The Vlasic Traditional golf tour is rising right into a uniquely highly effective networking occasion. Based by hashish entrepreneur Willy Vlasic, the annual nationwide charity golf event is a motion constructed on goal, group and philanthropy, all whereas spending a day on the inexperienced—actually and figuratively.
Now in its third yr, Vlasic Traditional helps organizations just like the Final Prisoner Undertaking and Freedom Develop to safe the liberty of these unjustly incarcerated for non-violent hashish offenses. The tour made stops in each Michigan and Missouri, bringing collectively trade leaders for a weekend of golf, connection and charity.
The Michigan Traditional
The primary cease was the Cardinal Golf Course at St. John’s Resort in Plymouth, Michigan, on June 28. The venue was a deliberate selection, because the resort itself is a nonprofit, with all funds supporting native and worldwide humanitarian efforts.
As one participant famous, it’s uncommon for hashish manufacturers to get to play on such an impeccable course, and the chance was not misplaced on the attendees. The placement additionally holds a key connection to the broader golf world, because the course is a bunch for the LIV Golf Staff Championship, making it a strong landmark in each the sports activities and hashish areas.
The ambiance was a singular mix of professionalism and private contact. The whole occasion was a household affair, produced with the intimate, hands-on involvement of Willy Vlasic and his crew. Willy’s father and nephew even got here out to welcome gamers earlier than the primary tee-off. This private contact prolonged to each element, from the laid-back, pleasant ambiance to the beneficiant and thoughtfully curated reward baggage.
Past the course, the occasion included a full of life welcome get together sponsored by Kushy Punch and a culminating after-party at Willy’s house, full with a dwell rosin-press demo by Entry Rosin, pizza and a DJ. It was an ideal mixture of knowledgeable, large-scale occasion with a private, communal really feel.
Activations at each gap—from a longest-putt contest with a weed stalk putter to a $10,000 hole-in-one problem—stored the vitality excessive, all whereas driving donations to the hashish prisoners’ trigger.
The mix of native Michigan manufacturers, corresponding to {hardware} firm Vapin’ Ape, and nationwide firms like Sweed, an e-commerce platform for dispensaries, additionally facilitated beneficial interstate networking alternatives.
“Willy and his crew placed on an unbelievable occasion,” says Kellen O’Keefe, president of Sweed. “What’s actually nice is that we’re coping with the decision-makers. We’re going straight to the certified purchasers and the people who we’re seeking to sit down with. To have the ability to play golf with them for 4 hours and speak about our product is an incredible alternative.
Brandy, an account govt for Northern Michigan at Kushy Punch, echoed the sentiment. “That is my second Vlasic occasion, and business-wise, right now went rather well,” she mentioned. “There’s quite a lot of actually good prospects and potentials obtainable, particularly for Kushy Punch, simply with the ability to sort of re-establish themselves.”
Alex Sturton, proprietor of Vapin’ Ape, highlighted the shared values, saying, “We actually just like the intersection of sports activities and hashish of the Vlasic Traditional. There are lots of people who prefer to smoke and go and take part in one thing aggressive.”
The Missouri Traditional
The Third Annual Missouri Vlasic Traditional continued the mission August 22-24 with a weekend of golf, enjoyable and philanthropy at Outdated Kinderhook. The occasion was a testomony to the group’s assist, with 124 golfers and 37 sponsors, representing over $1 billion in annual income from throughout the Missouri hashish trade and past.
The event’s playful vitality, that includes rocket ball launchers, drone drops and a “Beat the Professional” gap, was balanced by its critical philanthropic targets. The occasion efficiently raised over $16,000, with $10,000 going to Freedom Develop, $5,000 to the Final Prisoner Undertaking, and $1,300 to Deshaun Durham to assist him begin his pre-law diploma. The weekend culminated with an enormous raffle, together with a 3-day golf journey to Kiawah Island.
A Champion’s Perspective: An Interview With Ricky Williams
Among the many sponsors in Missouri was Highsman, the hashish model based by NFL legend and Heisman and NFL MVP winner, Ricky Williams, one of many pioneers of the evolving relationship between skilled sports activities and hashish advocacy.
Williams sees his partnership with Vlasic Traditional as greater than only a enterprise transfer; it’s an extension of his life’s work. “I’ve by no means seen hashish as only a model play; it’s all the time been about therapeutic and making issues proper after a long time of prohibition,” he says.
For Williams, Highsman’s assist for the Final Prisoner Undertaking and Freedom Develop isn’t charity, however “justice in motion.” He believes within the energy of an occasion like this to create actual fairness within the trade, and it’s a mission that resonates deeply with him.
The vibe on the course was an ideal illustration of Williams’s model ethos, “Spark Greatness.” He says that the ambiance was considered one of “pure competitors, however with quite a lot of laughs and good vitality.” He believes that is the “candy spot” the place having enjoyable and pushing your self might be completed for a bigger goal. “As an athlete, I do know connection comes from enjoying collectively, and when that very same spirit fuels philanthropy, the impression is actual,” he says.
When discussing the impression of the Vlasic Traditional, Ricky Williams emphasizes that “impression is what issues.” He finds it deeply significant to see tangible outcomes from the occasion’s fundraising efforts. “After I see actual {dollars} going to free folks and assist fairness on this trade, that’s when advocacy earns respect,” he says. “It’s highly effective to look at change truly occur. That’s what retains me grounded within the work.”
Williams believes that the cross-state unity on show on the Vlasic Traditional is “completely important” for the way forward for the trade. “It’s how we create scalable change, shift public notion, and stage the enjoying subject,” he says. “When trade gamers be a part of forces throughout borders, we’re not simply rising income—we’re rewriting the principles for fairness, entry and innovation.”
For a person who has consistently challenged norms, from his soccer profession to his private life, being an advocate within the hashish house is a pure match. “I’m not right here simply to place my title on issues, I’m right here to disrupt, to empower and to be actual,” Williams says. “It’s about paving a brand new path so the subsequent era doesn’t need to struggle the identical battles.”
The Energy of the Inexperienced
The Vlasic Traditional is about a lot greater than a golf event. As Willy Vlasic said, their mission will proceed “till everyone seems to be launched from jail for non-violent hashish offenses.” It’s a daring promise that’s being backed up by actual motion, one swing, one sponsor and one freed prisoner at a time.
The occasion is a celebration of the facility of the hashish group, exhibiting that when the trade comes collectively for a goal, it might probably make a tangible distinction that resonates far past the inexperienced.
The subsequent spherical of the Vlasic Traditional gold event tees off once more on November 8 at Vegas Vlasic Traditional with Nuwu. Anticipate a day stuffed with golf, good causes and an entire lot of inexperienced on the The Wolf Course at Paiute Resort.
