Play in Pink has had another very successfully year on golf courses in Cork and across the country.  The charity fundraiser is over 20 years old and raises much needed funds for breast cancer research.  The initiative has grown significantly since then and there were over 200 Play in Pink days in 2023 raising over €550,000 for the charity, and 2024 is destined to beat that total.

Already Play in Pink has seen an increase of 10% in the number of fundraising days held throughout the country.  So far over 19 Cork golf clubs have supported the initiative and between them they have raised over €42,000 for the charity.

Douglas was one of the Cork clubs to get involved this year and Captain Ursula Morris was delighted with the 2024 event.

“The event continues to be a huge success and supported by growing numbers every year. All the ladies get into the spirit of the event, even the staff members join in the fun. Our club pro, Dave Barry, sponsors the event.”  A Play in Pink day is quite simply that, a day where members and visitors come together to support the NBCRI Charity, Play in Pink.

They organise a golf day and participants are encouraged to “Play in Pink” with funds raised from the day being donated to the charity.

Play in Pink is the golf fundraising arm of the National Breast Cancer Research Institute and the initiative was set up 20 years ago to help fund a comprehensive research programme at the University of Galway.

Currently 1 in 7 Irish women will be diagnosed with breast cancer before the age of 75, with over 3,500 cases diagnosed annually.  These women are mothers, daughters, sisters, grandmothers, friends and neighbours so most people have been touched by this disease in some way.  The research team at The Lambe Institute at The University of Galway, in collaboration with universities and hospitals across the globe, focus on the development and improvement of diagnostic techniques and treatment strategies, to drive real and measurable improvement in clinical outcomes for breast cancer patients.

Play in Pink was boosted last week with the announcement that they had been selected as the official charity partner for Golf Ireland.  The partnership will run until 2027 and should help to grow the relationship between golfers and the NBCRI.

Commenting on the announcement Miriam Hand, National Co-Ordinator for Play in Pink said; “I’m delighted with this partnership as we’ve been working with golf clubs in Ireland on the Play in Pink initiative for the last 20 years.

“We’ve held thousands of events in that time with golfers ‘playing in pink’ to support the NBCRI.  Having the Governing Body now assisting and supporting the charity will help us to grow awareness even more and to spread the word of Play in Pink and the charity to every golf club in Ireland.”

“It’s a huge boost for the charity and I’m excited to see how it can positively impact clubs and sign-ups for 2025.”  Play in Pink is also the official partner for the KPMG Women’s Irish Open and the Irish Challenge.

There’s one Play in Pink day left in Cork in 2024.  Clonakilty Golf Club will host their day on Sunday after it was deferred from earlier this month.  The format is a three person scramble, open to ladies and gents. They have a large number of golfers already registered but there are a few tee times still available.  In addition to the playing opportunities, golfers also have a chance to support the charity by entering their raffle for a Club Car golf buggy.