Event kicks off in Vegas
Hilton Grand Vacations announces the return of the Hilton Grand Vacations (HGV) Tournament of Champions. As the kickoff to the LPGA Tour and one of the LPGA season’s most-watched events, the January tournament brings together LPGA Tour winners to play alongside approximately 50 of the biggest stars in sports, entertainment and music.
The highly anticipated HGV Tournament of Champions is legendary for its world-class experiences that extend beyond the course, including an exclusive, three-night private concert series, which will feature R&B icons En Vogue, Grammy-winning country-pop star Maren Morris and pop superstar Ellie Goulding. To round out this iconic all-female concert lineup, Paris Hilton, the world-famous influencer, philanthropist and CEO of 11:11 Media who has successfully built a career as a highly sought-after DJ, will hit the stage following Ellie Goulding to keep the party going after a day of action on the course. EDM vocalist Emma Hewitt and Australian DJ duo NERVO will also perform.
“Our goal is to elevate the HGV Tournament of Champions every year, and this year, we’re especially honored to welcome this stellar lineup of leading ladies to the stage,” states Mark Wang, president and CEO of Hilton Grand Vacations. “The combination of world-class LPGA Tour golfers playing alongside some of the biggest names in the world of sports and entertainment, followed by three nights of unforgettable evening concerts creates a truly unique event that helps shine a spotlight on women’s golf.”
The HGV Tournament of Champions features LPGA Tour winners from the previous two seasons competing side-by-side with top celebrities and entertainers. Celebrity participants in previous years have included seven-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens, MLB MVP Justin Verlander, NFL Hall of Famer Marcus Allen, seven-time NBA All-Star Grant Hill, World Golf Hall of Famer Annika Sörenstam, Ant-Man actor Michael Peña, country music star Toby Keith, Grammy-nominated artist Lee Brice and many more. LPGA participants will compete for $1.5 million in official prize money while celebrities compete for a separate prize of $500,000.
Building on the success of the annual event, HGV announces a new pro-am tournament and concert event in Las Vegas. The first-ever Viva! Las Vegas is an exclusive, multi-day, members-only experience featuring two private concerts from country music star Michael Ray and Joey Fatone & Friends. The event will be hosted by model and TV personality Blair O’Neal and take place September 19th and 20th at Bali Hai Golf Club located on the Las Vegas Strip. Pro-am participants will have the chance to win an all-inclusive trip to the January HGV Tournament of Champions.
With the launch of Viva! Las Vegas and the return of the HGV Tournament of Champions, HGV is building upon its new experiential events platform, HGV Ultimate Access, which provides members and invited guests with unforgettable vacation experiences designed to appeal to the next generation of travelers. The company hosts thousands of events a year as well as other private concerts, chef dinners and celebrity meet-and-greets.
“My buddy Colt Ford was one of the — I think he was the first one to bring it to a lot of our attention, I think,” Ray tells us exclusively about his involvement with the brand. “And he kept talking to me about it and I met a couple of the people who were involved before Hilton jumped on and bought it. So, I’ve known about it for a while and thanks to Colt [who] brought me in and it’s just truly is like a big family, man. It’s a lot of fun, you know? You meet a lot of great people and just a great community and great, great time to spend with people that are just trying to make memories like we are when we play shows, you know? That’s what Hilton branch’s doing is trying to make memories with families that will last lifetime, you know? And so for us, it goes hand in hand.”
Ray will be performing a concert in Las Vegas on Monday (Sept 19th) to wrap night one.
“We just played about 10 holes, I think. And then we play tonight, so gonna take a little break and get everything together, do a little sound check, make sure everything’s good. “I’m new to golf. So sometimes on some of these tournaments, you know, I might slow some people down, so 10 holes, and then they, then all of a sudden they start really hitting better. For some reason. I don’t know what happens after I leave, but…”
The HGV Tournament of Champions will be held at the renowned, championship golf course at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club in Orlando from January 19-22, 2023.
We talk more with Ray about his involvement with Hilton Grand Vacations, new music, and his career on an upcoming episode of The Music Universe Podcast.
