Coach Rock Golf Classic to benefit cancer research at ECU

The second annual Coach Rock Golf Classic will be held June 18 at Ironwood County Club in Greenville. The tournament will benefit cancer research at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University and the Leo W. Jenkins Cancer Center.

The Coach Rock Roggeman Cancer Research Fund was created in honor of the late ECU football defensive coordinator who died of lymphoma in 2010. Special guests will give a tribute to Roggeman at 12:30 p.m.

Coach Thomas “Rock” Roggeman addresses players during a 2008 ECU football game. Photo courtesy ECU Sports Information

The four-person superball tournament has an entry fee of $500 per team. Tournament prizes include a chance to win three cars and $10,000.

Breakfast and registration are at 7:30 a.m., and the first groups tees off at 8:15 a.m. Lunch is at noon, a tribute to Roggeman is at 12:30 p.m., and the afternoon groups tee off at 1:15 p.m.

The registration deadline is June 14.

The Coach Rock Roggeman Cancer Research Fund was established by Dr. Paul Walker and his wife, Kathy, to develop and support innovative cancer treatment clinical trials at ECU. All of the money raised benefits cancer patients in eastern North Carolina.

“This fund will go a long way in helping people in our community who are affected by cancer,” said Walker, an associate professor and director of the thoracic oncology clinic at the Brody School of Medicine. “Every advance in the treatment of cancer comes through clinical trials. They are the key to improving cancer outcomes for every patient we treat.”

The tournament had been scheduled for June 4, but that date conflicted with the annual Boys & Girls Club tournament.

To make a donation or play in the Coach Rock Golf Classic, call Taylor Bell at 252-744-3891 or email her at bellt@ecu.edu.