Southern Company and PGA TOUR present 2014 Payne Stewart Award to Sir Nick Faldo

ATLANTA, Sept. 9, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Commemorating the 15th anniversary of the Payne Stewart Award, Southern Company and the PGA TOUR today recognized Sir Nick Faldo – a World Golf Hall of Fame member and six-time major champion – as the recipient of the 2014 Payne Stewart Award. Faldo was honored in a ceremony at the TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola in Atlanta.

The Payne Stewart Award is presented annually to a professional golfer who best exemplifies the principles of character, charity and sportsmanship. The past winners have all distinguished themselves through their respect for the game, the TOUR's tradition of charity and their ability to make a positive difference in the lives of others.

"Southern Company is proud to join the PGA TOUR in recognizing Nick Faldo for being a true champion, both on and off the golf course," said Southern Company Chairman, President and CEO Thomas A. Fanning. "Like Payne Stewart did, Nick leads by example and motivates others to make a positive impact through his philanthropic work."

The award honors the memory of Payne Stewart, an 11-time winner on the PGA TOUR and World Golf Hall of Fame member who died tragically the week of the TOUR Championship in 1999. Southern Company, the "Official Energy Company of the PGA TOUR and the Champions Tour," was the TOUR Championship sponsor the year of Stewart's passing. The PGA TOUR created the Payne Stewart Award in his honor, and Southern Company has supported the annual presentation since its inception.

To honor the 15th anniversary of the Payne Stewart Award, Southern Company is presenting the "SO Cool Zone," an interactive experience where fans can attempt to duplicate Stewart's famous 15-foot 1999 U.S. Open-winning putt at the "Sink It Like Stewart!" putting challenge, have pictures taken with the award and experience "A Taste of Atlanta" in a shaded seating area with complimentary fans and big-screen video boards. The "SO Cool Zone" will be near the No.7 tee. In addition, Payne Stewart Day on Sept. 12 will feature ambassadors outfitted in the colorful wardrobe made famous by Stewart.

Faldo's career included 39 tournament victories around the world, highlighted by 98 weeks atop the Official World Golf Ranking. Faldo made 11 consecutive Ryder Cup appearances from 1977 to 1997 and served as captain of Team Europe in 2008. Between 1987 and 1996, Faldo won six major championships – three British Opens and three Masters Tournaments. In one stretch between 1988 and 1993, Faldo was never out of the top 20 in a Grand Slam event.

Faldo now serves as a lead analyst for CBS Sports and Golf Channel, and is involved in more than 20 golf course projects as part of Faldo Design.

In 1996, he created the Faldo Series to help identify and nurture the next generation of champions through grass-roots initiatives at its tournaments. The Faldo Series has evolved into one of the premier programs for aspiring young golfers. Today, 40 annual tournaments take place in 30 countries worldwide, spanning the U.K., Europe, South America, the Middle East and Asia. Since its inception, the Faldo Series has benefitted more than 7,000 young people through a unique combination of tournament experience and expert advice, including guidance from Faldo himself.

In presenting the Payne Stewart Award, Southern Company contributes each year to three charities  ̶ Stewart and his wife Tracey Stewart's primary charity, The Stewart Family Foundation; The First Tee of the Ozarks, located in Stewart's native Missouri; and a charity selected by the recipient. Faldo has chosen the Faldo Series to receive that designated portion of the grant.

"The values represented by the Payne Stewart Award align with the principles on which we have built our business – trust, performance and commitment," said Fanning. "Nick is an outstanding choice to be this year's winner and commemorate the 15th anniversary of the award because he represents the best principles of golf."

The 2013 TOUR Championship made contributions totaling more than $2.3 million to charities, the primary beneficiaries being the East Lake Foundation and The First Tee. Since 1998, the tournament has given back more than $22 million to local and national charities. The net proceeds from the tournament benefit the East Lake Foundation's ongoing efforts to revitalize the East Lake community. This national model for community redevelopment incorporates mixed-income housing at the Villages of East Lake, cradle to college education with the Charles R. Drew Charter School, and community wellness and support services including the Charlie Yates Golf Course, home to The First Tee of East Lake.

Faldo is the 17th recipient of the award, joining a group of respected golfers including Peter Jacobsen, who won in 2013, and the inaugural winners Byron Nelson, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer (2000). Other recipients include Steve Stricker (2012), David Toms (2011), Tom Lehman (2010), Kenny Perry (2009), Davis Love III (2008), Hal Sutton (2007), Gary Player (2006), Brad Faxon (2005), Jay Haas (2004), Tom Watson (2003), Nick Price (2002) and Ben Crenshaw (2001).

With 4.4 million customers and nearly 46,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier energy company serving the Southeast through its subsidiaries. A leading U.S. producer of clean, safe, reliable and affordable electricity, Southern Company owns electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications. Southern Company brands are known for energy innovation, excellent customer service, high reliability and retail electric prices that are below the national average. Southern Company and its subsidiaries are leading the nation's nuclear renaissance through the construction of the first new nuclear units to be built in a generation of Americans and are demonstrating their commitment to energy innovation through the development of a state-of-the-art coal gasification plant. Southern Company has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Defense and G.I. Jobs magazine as a top military employer and listed by DiversityInc as a top company for Blacks. The company received the 2012 Edison Award from the Edison Electric Institute for its leadership in new nuclear development, was named Electric Light & Power magazine's Utility of the Year for 2012 and is continually ranked among the top utilities in Fortune's annual World's Most Admired Electric and Gas Utility rankings. Visit our website at www.southerncompany.com.

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SOURCE Southern Company