The results are in and we're pleased to introduce you to the Grand Prize Winners for the 2017 Ultimate Experience Contest - Spencer and Gaines Beard!
This year we'll be welcoming this Father and Son tandem to the home of Titleist and in his contest essay, Spencer painted a vivid picture of growing up in a golfing home in Salisbury, N.C.
In fact, Spencer's father, Gaines built their house right on the 7th hole of the Country Club of Salisbury. Gaines, who was working as an Assistant Club Pro when Spencer was born, was an accomplished player who gave the Tour a try in the 70's. It was a dream he had to put aside in order to support his budding family.
Gaines' passion for the game never cooled, however, and he passed along his knowledge and appreciation for golf to Spencer and Spencer's younger brother, Marshall. Golf would remain a constant presence and shared passion in the Beard household as the boys grew up.
Spencer now lives in Jackson, Miss., while Gaines is in Stanley, N.C. The distance doesn't allow them to play together as frequently as they'd like and Spencer stressed that the best part of winning the Ultimate Experience would be spending some quality time again with his dad, sharing the game they both love.
Everyone here at Titleist is thrilled to be able to make this modest wish come true. On the merits of Spencer's heartfelt submission, he and Gaines will be packing their bags to join us here in Fairhaven, Mass., for the trip of a lifetime, featuring a visit to Titleist Headquarters as well as a VIP tour of Ball Plant III, to see how we manufacture Pro V1 and Pro V1x golf balls, from core to cover.
And to cap off the Beards' visit, Spencer and Gaines will each receive a Tour Fitting Experience at our Manchester Lane Test Facility, where our expert fitters will work with them one-on-one to fill out a complete set of the latest high performance Titleist equipment to ensure they are dialed-in for the rest of the season.
We'll be accompanying Spencer and Gaines throughout their visit, capturing highlights of each day's activities and sharing their experiences with Team Titleist in the coming weeks. So check back soon!
As a closing note, we'd like to express our appreciation to everyone in the Team Titleist community who shared their stories with us. We were overwhelmed by this year's response to the Ultimate Experience Contest and inspired by the passion for the game that shined through in every submission. Thank you!
#TeamTitleist