NEW YORK CITY (July 10, 2007) - Skye McCaine of Mt. Vernon, N.Y., and Paul Toohey of Yonkers, N.Y., both active participants in The First Tee of Metropolitan New York at Mosholu (Bronx, N.Y.), were announced as the winners of the “HSBC Big Break For Kids” at a ceremony on July 10 at Vanderbilt Hall in Grand Central Station. McCaine,13, and Toohey, 14, were selected from 12 finalists (six boys and six girls) and received their awards from HSBC Women’s World Match Play defending champion,Brittany Lincicome.

All of the finalists, including Toohey and McCaine, are active participants in the The First Tee of Metropolitan New York at Mosholu Golf Course and survived regional qualifying events that got them to the final stage of the competition on Monday June 25. The whirlwind day featured stops at Mosholu Golf Course, Central Park in Manhattan and a private luxury boat ride to Bayonne Golf Club in Bayonne, N.J. The day included a golf skills evaluation and Life Skills testing, an integral part of the First Tee curriculum. All finalists were then required to write a 500-word essay on their First Tee experience. Both Toohey and McCaine feel the essay was what contributed to their win. “We had to write about how The First Tee inspired us,” said McCaine. “And I had a lot to say about that.” 

The two excited winners each received a $725 gift certificate, a spot on the HSBC Junior Advisory Board, an inside-the-ropes pass to the HSBC World Match Play Championship at Wykagyl CC on July 19-22 and a face-to-face meeting with LPGA superstar Annika Sorenstam.

The First Tee of Metropolitan New York is a joint effort of the MGA Foundation and the Metropolitan PGA and annually introduces more than 2,000 youngsters to the game.

For more information on The First Tee visit The First Tee Section of the MGA Web site, www.thefirstteemetny.org or call Lou Cutolo of the MGA Foundation at 914-347-4653.