Gene Hallman returns to SC roots in managing Columbia area’s Korn Ferry golf event
He has staged golf tournaments for a gamut of stars, from Scottie Scheffler during his Korn Ferry Tour days to legends from yesteryear named Palmer, Nicklaus and Trevino on the PGA Champions Tour.
Nevertheless, the one coming up — the Korn Ferry Tour’s Colonial Life Charity Classic at Woodcreek Club in May — is more special to Gene Hallman.
“It’s very personal,” he said.
The description fits for the best of reasons. In a sense, Gene Hallman is coming home.
“I always feel ‘home’ is where you grew up,” he said. And after a career that includes overseeing more than 250 events around the world, he will be holding his first in the Columbia area.
A native of Anderson, Hallman grew up in Irmo and graduated from Irmo High, then earned his bachelor’s degree from the College of Charleston and his MBA from the University of South Carolina.
He began cheering for the Gamecocks in what he calls “Frank McGuire’s heyday,” found his love of golf at the Richland County-owned LinRick Golf Course and discovered his life’s work in golf administration and event management in a magazine article.
Though based in Birmingham, the Columbia area remains close to his heart, and, he said, “I have an extra level of motivation to make this tournament special.”
In fact, Hallman believes the Colonial Life Charity Classic has the opportunity to be the Korn Ferry’s most successful inaugural tournament.
“Everything is coming together like a dream,” he said. “We found a gem in (tournament director) Chris Baker, we have a great golf course, (owner) Harold Pickrel is redoing the clubhouse and the players are going to be blown away. We have outstanding title sponsor and other companies are getting involved with sponsorships. We have great support from the city of Columbia and Richland County. We have a lot of volunteers, a wonderful charity (United Way of the Midlands).
“We have everything you need for a great tournament.”
Hallman knows what makes an event click. His company, Eventive Sports, oversees multiple golf tournaments, dabbles in motorsports, stages the SEC baseball tournament and does college football gameday operations for Alabama, Auburn and Oklahoma.
“We want to create a great experience,” he said. “Part of our mission at the Colonial Life Charity Classic is educating fans what the Korn Ferry Tour is. And this will more than golf. It will be a family-friendly event.
“We’ll be like a smaller PGA Tour event. We’ll have sky boxes, hospitality, the course roped. We aspire to present something special for Columbia and the entire area.”
He found his love for golf at LinRick: “My mom saw a sign about golf lessons and asked if I wanted to try,” he said. “I did, and I got hooked on golf.”
That affection led to his quitting his post-college job with NCR Corporation after reading a Sports Illustrated profile on super-agent Mark McCormack.
“I thought, ‘That’s what I want to do,’ ” he said. “I knew (PGA Tour golfer) Corey Pavin, represented him for a while and then, out of the blue, I got a call about helping put together a new PGA Senior (now Champions) Tour tournament in Birmingham.”
The rest is history. Eventive Sports, which began as Bruno Event Team and now operates under the umbrella of management giant Troon Golf, has provided guidance all over the sports landscape. In golf, there have been, and are, the PGA (Tour, Korn Ferry and Champions) events plus USGA and the LPGA tourneys.
“I love what I’m doing,” Hallman said, “and we’re going to make the Columbia tournament a special one.”
The Colonial Life Charity Classic will be played May 14-17. Tickets are available online at www.coloniallifecc.com.
Chip shots. USC’s men tied for 12th in the Southern Highlands Collegiate, a tournament that featured every team ranked in the top 50. Frankie Harris placed 17th individually in the Las Vegas event. ... USC’s women had their worst finish in years, placing last in a field of 17 in the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate at Long Cove Club on Hilton Head Island. Junior Vairana Heck paced the Gamecocks, sharing 15th individually. .... The 2031 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball championship will be played at Aiken’s Old Barnwell course, the USGA announced. ... Mims Liner (Irmo) and Gettys Glaze (Charleston) joined forces to win the SCGA’s Senior Four-Ball title at the Reserve at Woodside’s Zoeller Course in Aiken.