MOOSEJAWTODAY.COM -- Given how things turned out for the Moose Jaw Warriors during the 2023-24 Western Hockey League season, it stood to reason that the most recent edition of the Warriors Alumni Golf Tournament would be a special one indeed.
As it turns out, that was exactly the case.
With the Ed Chynoweth Cup on full display as the WHL champions hosted the event, the registration and dinner Thursday night was the largest ever and a sold-out field took to the Hillcrest Golf Course on Friday morning, all with the goal of raising as much money as possible for the Warriors education fund.
“It’s awesome,” said longtime tournament organizer Todd Hudson. “Even last night, we had the biggest turnout we’ve ever had for the registration and dinner, there were probably 150 people there. The Shrine Club did a bang-up job like always and it was a lot of fun… The tournament is sold out every year, so it’s nice to see a packed house and everyone having a great time.”
The tournament format has remained the same for years, with two groups of four teeing off in a scramble format on each hole. It makes for a long day on the course, but that’s all for the better on a beautiful day like Friday -- more time to hang around and catch up and tell stories while enjoying a round.
A major part of the tournament’s success is the continued support of the business community, with a host of prizes donated for the event every year and many businesses doing all they can to make sure the education fund is replenished each summer.
“The Moose Jaw business community gets behind this team and support this team like no other WHL team in the league,” Hudson said matter-of-factly. “It’s a small market team and quite frankly, a small market team just has to put a little more effort in getting out there and getting this kind of support. So I have to take my hat off to all the businesses that support the tournament, all the guys who enter this tournament, and it’s very, very important to have that support and raise money for the education fund.”
When all is said and done, Hudson expects the tournament to once again clear over $100,000, which will be put to good use with around 20 players from the Warriors accessing the scholarship program every year.
One of those was Moose Jaw Minor Hockey product Brennan Wray, who played for the Warriors and Red Deer Rebels from the 2003-04 through 2008-09 seasons before using five years of the scholarship program while playing at St. Francis Xavier. After getting his Bachelor of Science degree, Wray had a sixth year of scholarship eligibility after playing 17 games for Moose Jaw as a 15-year-old, which he used to launch his career as a dentist through Dalhousie University.
“It’s huge, it’s amazing, actually,” Wray said when asked about the importance of the scholarship program. “When I was at St. Francis Xavier and got to play with quite a few guys from the Ontario Hockey League, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and of course the Western Hockey League, and the scholarship program in the WHL is probably the tops out of all the leagues. It was smooth and easy, they took care of payments, they took care of textbooks, and it made a huge difference. It can be a big burden and stress and it’s great to have that taken care of.”
Wray -- who practices with Ninth Avenue Dental in Calgary -- remains impressed with what the Moose Jaw community does in support of the Alumni Tournament and the education fund.
“Moose Jaw is a special community, and the amount of money is raised is incredible,” he said. “The people who are willing to support this event and the pride they have in the community, it’s great to see and nice to have a chance to give back, too.”
For more on the Moose Jaw Warriors, including much more on the education fund and scholarship program, visit .
