SemGroup PGA a Success; Winner Donates to Charity
WINNING CHECK: The SemGroup Championship presented by John Q. Hammons named the Children’s Hospital at Saint Francis the official charity of the 2007 Tournament, and this $50,000 check was presented after the tournament on May 6. At the left is Jake Henry Jr., president and CEO of the Saint Francis Health System, and next to him is Tom Kivisto, CEO of SemGroup.
HARRY LENTZ
Mi Hyun Kim, an eight-time winner on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour and champion of this year’s SemGroup Championship Presented by John Q. Hammons in Broken Arrow, announced after her win that she will donate $100,000 of her winner’s paycheck ($210,000) to the United Way Greensburg Disaster Fund to aid the victims of the tornado that destroyed the Kansas town in late April.
“I was just happy that I won the tournament,” says Kim. “Sunday and during the week, the tornados came out of the middle of nowhere. I felt like I needed to do something for them. Winning a tournament on its own was a good thing, but I just decided to donate some money.”
“We’ve already seen a tremendous outpouring of support for the residents of Greensburg and I know this very generous donation from Mi Hyun Kim is truly appreciated. The citizens of Greensburg have a tremendous spirit and are determined to rebuild their community. It is my honor to acknowledge this donation on their behalf,” says Governor Kathleen Sebelius.
Kim, 30, is currently seventh on the 2007 LPGA Official Money List with $315,341 in season earnings. She moved into 10th all-time on the LPGA Official Career Earnings List with her victory at the SemGroup Championship. She has earned more than $6.5 million since joining the Tour in 1999.
“Honestly, I made a lot of money in the United States on the LPGA Tour,” says Kim. “Most of time, I get the money here and donate to South Korea. But I want to help people here too. The win was a surprise for me and I think God gave it to me like a special present or he is using me like, ‘okay, I give you this, but after that you give to help the people.’”
Additionally, the Children’s Hospital at Saint Francis was awarded $50,000 from tournament proceeds. Tournament officials for the SemGroup Championship presented by John Q. Hammons named the Children’s Hospital at Saint Francis the official charity of the 2007 Tournament, which ended May 6.
“SemGroup is very pleased that The Children’s Hospital at Saint Francis agreed to be the charity beneficiary of our 2007 Championship,” says Tom Kivisto, SemGroup president and CEO. “We appreciate the vision of the Tulsa community leaders who are building a state-of-the-art facility specifically for children’s healthcare, and we are proud to help recognize and support such a worthy cause.”
Updated 05-29-2007
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