David Howell’s hole-in-one for charity: BMW donates £ 71,675 to the Alzheimer’s Society.

David Howell has already hit the shot of the tournament in round two of the BMW PGA Championship. The 45-year-old Englishman, who won the European Tour’s flagship event in 2006, aced the 14^th hole. Instead of the player receiving the Hole-in-One car, a BMW 530e xDrive Touring, BMW is this year donating £ 71,675 to the Alzheimer’s Society.

“I have had a wonderful day actually. I hit a lovely shot, it was downwind and the hole was playing fairly easy but it came right out of the middle. It is a lot of money to go to charity – and a really worthwhile charity as well,” said Howell, who has tasted success at BMW tournaments on several occasions. Prior to today’s hole-in-one, a 7-iron from 185 yards, the two-time Ryder Cup winner had won the BMW International Open in 2005 and the BMW PGA Championship the following year.

“Congratulations to David Howell on a fantastic shot, which has secured the donation to the Alzheimer’s Society,” said Graeme Grieve, Chief Executive Officer BMW Group UK. “We have been supporting the Alzheimer’s Society since last year and are delighted to be able to contribute towards the fantastic work they do. Their support of some of the most vulnerable people in society is more important now than ever, which is why we decided to use this year’s BMW Hole-in-One prize for this great cause.”

Alex Hyde-Smith, Director of Fundraising, Alzheimer’s Society said: “We’re delighted to see a hole-in-one was achieved today and that we will be receiving a donation from the BMW Hole-in-One Award prize. We’ve all been supporting the golfers from home, and are so grateful for this much-needed donation, particularly when people with dementia have been worst hit by coronavirus, accounting for over a quarter of all coronavirus deaths in the UK, with many carers also feeling isolated and unable to get respite. Every penny donated to us is vital to ensure we are there to support them when they need it most through services like our Dementia Connect Support Line, so that the 850,000 people living with dementia in the UK don’t have to face this crisis alone. Thank-you to BMW, European Tour and all our supporters.”

Howell would have been the sixth player in the history of the tournament to leave Wentworth Club with a new BMW. James Morrison (ENG, 2016, BMW i8 Protonic Red Edition), Scott Jamieson (SCO, 2016, BMW M2 Coupé), Chris Wood (ENG, 2015, BMW i8) and Andrew “Beef” Johnston (ENG, 2015, BMW M4 Coupé) each won the BMW Hole-in-One Prize. Last year, Ross Fisher (ENG) hit the tournament’s first ever albatross on the 18^th hole. His reward was the BMW Albatross Prize: A BMW i8 Roadster Rosso Corsa.