Flint Township View

Mark Farner to headline Ally Challenge’s 17th hole concert

United Way returns as tournament’s primary beneficiary

Mark Farner performing recently at the Burton 50th Anniversary celebration, May 28. Photo by Gary Gould

Mark Farner performing recently at the Burton 50th Anniversary celebration, May 28. Photo by Gary Gould

GRAND BLANC TWP. — Officials with The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren have announced that classic rock legend Mark Farner will headline the tournament’s newest concert on the 17th hole.

Farner, a Michigan native and a founding member of Grand Funk Railroad, will be featured at The Concert @17 presented by Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort on Friday evening, Aug. 26, following the first round of tournament competition at the official PGA Tour Champions event’s famed 17th hole at the Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club.

Farner was the lead singer and lead guitarist of the Grand Funk Railroad and wrote 90 percent of the band’s music catalog. Farner has always been known as the energetic driving force on stage, the engine that pulled the original Grand Funk Railroad to the top of the charts. From his soulful voice and power rock riffs, to fueling the Funk with his atomic stage presence. His story and his imprint on music starts with Flint and since 1969 from his humble beginnings and a blue-collar outlook, Farner has captained a global crusade for love and freedom and became a rock ‘n’ roll icon.

Fifty years later, Farner commands the stage with the same intensity performing epic hits that defined a generation—“I’m Your Captain (Closer to Home),” “Bad Time,” “Some Kind of Wonderful,” “Foot Stompin’ Music,” “Heartbreaker,” “Locomotion,” “Mean Mistreater” and “We’re An American Band.”

Farner released his first solo record in 1977 and also enjoyed success in Contemporary Christian music with the No. 2 and Dove-nominated “Isn’t It Amazing” in 1988. He’s a three-time Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame member—inducted as a solo member in 2015 and an inductee as part of Grand Funk Railroad and Terry Knight & The Pack.

In recognition of The Concert @17, the tournament is extending special introductory pricing for tickets to the 2022 Ally Challenge presented by McLaren by 17 days. Best offers are now available through June 27. For a complete listing of ticket options please, visit the tournament website at theallychallenge.com.

Access to The Concert @17, and The Ally Challenge Community Concert featuring Kane Brown, require the purchase of a valid tournament ticket for the day each concert is hosted, or a weekly ticket option.

“The Concert @17 presented by Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort is a great addition to tournament week at the Ally Challenge,” said tournament representative Rob Frederick. “Building a first-class experience for our spectators has been a primary goal of the tournament from the beginning, and to bring classic rock legend and Michigan native Mark Farner to the famed 17th hole at Warwick Hills on Friday night is a big win for our fans.”

The tournament also announced that the primary beneficiary of net proceeds for the 5th Annual Ally Challenge presented by McLaren will be the United Way of Genesee County (UWGC). The 2022 tournament will mark the fourth consecutive year that UWGC has been included as a primary beneficiary of The Ally Challenge.

The Ally Challenge presented by McLaren has established a legacy of giving in southeastern Michigan, including raising more than $4.5 million in support of local charities in the greater Flint area and beyond in its first four years. The tournament will continue to positively impact the community in Genesee County and beyond in 2022 through its support of UWGC, as well as the return of the Birdies for Charity presented by Ally and Tickets FORE Charity programs. — B.G.