NORTH PALM BEACH — A Christmas golf tradition in Palm Beach County was renewed Monday when the inaugural Parent-Child Tournament was held at North Palm Beach Country Club. The James Hardie Pro Football Hall of Fame Invitational – a new PGA Tour Champions event held in Boca Raton next spring – is the title sponsor reviving the once-popular event.
The Leon “Pop” Sikes Father-Son Tournament was held in the county for more than half a century. Sikes was a legendary Palm Beach County golfer who founded the event in 1954 at The Breakers.
It was played at the Breakers for six years, skipped a year, then re-started at Atlantis County Club, where it was held for almost 60 years until it ended with the 2020 pandemic.
The event has been won by notables such as former Masters champion Doug Ford, U.S. Amateur champion Bob Murphy, Dana Quigley, Brett Quigley, Russ Cochran, Olin Browne, Dudley Hart, Chase Koepka and Cameron Young – with their sons or fathers.
The tournament benefits First Tee – Florida Gold Coast, a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering youth through character-building programs. First Tee is one of the three cornerstone charities for the James Hardie Invitational.
“We are excited to serve as the title sponsor of the Parent-Child Tournament benefiting First Tee – Florida Gold Coast,” said Ken Kennerly, Executive Director of the James Hardie Pro Football Hall of Fame Invitational.
“Our mission is to grow the game of golf, and partnering with this storied event, with its rich history of success, aligns perfectly with that goal. We look forward to cheering on the participants and welcoming them to enjoy our own tournament in the months ahead.”
Kennerly was among the participants Monday, partnering with son Charlie; (other combinations included guardian-child or grandparent-child). The tournament featured three divisions: Open and Pro, Juniors (10 and under), and an 18-Hole Scramble, with prizes awarded in each category. All participants received complimentary tickets to the James Hardie Invitational.
The Pop Sikes event was stopped in 2020 due to the pandemic and other concerns. “We loved hosting it,” said Todd Leckrone, Atlantis’ PGA Director of Golf, “but we didn’t open our main food and beverage after the pandemic, so it was not possible to continue hosting it here. We never made much money off it, but we felt it was something good for the local golf community.”
Kennerly and other James Hardie officials hope to restore the luster to the Parent-Child Tournament by having many of the county’s top PGA Tour golfers participate next year. It didn’t help Monday’s field that the PNC Championship, another parent-child event, where Charlie Woods electrified the crowd with a hole-in-one, ended Sunday near Orlando.
Bernhard Langer of Boca Raton eagled the first playoff hole to enable him and son Jason to beat Tiger Woods and Charlie in a playoff. Other local golfers competing in the PNC were Justin Leonard, Matt Kuchar, Gary Player and Nice Price.
The James Hardie Pro Football Hall of Fame Invitational will be held March 31 to April 6 at the Old Course at Broken Sound in Boca Raton. It features Pro Football Hall of Famers competing alongside PGA Tour Champions professionals during the first two rounds and the two pro-ams. Tickets and volunteer opportunities are available at www.JamesHardieInvitational.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Parent-Child golf tournament back for first time in five years
