Thorbjørn Olesen may have walked away with the Betfred British Masters title over the weekend, but the Dane wasn’t the only big winner from the Belfry. Thanks to title sponsors Betfred, tournament host Danny Willett secured a £19,000 donation to Prostate Cancer UK after making 19 birdies across the four day event.
Ahead of the weekend, the bookmaker pledged to donate £1,000 for every birdie and £2,000 for every eagle made by Willett. For a second successive year the 2016 Masters Tournament winner selected Prostate Cancer UK as the tournament’s Official Charity and he made hay on Friday as he carded eight birdies in a single day, having hit four on Thursday.
He then recorded seven further birdies during Saturday and Sunday’s rounds for a £19,000 total.
Over the last two years as host of the Betfred British Masters, Willett alone has raised £38,000 for the charity as Betfred also donated £1,000 for every birdie made by the Yorkshireman in 2021.
“It’s an amazing contribution,” said Willett after his T16 finish. “Betfred's help during the week has been phenomenal, and it's nice to actually get the guys in and watch some golf live and have some interaction with fans. It's been a really special week.
“It shows their massive support over these last two years, with me being the host and the even the previous three or four years before that in sponsoring the British Masters, they have been tremendous in it, during COVID to still keep up the sponsorship and prize fund as they have, they have been amazing.
“Last year at the tournament, there were no fans due to COVID-19. Not only have we raised a lot of money for Prostate Cancer UK, we have also raised a lot of awareness about the disease. Fans were able to go to the tented village this week, speak to people about it and have a one-on-one interaction with a representative from the charity.”
Massive thanks again to @BetfredSports @TheBelfryHotel & @DPWorldTour for all your support 🙌🏻
More than 47,500 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year in the United Kingdom and one in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. The eight-time DP World Tour winner is a long-term supporter of Prostate Cancer UK and proudly wore the charity’s ‘Man of Men’ badge during the tournament as 50,000 spectators descended on the four-time Ryder Cup venue across the week, having been absent last year due to the pandemic.
Nicola Tallett, Director of Fundraising & Supporter Engagement at Prostate Cancer UK, said: “What an incredible week. We’re so proud Danny Willett once again picked Prostate Cancer UK as his charity of choice for the Betfred British Masters, and are also hugely grateful to the DP World Tour staff for allowing him to host the event for an unprecedented second time, this time with fans returning to the iconic Belfry course.”
“Danny was an excellent tournament host both on and off the golf course and we are delighted to donate £19,000 to his chosen charity, Prostate Cancer UK,” Betfred boss Fred Done added.
