LADIES PROFESSIONAL GOLF ASSOCIATION AND NEW YORK EYE AND EAR INFIRMARY AFFILIATE TO CONDUCT FIRST-OF-ITS KIND RESEARCH FOR GOLFERS

The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary in conjunction with the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) will launch a national research project, as well as a grassroots program to bring ear and eye health and education to the New York metro area.

Contact: Fred Yaeger
Phone:    914/423-7972
Pager:     914/445-0262            

LADIES PROFESSIONAL GOLF ASSOCIATION AND NEW YORK EYE AND EAR INFIRMARY AFFILIATE TO CONDUCT FIRST-OF-ITS KIND RESEARCH FOR GOLFERS

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. (PRWEB) August, 2003 - The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) and the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary has just announced an affiliation, a first-of-its kind for the LPGA. The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary is the official charity of the Sybase Big Apple Classic and with this special relationship with the LPGA will launch a national research project, as well as a grassroots program to bring ear and eye health and education to the New York metro area.

Our Golf Tour could not exist without the commitments made week in and week out by charities like the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary," said Ty M. Votaw, LPGA commissioner. Now to have extended the New York Eye and Ear Infirmarys commitment beyond the Sybase event, through the LPGA and into research projects that may have a profound affect on peoples lives, golfers and non-golfers alike, is an exciting undertaking that will serve the LPGA, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary and the public well."

"Everyone at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary is absolutely delighted to be affiliated with the LPGA, which not only champions excellence in women's golf but also contributes to the well-being of the world community through its research, educational and charitable activities," said Joseph P. Corcoran, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary President and Chief Executive Officer.

The first phase of the relationship involves a research project exploring the effects of auditory and motion interventions on golf learning and performance. This study will be conducted by Dr. Debbie Crews, an LPGA Teaching and Club Professional (T&CP) member since 1981 and a research professor at Arizona State University. Dr. Crews will work with Christopher Linstrom, M.D., Joseph Arigo, M.D. and George Alexiades, M.D. at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary to analyze the effects of auditory/motion training relative to golf performance to determine if differences exist relative to gender and skill level. This research will examine the impact of auditory related elements such as music and balance on a golfers performance.

Phase two of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary LPGA relationship will feature a grassroots program to be launched in the spring of 2004, coinciding with the opening of the golf season in the New York metropolitan area. Details will be announced in early 2004.

In conjunction with this relationship, New York Eye and Ear Infirmary will provide numerous services to LPGA Tour players, LPGA T&CP members and LPGA staff: diagnostic and treatment services; on-call availability of the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary 24-hour eye trauma center; New York Eye and Ear Infirmarys ongoing ocular, ENT and plastic and reconstructive services on a consultation and treatment basis; and complimentary screenings throughout the year.

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About NEW YORK EYE AND EAR INFIRMARY
Founded in 1820, The New York Eye and Ear Infirmary is the nations first specialty hospital and is consistently ranked by U.S. News and World Report as among the best centers for ophthalmology and otolaryngology in the nation. The Infirmary is a full service medical/surgical specialty hospital supported by a 500-member medical staff. It cares for some 20,000 surgical patients and 145,000 clinic outpatients annually. Its major departments include all aspects of Ophthalmology, Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, and Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. The infirmary serves many of New Yorks neediest -- the very young, the old, the poor -- with high-quality, yet affordable, specialized services.

About LPGA
Featuring the worlds best women golfers, the LPGAs membership includes touring, teaching and club professionals. The LPGA Tour in 2003 features 34 events, with more than 260 hours of television coverage, and total prize money of nearly $41 million. Since 1981, the LPGA and its tournaments have raised more than $139.5 million for charity. From the dreams of its 13 founders in 1950, the LPGA has evolved into the worlds preeminent womens professional sports organization.

The LPGA has grown from its roots as a playing tour into a non-profit organization involved in every facet of golf. The LPGA Teaching and Club Professional (T&CP) membership boasts a total of nearly 1,200 women golf professionals who serve as teachers, golf professionals, club managers and coaches. Through the LPGA T&CP membership, the LPGA is working to increase the involvement of women and youth in golf, as well as contribute to the growth of the sport overall. The LPGA is headquartered in Daytona Beach, Fla. For more information on the LPGA, log onto www.LPGA.com.

About Dr. Debbie Crews
Crews earned her masters degree in exercise physiology and her doctoral degree in sport and exercise psychology at Arizona State University (ASU). During this time she began to systematically study the game of golf.

Her research in the 1980s began with a study examining the physiological and psychological characteristics of LPGA Tour players. This line of research led to an interest in the value of golf for children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Native American Children, and various special needs populations.

In the late 1980s she began a study of the brain and heart as indicators of attention during golf putting. This has been the focus of Crews research for the past 15 years. She is currently a member of the LPGA National Education and Research Advisory Board and has been an instructor for the LPGA National Education Program Series since 1997.