The fourth annual Eden Prairie High School boys and girls hockey golf tournament fundraiser was held at Bent Creek Golf Club on Monday, Aug. 10.
Eden Prairie High School hockey players Madeline Abbott, a senior, center, and Annika Buchanan, a freshman, help a golfer with his bag before the tournament Aug. 10 at Bent Creek Golf Club. (Rick Olson)
The 18-hole tournament began play with an 11:30 a.m. shotgun start. The tournament included a four-person scramble with several skills contests, such as closest to the pin, longest putt and longest and straightest drives. All proceeds from the event will support the high school hockey teams. Funds raised will help cover costs for jerseys, hockey equipment, team travel and dinners, off-ice (dryland) and on-ice (power skating) training, and locker room supplies.
According to Linda Elmquist, the 2026 golf tournament chair, 110 golfers in 27 groups participated in the event, seven more than in the 2025 tournament. In addition, 20 sponsors contributed to the fundraising efforts this year, 14 more than at last year’s event.
Sears Imported Autos sponsored the eighth hole, a par-3, with a hole-in-one contest. If a golfer made a hole-in-one, the golfer would win a two-year lease on a 2026 Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 S Coupe. Although no one made a hole-in-one on the eighth hole Monday, golfers enjoyed participating in the contest and viewing the car before the shotgun start.
“This tournament only works because of our planning committee, support from our sponsors and volunteers, and the collaboration of the boys and girls teams,” Elmquist said. “It’s entirely parent-organized, and our families put in the heavy lifting to make this event happen every year. We had a beautiful day for it, Bent Creek was incredibly hospitable, and it’s rewarding to see the tournament grow. This year we had more golfers, more sponsors, and more support for our student-athletes than ever before. We all couldn’t be more thankful.”
Eden Prairie High School boys and girls hockey players gather before the annual hockey golf tournament Aug. 10 at Bent Creek Golf Club. The players pictured volunteered during the first half of the tournament, while the five team captains stayed throughout the day. (Rick Olson)
The current EPHS boys and girls hockey players helped support the tournament again this year. The student-athletes helped golfers by bringing golf bags from the parking lot to their assigned golf carts.
On the course, the girls raised money through a game of “Bucket Golf” on the third tee box. Golfers paid to chip a Wiffle Ball into one of six orange buckets and could win a prize, such as taking a mulligan (a second shot), teeing off from a designated spot closer to the green, or using a hockey stick for their tee shot.
The boys raised money on the sixth tee box. Some of the boys hockey players are strong golfers, so participating golfers who contributed to the fundraiser could have a high school player hit an extra drive from the sixth tee for the group to use in the scramble.
Eden Prairie High School boys varsity hockey head coach Lincoln Nguyen, left, and girls varsity hockey head coach Steve Persian pose during the annual hockey golf tournament Aug. 10 at Bent Creek Golf Club. (Rick Olson)
EPHS boys hockey coach Lincoln Nguyen and girls hockey coach Steve Persian both participated in the tournament again this year.
Former EPHS standouts Kyle Rau and Jackson Blake, who both went on to the NHL, also played in the tournament.
Rau, a 2011 EPHS graduate, helped the Eagles win the Class 2A state championship that year and later played for the Florida Panthers and Minnesota Wild.
Blake, a 2022 EPHS graduate and member of the Eagles’ 2021 state championship team, plays for the Carolina Hurricanes. He brought the Stanley Cup to the Eden Prairie Community Center on July 30 after helping Carolina win its first championship.
Eden Prairie High School hockey captains, from left, Jordan Elvecrog, Madeline Abbott, Owen Konrad, Jack Peterson and Braeland Moten gather during the boys and girls hockey golf tournament Aug. 10 at Bent Creek Golf Club. Girls hockey captain Peyton Ishaug is not pictured.