Vincent Publishing - Index

Vincent Publishing - 2008 Wachovia Championship - Index

AMBASSADOR SPOTLIGHT
66
His is the voice of the Wachovia Championship and has been since
the very first tee shot was hit in the inaugural event held in 2003.
Graeme Keith is the one with that glorious, southern gentlemanly
voice who announces each player off the first tee. He adds another
class element to an event that has been noted by fans and players
alike to be one of the premier events on the PGA TOUR in just a
short period of time.
And Now On the
Graeme Keith and his committee of four other
gentlemen, David Strawn, Bill Plyler,
Charles Price, Jr. and Lee Keasler, Jr., are
responsible for announcing the players and
their hometowns to the throng of fans who
attend the Wachovia Championship each year.
Keith accepted the post when Tournament Chairman Mac
Everett approached him to help in the organization of the
event.
“Mac Everett asked me to help out when he was putting
together the tournament and I mentioned to him that if no
one else wanted to be the starter, I would be happy to
oblige,” Keith said. “And I’ve been doing it ever since.”
The choice was a simple one for the tournament committee.
“Graeme was the perfect choice for us to be the Chairman
of the Starter Committee. He has a vast knowledge of the
game of golf and, in addition, he has built a wonderful
relationship with many of the TOUR professionals over
the years,” Kym Hougham, Executive Director of the
Wachovia Championship said. “For five years, he has
displayed the style and grace that typifies the Wachovia
Championship while announcing the professionals on the
first tee. He is a true southern gentleman.”
Keith had previous experience before accepting the posi-
tion, as he was also the voice of the Champions Tour
event when it was held at the TPC Piper Glen and Quail
Hollow from 1980 to 2001. He also worked with the
LPGA when the Fieldcrest Cannon Classic was played in
Cornelius between 1995 and 1997 at the Peninsula Club
near Lake Norman.
“Our committee is very professional in keeping with the
spirit of the tournament,” he said. “We try to make sure
that the player’s names and hometowns are accurate and
pronounced correctly. That’s a difficult job sometimes.
Since my first name is spelled in the Old English instead
of the modern ‘Graham’ but pronounced the same, I don’t
hesitate to ask to get it right.”
Getting the hometown right is also a concern, considering
the international flavor of today’s TOUR.
“I remember one time, Ernie Els mentioned, after we
asked him on the tee, that he would prefer us to announce
him being from Johannesburg, South Africa rather than
Lake Nona, Florida,” Keith recalled. “Of course, we did.”
Mr. Keith is Chairman of The Keith Corporation, a commercial
real estate firm he founded along with his son,
Graeme Keith, Jr., in 1989. Previously, Keith held executive
positions in the banking and financial services industry,
including Chairman and CEO of Barclays American
Corporation, Vice Chairman of First Railroad & Banking
2008 Wachovia Championship Official Event Program