One thing that the golf world does well is charity work via sponsors donating to charities, players supporting charities, and players creating charities.  Birdies for the Brave supports a number of “military outreach programs” providing help to soldiers and their families.

In 2003 Phil Mickelson, and his wife Amy, started Birdies for the Brave. The basic premise was that for every birdie or eagle Phil made during a tournament money would be donated to two charities. Phil was on top of his game in 2003 therefore $100 for every birdie and $500 for every eagle was a great way to raise money for the designated charities (Special Operations Warrior Foundation and Homes For Our Troops.)

In 2006, Birdies for the Brave became an official PGA tour charity.  Today, a number of players participate supporting a variety of military charities; and new fund-raising events have been developed to encourage local golf clubs to support the charity.  According to the PGA, Birdies for the Brave has “raised more than $6.5 million for military-homefront charities.”

On February 2nd, The White House announced the 20 finalists for the Joining Forces Community Challenge. This is the initiative led by First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden to encourage support of our troops.   Birdies for the Brave was one of 20 finalists!  There were hundreds of nominations so I was pleased to see them listed.

The great thing is that you can go and vote for your favorite charity. The “winners” will be announced in March. The website is easy to navigate.  You do have to sign-up to vote (but it takes just a few minutes). And, you can vote daily for your favorite cause.

I voted for Birdies for the Brave but there are a number of other great charities to vote for at the Joining Forces website.