The European Ryder Cup team along with their wives and partners were guests of honour at a gala dinner held at the Akoo Theatre at Rosemont, Illinois.
After a three-course dinner nearby, the players, Captains and guests of the PGA of America made the short journey to the Akoo for the second portion of the evening’s entertainment as American film and television personality Justin Timberlake, who himself played in the inaugural Ex-Captains and Celebrity Scramble on Tuesday afternoon at Medinah, compered proceedings with aplomb.
The European Ryder Cup team with their wives and partners at a gala dinner. (Photo – www.rydercup.com)
During a ‘Blues Brothers’ musical introduction, famous faces from the Windy City’s wide ranging popular culture entered intermittently as sports and Olympic stars all signed off with the slogan, “Chicago – you’re my kind of town.”
Mayor of Chicago Rahm Emanuel then took great pleasure in welcoming the assembled teams, dignitaries, media and fans packing the Illinois venue to his metropolis, joking that the mild temperatures that the Midwest city is currently experiencing are a constant throughout the calendar year.
Timberlake then introduced comedy musical troupe ‘The Second City’ who performed a humorous skit of European vs. US sentiments before Latino comedian George Lopez had the audience in stitches with his routine.
One of the most popular and well-known bands of the 1970s and 1980s, and still going strong in 2012, locally-based rock outfit ‘Chicago’ then played a storming set that had the crowd on its feet ahead of the undoubted highlight of the evening’s festivities.
A thorn between a dozen roses – Jose Maria Olazabal with the wives and partners of the European Team. (www.rydercup.com)
Each player from the two sides was then individually introduced to the stage, along with their respective partners, to a rapturous reception as sporadic chants of “U-S-A” gave inkling to the sort of atmosphere that can be expected on the first tee on Friday morning.
There were excellent receptions for many of the European Team, too, with Sergio Garcia and Rory McIlroy perhaps garnering some of the loudest cheers of the night as Timberlake led the Captains and their squads through a short on-stage Q & A session to conclude the evening’s celebrations.
Clearly, the big hit among the wives and girlfriends was Allison Clarke, wife to Ryder Cup vice-captain, Darren Clarke and displaying those qualities that led to her being chosen as a ‘Miss Northern Ireland’.
Also looking glamourous was Diane Donald the USA-born wife of Luke Donald given she recently gave birth to the couple’s second child.
Chicago’s always been a town renowned for its razzmatazz, sporting zeal, theatre and entertainment, so it seemed only a fitting precursor to the main event this weekend.
