Feature – The Southwest Airlines Showcase

Cedar Crest Golf Course in southern Dallas has been home to history since its charter in 1919 (see sidebar). New history was made in November of 2023 with the debut of a nationally televised tournament on GOLF Channel showcasing the top 42 amateur golfers in the country – 21 men and 21 women – from diverse and underrepresented groups, of college age, with a handful of high school phenoms. This “all-star” event captured attention across the country, especially in the African-American golf community. The 54-hole stroke play concurrent male and female competitions take place Monday-Wednesday, Nov. 11-13, this year, with free admission and featuring food trucks, bars, a DJ, games, giveaways, a Saturday Family Day, a Sunday Sponsor-Am, and a great cause and mission: making golf accessible and inspirational for people of all ages and backgrounds.

AVIDGOLFER spoke with I AM a Golfer Foundation Executive Director Chuck Walker about some of the top players coming to play.

AVIDGOLFER: By all accounts, the inaugural Southwest Airlines Showcase was a great success. Was it difficult attracting players to come and play in a brand-new event?

Chuck Walker: Yes and no. Anytime there is a new event, there is a learning curve for those considering playing. We made a concerted effort, however, to get the word out about how special, if not important, our event was going to be. It was and is cause-related. It’s more than just a golf tournament. We visited five or six other tournaments throughout the year to recruit players and spent countless hours educating players, families and coaches about what we were trying to accomplish for their benefit, as well as the Foundation’s, historic Cedar Crest (see sidebar), and southern Dallas.

AG: What was the reaction of the players who played last year, and has that carried over at all to the players invited to compete this year?

CW: From start to finish, the players were blown away by the experience, and not just on the golf course but with all the enrichment and experiential activities we had for them off the course. We wanted this to be a major, if you will, among all the golf tournaments they have a chance to play. I think we succeeded, and we’re excited for this upcoming second edition.

AG: What does the field look like for this year?

CW: The interest and the depth on both the men’s and women’s side is so strong we almost considered expanding the field, but we’ll save that for next year if we can. And we realized that though this is an amateur invitational tournament, it’s really an “All-Star Game,” and the one event that showcases these top players from diverse backgrounds.  It’s their chance to take center stage in front of a national TV audience.

AG: We’re going to showcase some of the top players coming to play with the following bios, but what did you learn from year one that applies to this year?

CW: Good question. First, we are very proud of what we have accomplished, and we can’t thank our sponsors enough for helping us continue to advance golf to be more inclusive and more accessible. The boys and girls in our youth program get inspired by seeing these young men and women who look like them, playing in this high-excitement tournament on their home golf course and in their neighborhood. It creates a pipeline for these kids to see what’s possible for them one day through the game of golf. What we learned is that this cause and mission is ongoing, and we invite others to join the mission. 

Men’s and Women’s Bios:

MALES

Xavier Bighaus

Senior at Colorado Christian University

Hometown: McKinney, TX

Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) First Team All-Conference and RMAC Championship individual title

PING All-Region team and PING All-American Honorable Mention

Matthew Vital

Sophomore at Temple University

Hometown: Bethlehem, PA

2023 Pennsylvania State Junior Champion

Holds the course record (62) at historic Reading CC, besting Sam Snead by 1 stroke

Won the Augusta National Drive, Chip and Putt Championship in 2019

Godfrey Nsubuga

Junior at Winston-Salem State University

Hometown: Luagzi, Uganda

Made global headlines as the first player from Uganda to compete in the U.S Amateur Championship (2024)

Got his start as a ball spotter at Mehta Golf Club

Marcus Smith Jr.

Fifth-year senior at Howard University

Hometown: Rockford, IL

First and only African American to ever win the Rockford City Championship

Won the Illinois State HS Championship as a HS Junior

FEMALES

Kendall Jackson

Senior at Howard University

Hometown: Pearland, TX

2024 PGA WORKS Collegiate Champion, 5x Collegiate Medalist, and 2024 First Team All-Northeast Conference (NEC) Award

Howard University Rookie of the Year, MVP and Captain

Alona Avery

Freshman at University of California – Irvine

Hometown: Riverside, CA

2023 Toyota Tour at Westin Rancho Mirage Champion

Finished Runner-Up (-9) in collegiate debut at Utah Valley

Younger sister of Epson Tour member and USC standout Amari Avery

Emily Odwin

Junior at SMU

Hometown: St. James, Barbados

2020 Barbados Olympic Association Emerging Athlete Award

First Barbadian to ever play DI college golf and to qualify for both the USGA Girls Junior and USGA Women’s Amateur Golf Championships in the same year

2024 AAC (American Athletic Conference) All-Conference Award Winner and Four Top 10s in seven starts at SMU

Shyla Brown

Class of 2026 University of Texas Scholar Athlete Commit

Hometown: McKinney, TX

Runner-up in the 2023 Southwest Airlines Showcase at Cedar Crest

USGA National Development and AJGA All-Star Team Member

The 2024 Kathy Whitworth Invitational Champion

Texas Ties in the Field

Xavier Bighaus (McKinney, TX)

Malisone Chanthanpaya (Fort Worth, TX)

Alexa Gonzalez (The Woodlands, TX)

Morgan Horell (Carrollton, TX)

Kendall Jackson (Pearland, TX)

Kennedi Lee (Mansfield, TX)

Lauren Rios (Coppell, TX)

Allyn Stephens (Houston, TX)

Tariro November (Snyder, TX)