PGA TOUR Player and Defending Champion Dustin Johnson and Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks Kicked-Off the 2011 BMW Championship by Shooting for a Hole-in-One from the Wrigley Field Stands

WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J., Sept. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- BMW Championship defending champion Dustin Johnson and "Mr. Cub" Ernie Banks teed off from a specially-constructed platform in the stands at Wrigley Field today to mark the start of the 2011 BMW Championship. BMW pledged to donate a $100,000 college scholarship to the Evans Scholars Foundation, a national charity, if either one was successful.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110912/NY67046-a )

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110912/NY67046-b )

The event saw Johnson and Banks alternating attempts at the 139-yard hole in an attempt to earn the scholarship.  While neither made the hole-in-one shot, Johnson came closest to the pin at 25 feet 2 inches and earned a $10,000 donation to the Evans Scholars Foundation in his name.

Banks and Johnson attempted the unprecedented feat from a platform built at the very top of the Wrigley Field stands, aiming at a 20-foot circular target surrounding a cup specially-placed in the outfield by experts brought in by the Western Golf Association.

The 2011 BMW Championship will be played from Thursday, September 15 through Sunday, September 18  when the top 70 players on the PGA TOUR will compete in the penultimate event of the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup. All proceeds from the BMW Championship will benefit the Evans Scholars Foundation, which provides full university tuition and housing grants to deserving young caddies. The BMW Championship has raised more than $9 million for the Evans Scholars since 2007.

SOURCE BMW Championship