Gay wins Mayakoba Champions Charity Skins Challenge

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PLAYA DEL CARMEN, Mèxico -- In a unique and special atmosphere, the Mayakoba Golf Classic's first four champions gathered Tuesday for the Champions Charity Skins Challenge.

This kickoff event in celebration of the Mayakoba Golf Classic's fifth anniversary, helped raise funds and awareness for a variety of worthy organizations. Brian Gay managed to earn $12,000 of the purse on the strength of four skins in the nine-hole match. His earnings were donated to the City of Joy Foundation and Un Hogar Con Amor -- both organizations assist children and orphans in the Riviera Maya and Cancun.

"This tournament and what it does will always be special to me since it was the site of my first PGA TOUR victory," said Gay, who won here in 2008 and has a total of three career victories. "For all of us to be here together at the same time is really neat. This was a great day for the game of golf in this region."

Gay made four birdies during the nine-hole match played on the back-nine at El Camaleón Golf Club. Gay won all four of his skins late, with a 25-foot birdie on the par-four 16th and a 20-foot birdie on the par-4 18th. His first two skins were worth $4,500 at No. 16. After a carryover on No. 17, the two skins on the final hole were worth $7,500. Gay's 7-iron approach shot hit the flagstick and he made the putt for the victory.

Fred Funk, the inaugural champion of the Mayakoba Golf Classic in 2007, finished second with four skins and $6,000 that was awarded to the Fred Funk Foundation, which supports various charities in Northeast Florida. Funk picked up all four of his skins worth $6,000 with a birdie on the par-four 14th hole.

Funk nearly made a monster putt on the final hole for birdie. The ball stopped an inch wide of the cup. After Mark Wilson missed his birdie putt, the door was open for Gay.

Wilson, the 2009 Mayakoba Golf Classic champion, took the early lead when he birdied the par-three 10th hole, worth $1,000. He did not win another skin the remainder of the day. However, his earnings were awarded to Golf PARa Todos, a creation of the Mayakoba Golf Classic that teaches the game of golf to children and families in the Cancun and Riviera Maya area.

Cameron Beckman was unable to compete. He is recovering from a tendon injury to his right hand. Beckman, however, walked with the group and provided commentary and was given $1,000, which he distributed to Respite Care of San Antonio.

As a threesome, Funk, Gay and Wilson recorded ten birdies during the match.

In its first four years, the Mayakoba Golf Classic has donated nearly $1 million in an effort to give back to the community and promote the game of golf within the Cancun and Riviera Maya regions. Organizations receiving charitable contributions from the Mayakoba Golf Classic included the American Junior Golf Association, Angel Notion, Centro Equinoterapia, Centro Integracion Juvenil, CINDAQ, City of Joy Foundation (Ciudad de la Alegria), Red Cross of Playa del Carmen, DIF, Flora Fauna y Cultura, Foundation Bomberos de la Riviera Maya, Lorena Ochoa Foundation, Malix-Pek Pet Shelter, Rotary Clubs of Cancun and Playa del Carmen, CRIT Quintana Roo, Un Hogar Con Amor and Golf PARa Todos.

One of the programs the Mayakoba Golf Classic has created for the immediate area surrounding the Mayakoba Resort is Golf PARa Todos (Golf FORE Everyone). This has been a tremendous success with attendance soaring near 1,000 each session.

Golf FORE Everyone aims to create a fun-filled, diverse and educational program that teaches about the game of golf and its ideals. The program encourages active participation in the game as a participant and as a fan, and facilitates the integration of golf into the lives of all those within the community.

Golf FORE Everyone is a monthly community program presented and created by the Mayakoba Golf Classic in conjunction with El Camaleón Golf Club. It is open to people of all ages, backgrounds and levels of golf skill or knowledge. For more information, visit www.GolfParaTodos.org.