Ocean State Golf June 2010 : Page 3

COVER STORY E ven though Tom Ryan stunned everyone when he announced last month that he was giving up his post as chief executive officer of the CVS Caremark Corporation next May, there are no signs that his decision will, in any way, negatively affect the future of the annual two-day Charity Classic that CVS has sponsored the past 11 years. Ryan, along with PGA Tour member Brad Faxon and former PGA Tour player Billy Andrade, have been the driving forces behind the huge success of this event that over the years has contributed $13 million to hundreds of worthwhile charities in Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts. And this year will be no exception as once again 20 elite PGA Tour and LPGA Tour professionals will gather at the Rhode Island Country Club for two-days of fun and solid competition June 28th and 29th. They will be playing for a purse totaling $1.55 million. In addition, there will be the annual Sunday Pro- Am event June 27th . Ryan told CVS shareholders that “People would always be shocked” no matter when he decided to retire. Why now? “Because I think the company has never been better positioned in the marketplace than we are today,” declared Ryan, who started at the company in 1974 and was named president and CEO in 1984. As far as the future of the Classic is concerned, Ryan issued a statement to Ocean State Golf saying,” CVS Caremark is committed to the Charity Classic. We’re extremely proud of the tournament’s philanthropic heritage and the tremendous impact it has made in our home state. The Charity Classic is a cornerstone of CVS Caremark’s commitment to giving back to the communities we serve. We look forward to furthering these achievements in years to come.” At an April press conference announcing part of this year’s field of players, Ryan said the contract with RICC is, of course, good for this year and there are three option years ahead. “We want to continue this event if we can keep it fresh, keep it interesting and keep the sponsors involved,” Ryan added. “We have Rhode Island Country Club and they want to stay involved. All our volunteers, along with Brad and Billy, they are the keys for us.” And this year there will be more women competing. LPGA members first began showing up at the CVS event three years ago and were well received. Each year since, a few more have been added. This year World Golf Hall-of Famer, Juli Inkster, returns for the third time. Inkster will be joined byNorwegian native Suzan Pettersen along with Morgan Pressel (her second appearance) and first timers Angela Stanford and 8-time LPGA-Tour winner Paula Creamer. Creamer, known as the Pink Panther because she always wears pink, will be returning to the LPGA Tour June 18-20 at the ShopRite Classic in New Jersey. She has missed significant time due to a thumb injury so CVS folks were indeed fortunate to have her agree to play this year. “We also pushed hard to get Annika Sorenstam but she is so serious about her game that even though she isn’t playing competitively (she had a baby), she wouldn’t come here just to play. We also were hoping for Lorena Ochoa but she announced her retirement,” said Faxon. Still, Ryan said that down the road there could be an equal amount of men and women playing. “It seems we’re starting to move in that direction but we don’t have to do it right away.” The one big change this year is that there are younger PGA Tour guys coming to RICC. “We developed a young guys theme for this year,” revealed Faxon. “It was decided early that Jack (Nicklaus) and Arnold (Palmer) have called it quits. We did try to get Tom Watson, especially after the way he played in the Masters this year and in last year’s British Open but he had a commitment and was very disappointed he couldn’t play.” With Watson unavailable, Faxon said it was decided to go after the young stars, guys in their 20s. “If we can get the young guys to come here and show everyone how well they can play, they might want to keep coming back,” he said. Youngsters playing here include Rickie Fowler, who turned pro last year and started the 2010 season strong finishing second in the Phoenix Open and second at the Memorial June 6th. Others include Hunter Mahan, Camilo Villegas (his third appearance), Bill Haas, winner of this year’s Bob Hope Classic and winner of the 2004 CVS Classic with his dad, Jay, Matt Kuchar and long hitters, Boo Weekley, J.P.Holmes and Bubba Watson, who won this event with Villegas in 2008. By BOB DICK CVS Caremark Charity Classic — June 27-29 Of course there must be some veterans in the mix, too. There is Faxon and Andrade along with World Golf Hall of Famer, Nick Price, making his 8th Love III (his 10th for the 7th appearance and Davis time here). Also returning tourney last year with Price. Also back for his 12th time is David Toms, who won this appearance is Barrington native Brett Quigley, who usually teams up with his uncle Dana. However, due to injury, Dana Quigley is unable to play. Veteran Peter Jacobsen rounds out the field. At press time, no pairings had been decided. However, it was expected that Faxon and Andrade would pair up with one of the women. “The LPGA has been so great,” said Andrade. “They get it, they have fun with it. I think it has been a home run inviting them here.” CVS CLASSIC notes: Faxon and Andrade haven’t been playing much golf. Both are involved in budding television careers. Andrade has been doing analyst work for the Golf Channel; Faxon for NBC. “They have been cool with it. They allow me to play in a tournament and announce when I’m finished. It’s definitely a challenge. It has been more time consuming than I ever imagined,” Faxon said. . .Those returning to the CVSCaremark Classic will find RICC looking different. It will be more open because trees all over the course have been removed, especially on 15 and 16. ..Tickets are on sale. A three-day pass costs $60. Tickets for Sunday only go for $20 while tickets for either the first or second round $25. You can phone for tickets at 866-CVS- 9441 or go on line at cvscharityclassic.com. OCEAN STATE GOLF • June/July 2010 • 401-464-8445 • www.oceanstategolfinc.com 3

