Matthews sees bigger future for NEPA Invitational
Sep. 22—CLARKS SUMMIT — Brandon Matthews has a history of swinging for the green. So it should be no surprise that he set an aggressive goal when helping to plan the 2023 NEPA Invitational.
Or that his team appears likely to reach it.
The Dupont native and PGA Tour competitor will host the third-annual NEPA Invitational on Saturday, bringing PGA pros to the area to compete with some of the area's best amateurs in an effort to raise money for the Geisinger Janet Weis Children's Hospital and the Scranton Area Community Foundation's William Lawler Scholarship Fund.
Looking for a way to give back to the community, the Pittston Area grad established the NEPA Invitational Fund and partnered with the Scranton Area Community Foundation to help distribute funds it raises to local organizations in need. This year, Matthews and other event organizers set out to raise $200,000 for the hospital, twice its goal from 2022.
"It's pretty incredible," Matthews said during a press conference Friday afternoon. "We've continually been doubling our donation, and this year, it looks like we're going to be able to hit that ($200,000) number. And we're going to hope to be able to continue that in the future."
The event kicked off Friday night with a Dinner With the Pros at the Country Club of Scranton. The tournament will tee off Saturday at 8 a.m. , and spectators are allowed to attend for free, but donations can be made online.
Matthews said he felt "very thankful" to be given the opportunity to run the event, and the rate at which it has grown is humbling.
By the time the weekend ends, he believes the Invitational will hit the $350,000 mark in funds donated through three years, and there's hope that just a few years from now, it can hit the million-dollar mark.
"With the trajectory we're on, it looks like we're going to be able to continue growing this at a very, very, very good rate," Matthews said. "To think it grew from me saying I was going to do this event in eight weeks a couple years ago to ... we are where we are, it just continues to grow.
"Obviously, we encourage people to come up and watch, be part of the event, bring your kids. There are some great PGA Tour professionals here this week. It's just a really unique experience to be able to see them up close with no ropes and be able to talk to them."
In addition to Geisinger Janet Weis Children's Hospital, the NEPA Invitational Fund at the Scranton Area Community Foundation raised money to support a variety of charities like the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeastern Pennsylvania, Children's Advocacy Center of NEPA, Meals on Wheels of NEPA, Inc., Outreach, and United Way of Lackawanna and Wayne Counties. The NEPA Invitational and Matthews also worked closely with the Scranton Area Community Foundation to establish the William Lawler Scholarship, awarded to an NEPA area student who is going on to play collegiate golf.
"If you love golf, this is an event you want to be involved in, in any capacity," Matthew said.
Contact the writer: dcollins@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9125; @DonnieCollinsTT on X/Twitter
