.cjga.com.

The Canadian Junior Golf Association is generously supported by its National Founding Partners, HSBC Bank Canada and LEXUS.

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For Additional Information:
Rick Betts
Director, Media Relations and Communications
Canadian Junior Golf Association
(o) 1.877.508.1069 Ext. 233
(c) 416.708.1482
(e) Rick.betts@cjga.com