Cvs Caremark Classic Issue

Even though Tom Ryan stunned everyone when he announced last month that he was giving up his post as chief executive officer of the CVS Caremark Corporation next May, there are no signs that his decision will, in any way, negatively affect the future of the annual two-day Charity Classic that CVS has sponsored the past 11 years. Ryan, along with PGA Tour member Brad Faxon and former PGA Tour player Billy Andrade, have been the driving forces behind the huge success of this event that over the years has contributed $13 million to hundreds of worthwhile charities in Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts. And this year will be no exception as once again 20 elite PGA Tour and LPGA Tour professionals will gather at the Rhode Island Country Club for two-days of fun and solid competition June 28th and 29th. They will be playing for a purse totaling $1.55 million. In addition, there will be the annual Sunday Pro- Am event June 27th. Ryan told CVS shareholders that “People would always be shocked” no matter when he decided to retire. Why now? “Because I think the company has never been better positioned in the marketplace than we are today,” declared Ryan, who started at the company in 1974 and was named president and CEO in 1984. As far as the future of the Classic is concerned, Ryan issued a statement to Ocean State Golf saying,” CVS Caremark is committed to the Charity Classic. We’re extremely proud of the tournament’s philanthropic heritage and the tremendous impact it has made in our home state. TheCharity Classic is a cornerstone of CVS Caremark’s commitment to giving back to the communities we serve. We look forward to furthering these achievements in years to come.” At an April press conference announcing part of this year’s field of players, Ryan said the contract with RICC is, of course, good for this year and there are three option years ahead. “We want to continue this event if we can keep it fresh, keep it interesting and keep the sponsors involved,” Ryan added. “We have Rhode Island Country Club and they want to stay involved. All our volunteers, along with Brad and Billy, they are the keys for us.” And this year there will be more women competing. LPGA members first began showing up at the CVS event three years ago and were well received. Each year since, a few more have been added. This year World Golf Hall-of Famer, Juli Inkster, returns for the third time. Inkster will be joined by Norwegian native Suzan Pettersen along with Morgan Pressel (her second appearance) and first timers Angela Stanford and 8-time LPGA-Tour winner Paula Creamer. Creamer, known as the Pink Panther because she always wears pink, will be returning to the LPGA Tour June 18-20 at the ShopRite Classic in New Jersey. She has missed significant time due to a thumb injury so CVS folks were indeed fortunate to have her agree to play this year. “We also pushed hard to get Annika Sorenstam but she is so serious about her gameThat even though she isn’t playing competitively (she had a baby), she wouldn’t come here just to play. We also were hoping for Lorena Ochoa but she announced her retirement,” said Faxon. Still, Ryan said that down the road there could be an equal amount of men and women playing. “It seems we’re starting to move in that direction but we don’t have to do it right away.” The one big change this year is that there are younger PGA Tour guys coming to RICC. “We developed a young guys theme for this year,” revealed Faxon. “It was decided early that Jack (Nicklaus) and Arnold (Palmer) have called it quits. We did try to get Tom Watson, especially after the way he played in the Masters this year and in last year’s British Open but he had a commitment and was very disappointed he couldn’t play.” With Watson unavailable, Faxon said it was decided to go after the young stars, guys in their 20s. “If we can get the young guys to come here and show everyone how well they can play, they might want to keep coming back,” he said. Youngsters playing here include Rickie Fowler, who turned pro last year and started the 2010 season strong finishing second in the Phoenix Open and second at the Memorial June 6th. Others include Hunter Mahan, Camilo Villegas (his third appearance), Bill Haas, winner of this year’s Bob Hope Classic and winner of the 2004 CVS Classic with his dad, Jay, Matt Kuchar and long hitters, Boo Weekley, J.P. Holmes and Bubba Watson, who won this event with Villegas in 2008.Of course there must be some veterans in the mix, too. There is Faxon and Andrade along with World Golf Hall of Famer, Nick Price, making his 8th appearance and Davis Love III (his 10th time here). Also returning for the 7th time is David Toms, who won this tourney last year with Price. Also back for his 12th appearance is Barrington native Brett Quigley, who usually teams up with his uncle Dana. However, due to injury, Dana Quigley is unable to play. Veteran Peter Jacobsen rounds out the field. At press time, no pairings had been decided. However, it was expected that Faxon and Andrade would pair up with one of the women. “The LPGA has been so great,” said Andrade. “They get it, they have fun with it. I think it has been a home run inviting them here.” CVS CLASSIC notes: Faxon and Andrade haven’t been playing much golf. Both are involved in budding television careers. Andrade has been doing analyst work for the Golf Channel; Faxon for NBC. “They have been cool with it. They allow me to play in a tournament and announce when I’m finished. It’s definitely a challenge. It has been more time consuming than I ever imagined,” Faxon said. . .Those returning to the CVSCaremark Classic will find RICC looking different. It will be more open because trees all over the course have been removed, especially on 15 and 16. ..Tickets are on sale. A three-day pass costs $60. Tickets for Sunday only go for $20 while tickets for either the first or second round $25. You can phone for tickets at 866-CVS- 9441 or go on line at cvscharityclassic.com.

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