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2021 Celebrity Shootout to feature new format, with three matches over the 9-hole exhibition benefiting six designated Southeastern Michigan charitable organizations

Annual Community Concert presented by Ally to feature fireworks display

GRAND BLANC, Mich. – Officials of The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren announced today that Detroit Red Wings head coach Jeff Blashill is the fourth member of the tournament’s marquee special event, the Celebrity Shootout. Blashill joins golf’s greatest champion Jack Nicklaus; fellow World Golf Hall-of-Famer Lee Trevino; and NCAA Men’s Basketball title-winning head coach Tom Izzo of Michigan State University to create a powerhouse foursome that will compete in an exhibition match to benefit charity.

The Celebrity Shootout will take place on Saturday, August 28 - following the last tournament pairing of round two - and begin on Hole No. 10 at Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club.

“Saturday is going to be a can’t miss day at The Ally Challenge with tournament play, a legendary lineup for The Celebrity Shootout and Little Big Town at the Community Concert,” said Andrea Brimmer, chief Marketing and Public Relations Officer at Ally. “Come out and join us for a great time that also gives back to this vibrant community.”

Blashill enters his seventh season as head coach of the Red Wings. The 47-year-old has spent the last 10 seasons with the organization, coaching at various levels. Blashill was first an assistant during Detroit’s 2011-12 campaign, before serving as head coach of Detroit’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins, from 2012-15. After leading the Griffins to three of the most successful campaigns in the franchise's history, Blashill ascended to his current role as head coach of the Red Wingson June 9, 2015.

“I’m thrilled to join the lineup for the Celebrity Shootout and look forward to raising money for charitable organizations in my home state of Michigan, while having some fun at beautiful Warwick Hills,” Blashill said. “Having the opportunity to play alongside golf legends Jack Nicklaus and Lee Trevino is incredibly exciting, and I hope along the way to pick up a few tips to improve my game.”

Over his first six seasons as Detroit’s head coach, Blashill has overseen a transitional period for the organization, and his previous experience and accolades at the college and minor-league level haveaided the Red Wings in developing high draft picks into everyday NHL players. Among the players who have worked their way up the depth chart during Blashill's tenure are Dylan Larkin, Andreas Athanasiou, Anthony Mantha and Tyler Bertuzzi. All four scored 20-or-more goals during the 2018-19 campaign to make the Red Wings one of just four teams in the NHL¾ Calgary, Toronto and Winnipeg being the other¾to have at least four 20-goal scorers under the age of 25.

In his first season with the Red Wings, Blashill guided the club to its 25th consecutive postseason appearance, extending a streak that at the time was the third-longest in NHL history. Blashill posted the sixth-best winning percentage (0.567) of any first-year head coach in Red Wings history. Through six seasons with the team, Blashill's head coaching record stands at 172-221-62.

Blashill is the 27th coach in franchise history, the first American to lead the Red Wings and just the third Michigan native to coach any major Detroit sports franchises, joining Detroit Lions coach Steve Mariucci (2003-05) and the Detroit Pistons’ Dave DeBusschere (1964-67).

The 2021 format for the fan-favorite, 9-hole Celebrity Shootout will feature three separate 3-hole matches, with the celebrities rotating partners each match in a team scramble, match-play format. The teams will compete for a $30,000 purse to benefit six Southeastern Michigan charitable organizations: Catholic Charities of Southeast Michigan; Genesee County Habitat for Humanity; Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Flint; My Brother’s Keeper of Genesee County; Shelter of Flint; and YWCA Genesee County. Each team will play for a specific charity during each of the 3-hole matches, and holes have been assigned a dollar value that will be awarded to the winning team’s charity after each hole.

Ties will result in a carryover of the assigned hole value to the next hole. A tie at the end of a match will result in a sudden-death chip-off on the green of that match’s final hole (Hole Nos. 12, 15 or 18).

Pairings, charity designations and hole value breakdowns for the Celebrity Shootout are provided below.

MATCH 1

Nicklaus and Izzo (Shelter of Flint)

Trevino and Blashill (Catholic Charities of Southeast Michigan)

Hole Nos. 10………………….$2,000

Hole Nos. 11………………….$3,000

Hole No. 12……………………$5,000

TOTAL……………………………$10,000

MATCH 2

Nicklaus and Blashill (Local Initiatives Support Corporation Flint)

Trevino and Izzo (My Brother’s Keeper of Genesee County)

Hole Nos. 13………………….$2,000

Hole Nos. 14………………….$3,000

Hole No. 15……………………$5,000

TOTAL……………………………$10,000

MATCH 3

Nicklaus and Trevino (Genesee County Habitat for Humanity)

Blashill and Izzo (YWCA Genesee County)

Hole Nos. 16………………….$2,000

Hole Nos. 17………………….$3,000

Hole No. 18……………………$5,000

TOTAL……………………………$10,000

TOTAL PURSE……………….$30,000

“The pairings and format for the Celebrity Shootout will make for an incredibly unique and exciting Saturday at The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren,” said Tournament Director Matt Stepnes. “Fans are sure to see thrilling competition as the celebrities battle for bragging rights, and, most important, raise money for some incredibly deserving Southeastern Michigan charities.”

