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History of the Denver Golf
Expo
While working for AGTsports in 1993, Stan Fenn
began developing the Denver Golf Expo from an idea
formed while exhibiting software in the Chicago
Golf Show. Both Fenn and Danny Harvanek also with
AGTsports were wondering why Denver didn't have a
big golf show. Since nobody else had taken the
initiative to start a major metropolitan golf
event, they decided to establish one, with the help
of AGT CEO Greg Jablonski and AGTsports, to
establish one.
From its inception, it was determined that the
Golf Expo should benefit Colorado golfers and help
promote golf in Colorado. The first year the event
was named after a long-time personal insignia of
Harvanek's "Far and Sure" (named Swilican after the
famous burn and bridge at St. Andrews Golf Club in
Scotland, but spelled differently). In April of
1994 Denver got its first taste of a major golf
show called Swilican's Public Golf Expo. To help
make the show a success the Colorado PGA Section
Professionals gave free lessons to all willing show
attendees. Among the other show attractions were
seminars by Mark Wiebe and Steve Jones, both PGA
Touring pros with ties to Colorado, and a $100,000
hole-in-one contest conducted indoors by Mike
Marston and his associates. The hole was 100 yards
in length and over 10,000 in prizes were given away
that year in the contest to final qualifiers and
other participants. AGTsports with the help of
Howard and Vera Byrnes conducted the first Indoor
Long Drive Contest in Colorado. These contests
through the years have and will continue to benefit
different groups such as The Colorado Cancer
Research Center, The Association for Disabled
American Golfers (ADAG) and the CU and CSU golf
teams.
In 1995 some changes were made to make the golf
show even more successful. The location was moved
to the Denver Merchandise Mart Pavilion (free
parking and easy access from I-25 and I-70) and the
dates were changed to February in hopes that the
weather would be a little worse so people couldn't
be playing outside and would relish the opportunity
to connect with golf in the winter. Also a new
competition was organized by Fenn and developed by
Marston to replace the Indoor Hole-in-One Shootout
because of the extreme construction expense and the
amount of space necessary to continue it. The
Colorado Indoor Putting Championships contested on
an indoor green were born and attracted many
participants of all ages. As luck would have it the
weather turned real bad the weekend of the 2nd
Annual event with Denver's first major snow storm
blowing into town for all three days hindering
transportation throughout the metro area and
outlying areas. However, AGTsports and Fenn were
pleasantly surprised by the hardy souls of the
Colorado golfers turning out in much bigger numbers
than expected due to the conditions. The Denver
Golf Expo hosted almost 8,000 attendees throughout
the three-day period. The original exhibitors and
the new ones were very pleased by the success of
the show. Both the Long Drive Competition and the
Colorado Indoor Putting Championships drew great
reviews and gave away over $15,000 in prizes to the
various participants. In 1995 the Expo's Grand
Prize Drawing winner received a brand new set of
Cleveland VHS irons and many other golf-related
prizes were awarded to the remainder of the winning
entrants.
The third edition of the Denver Golf Expo
presented by FMS, Inc. ( who purchased the show
from AGTsports in 1996) was held during
unseasonably warm 65 degree weather, but still
expanded to over 120 exhibitors, more than 10,000
attendees and many new activities which included
highly entertaining swing seminars by nationally
renowned presenter David Williams and putting tips
from Denver's own LPGA Tour player Jill McGill. The
Grand Prize Drawing, the Long Drive Competition and
the Colorado Putting Championships awarded over
$10,000 in prizes to the various registrants and
benefited ADAG and the CU golf teams. Finalists in
the 100-foot Putting Competition had a chance to
win $5000 in cash but no one sank the putt to win
the money.
The 1997 ,1998 and 1999 shows were highlighted
with presentations from PGA Touring Professional
Gary Hallberg and David Williams who returned to
entertain all the attending golfers. Free video
instruction from PGA Professionals and skills
contests galore with over $15,000 in prizes were
given to the showgoers. The grand prize winners
received free airline tickets from Frontier
Airlines along with golf packages and new equipment
from some of the participating golf companies and,
again, no one made the $5000 hole-in-one putt
during the finals of the event. In 1998 Dr. Craig
Farnsworth entertained and instructed people on how
to improve their putting eye and therefore get
better overall results on the greens.
For golf indoors in January 2000 attend the
Seventh Annual Denver Golf Expo which will be held
over the three day weekend of the 28th-30th again
at the Denver Merchandise Mart Pavilion and will
provide Colorado's golfers more than their money's
worth of entertainment, free instruction and golf
challenges.
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