Travelers Golf Begins With A Party And a Bolton Concert

on June 21, 2011 7:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Travelers Championship may be about golf but this week it's also about concerts. And on Tuesday the music began with Michael Bolton and friends performing at the Bushnell.

But before the music started, the party started, a VIP reception and dine-around that attracted about 800 food, golf, and Michael Bolton fans.

"We thought we would try something different this year," said Travelers president Jay Fishman about the tournament "opening event" wife Randy Fishman suggested.

Both Fishmans were playing in Wednesday's Pro-Am, in a foursome with professional Vijay Singh and couldn't wait to hit the links.

Then there were others who really didn't care much about golfing.

"We're just Michael Bolton fans and someone gave us the tickets," said Swarina Salim, a native of Kenya who was at the VIP event with girlfriends Rosaria Kenya," noted Salim.

If eating was your thing, it was a who's who of Hartford's best restaurants ranging from Feng and Morton's to dish, Salute, Firebox and Carbone's with a few others including Bricco Trattoria from West Hartford who stepped up for the event that benefits the Michael Bolton Charities.

"This has been quite a week," said Bricco owner Billy Grant, and nursing a sore foot after recent toe surgery. "We have this, an opening at Hoffman's, the Martini Schmooze on Thursday and the strawberry Moon festival in Glastonbury this week."

Grant had sad news from a Ct Restaurant Assn. meeting earlier in the day, St. Clemens Castle award winning chef Michael Everett unexpectedly died this week.

For Dan Keller and Billy Carbone from Dish, it was also a busy week. Their Dish restaurant had participated in the going away party for Michael Wilson at Hartford Stage Monday, and after Tuesday's event, were going back to the restaurant to get ready for the Pro-Am .

"It's our second year serving breakfast and lunch on the practice tee and the tournament," said Keller noting it spotlighted the good in Hartford. "We'll be cooking all night tonight."

On Wednesday, Eddie Money was scheduled to perform at the REACH Foundation concert at the Subway Fan Zone located in the center of the TPC River Highlands course and on Saturday, Huey Lewis and the News is slated to perform, again courtesy of the REACH Foundation.

The REACH Foundation assists other local and national charities, including The Make-A-Wish Foundation, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, The Petit Family Foundation, YMCA, Girls Scouts, Boys & Girls Club and Big Brothers Big Sisters.

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