In related news, The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren will include a fireworks display on Saturday evening, August 28, 2021, following the tournament’s Community Concert presented by Ally. The concert will be headlined by Little Big Town, the winner of multiple Grammy, Emmy, ACM, CMA AND AMA Awards. Immediately following Little Big Town’s performance on the driving range at Warwick Hills will be the 10-minute fireworks display.

The Ally Challenge will be one of the premier Regular Season events on the PGA TOUR Champions in 2021, which will give way to the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs - a season-ending, three-tournament series used to determine the TOUR’s season-long champion. Due to the circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic, PGA TOUR Champions has combined its tournaments in 2020 and 2021 to form one season, and the next Charles Schwab Cup champion will be crowned Nov. 11-14, 2021 at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship at Phoenix Country Club.

All three rounds of The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren will be broadcast on Golf Channel.

For more information about The Ally Challenge, please visit theallychallenge.com. For the latest Ally Challenge news and updates on social media, follow the tournament on Twitter and Instagram at @AllyChallenge and on Facebook at Facebook.com/AllyChallenge.

About The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren

The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren is an official event on the PGA TOUR Champions, and is owned and operated by Tournaments for Charity, a Michigan non-profit corporation. This 54-hole stroke play golf tournament features 78 PGA TOUR Champions professionals competing for a $2 million purse at historic Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club in Grand Blanc, Michigan. The event is designed to showcase the best golf on the PGA TOUR Champions for the enjoyment of spectators and to benefit local charities in the greater Flint area. All three official rounds will be televised internationally on the Golf Channel.

For more information about The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren, please visit theallychallenge.com. For the latest Ally Challenge news and updates on social media, follow the tournament on Twitter and Instagram at @AllyChallenge and on Facebook at Facebook.com/AllyChallenge.

About Ally Financial

Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE: ALLY) is a digital financial services company committed to its promise to "Do It Right" for its consumer, commercial and corporate customers. Ally is composed of an industry-leading independent auto finance and insurance operation, an award-winning digital direct bank (Ally Bank, Member FDIC and Equal Housing Lender, which offers mortgage lending, point-of-sale personal lending, and a variety of deposit and other banking products), a corporate finance business for equity sponsors and middle-market companies, and securities brokerage and investment advisory services. A relentless ally for all things money, Ally helps people save well and earn well, so they can spend for what matters. For more information, please visit www.ally.com and follow @allyfinancial.

For more information and disclosures about Ally, visit https://www.ally.com/#disclosures.

For further images and news on Ally, please visit http://media.ally.com.

About McLaren Health Care

McLaren Health Care, headquartered in Grand Blanc, Michigan, is a $6 billion, fully integrated health care delivery system committed to quality, evidence-based patient care and cost efficiency. The McLaren system includes 15 hospitals in Michigan and Ohio, ambulatory surgery centers, imaging centers, a 490-member employed primary and specialty care physician network, commercial and Medicaid HMOs covering more than 588,000 lives in Michigan and Indiana, home health, infusion and hospice providers, pharmacy services, a clinical laboratory network and a wholly owned medical malpractice insurance company. McLaren operates Michigan’s largest network of cancer centers and providers, anchored by the Karmanos Cancer Institute, one of only 51 National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the U.S.  McLaren has 28,000 full-, part-time and contracted employees and more than 90,000 network providers throughout Michigan, Indiana and Ohio.  Learn more at www.mclaren.org.

About HNS Sports Group

HNS Sports Group is a Dublin, Ohio-based LLC founded in 2000. The company offers over 125-plus years of collective experience and is committed to providing professional, efficient and effective client representation in the categories of sponsorship consultation, event management, hospitality management, sales representation and tournament operations within the golf market. To learn more about HNS Sports Group, visit www.hnssports.com.

Media Contact

Thomas P. Sprouse

Director of Communications,

The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren               

E-Mail: tsprouse@hnssports.com           

Office: 614-889-6791                

Mobile: 614-519-1873

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