The annual golf tournament to raise money for the Robeson Community College Foundation includes a lot of my favorite things, but instead of itemizing them, I will just share this story from the 2019 event, which is illustrative.

As my group was about to tee off in the captain’s choice event at Pinecrest Country Club, I spotted Rebekah Revels Lowry, then the director of the foundation but now doing similar work at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke. She’s pretty easy to find in a crowd and also on the eyes.

The conversation flowed as follows.

Me: “Hey Rebekah, do you guys have anyone driving a beer cart?”

Rebekah: “We do. Me.”

Me: “Sweet, I am going to need your cell number so I can text you when our tank is empty?”

Not too long later I texted her. “Beer needed, No. 13,” and she was there quickly. This is why you plan.

I know what you are thinking: Not bad, they didn’t need a resupply until No. 13. Think again. It was a shotgun start and we began on No. 8.

Golf with friends, Bud Light and a former Miss North Carolina are just a few of the fun things offered by the golf tournament, which was scheduled to have been played Thursday, but was postponed until this coming Thursday, meaning a good time is pending and not already had.

The best thing about the Clifford Bullard Memorial Golf Tournament is its mission. This year’s is the 37th annual event, and so far it has raised more than $600,000 for the foundation, money that goes to work helping young people, mostly from this county, acquire marketable skills that will help them on life’s journey. So the cause is worthy as there is an abundance of people in this county for whom the cost of continued education is prohibitive.

The tournament is named for and honors the late Clifford Bullard, the former Lumberton mayor and neighborhood patriarch in the Tanglewood community when I was growing up there. He was a longtime supporter of RCC and once hosted the tournament at the golf course he designed, Cliffwood GC, for no charge to the college, meaning more money for the foundation and eventually scholarships.

His sons, Clif Jr., a fraternity brother from UNC, and Drew, who was a running mate in Tanglewood back in the day, run the golf tournament and ensure it’s a first class affair. That includes a lunch served by Smithfield’s Chicken ‘N Bar-B-Q, one of the best bags of favors of any superball event, a silent auction where great deals can be had, including a weekend at Figure Eight Island, and hefty gift certificates for the winners. The winner of a putting contest could walk away with $5,000 in cash, and a hole-in-one could win someone a new vehicle.

Making it extra special for me is the connection to my alma mater, including a great turnout each year of Pi Kappa Alphas in support of Clif, making it a bit of a reunion. Last year Phil Ford and Al Wood, iconic basketball players who were all-Americans at UNC before playing in the NBA, showed up and played in support of the tournament. It’s unclear if they will be back this year, but there’s always a chance of a celebrity showing up.

The decision to postpone the event a week provides a mulligan for those out there who would like to play but have not yet signed up. There will be a pair of shotgun starts, one at 8 a.m. and the other at 12:30 p.m., and the cost for a four-person team is $300. There are also plenty of sponsorship opportunities available. Entry forms can be found at Pinecrest CC.

Come on out and play some golf, have some laughs, and support a great mission. It promises to be a terrific day.