By Brian Shaw | [email protected]

With time comes change. This year, changes are coming to South Salt Lake Police Athletic/Activities League (PAL) and fundraising for their big event, the 8th annual PAL Golf Tournament presented by Advance Displays, is much needed. 

The 8th annual golf tournament will tee off Aug. 23 at Saratoga Springs' TalonsCove Golf Club, with a course that winds around the shores of Utah Lake. 

There is a good reason that this year's fundraising efforts at this golf tournament may be more important than ever before. Twenty-two years after first joining the SSL Police Department, Jerry Silva announced his retirement from the force earlier this month. In addition, Matt Pena, the PAL boxing program's longtime head coach, recently stepped down from the role he's held for several years to pursue his graduate studies at the University of Utah. 

Both were tremendous blows to both the law enforcement community and the South Salt Lake community on the whole. However, the legacy Silva and Pena helped build at PAL must go on for the sake of the kids. 

The newly retired Silva will still be PAL director, serving the kids as he's always done since PAL's inception. With several new programs coming this year including wrestling, street hockey and, of course, boxing under a new head coach, PAL needs help right now. 

Besides the two boxing tournaments it hosts to raise money, PAL also puts on this golf tournament annually to help raise proceeds, all which go back to the PAL programs. And they could use people’s help through participation in this event. 

This year's tournament will be an all-day event starting with registration at 7 a.m. and a shotgun start at 8 a.m.  

What makes this event unique and fun is that prizes await golfers at every turn on the green. For the men who participate, they'll have a chance right away to test their mettle. On hole No. 1, a prize will be given for the longest drive. 

As the men move onto hole No. 4, the first to get a hole-in-one wins yet another prize. The women spring into action on hole No. 8 as they too will have a chance to take home something fun, as soon as one of them can make a hole-in-one as well. 

At hole No. 12, the action continues to focus on the women, as their longest drive will also result in a prize. 

At hole No. 17, however, the competition becomes multifaceted for the men and women, who will now compete to see which among them gets closest to the hole for yet another prize. 

And on Hole No. 18, the men and women will square off one final time to see who among them has the longest putt. Winners will be announced and the prizes will be handed out at lunch following the golf at 1 p.m. 

Player packages start at $75 per person. Putting together a foursome runs $300, and for an additional $150 you can sponsor a PAL kid. Both the player and foursome packages include lunch and a swag bag. 

Golfers can also buy a 12-inch cheat string for $5 if you stretch the truth a little bit on the golf course, or you can shell out $10 for every mulligan. For those who like a less risky approach, they can buy opportunity tickets for $5 each. 

Sponsorship packages are also available and the full list can be seen here. At the 2019 tournament, businesses can advertise by sponsoring beverage carts and the lunch itself. They can also be a title sponsor or a hole sponsor. 

If you cannot attend the event, you can always donate to PAL by clicking here. . Any amount helps kids at PAL who rely on these fundraisers to pursue their dreams, be it boxing or wrestling.