U.S. service members, shown here at the 2012 Humana Challenge, will once again be offered free grounds admission and access to the Humana Military Outpost.

The Humana Military Outpost will host active duty, Reserve and military retirees at the 2013 Humana Challenge in partnership with the William J. Clinton Foundation.

“We are proud to host members of our country’s military at the Humana Military Outpost as our guests; they deserve the opportunity to have a fun and relaxing time with us while watching many of the world’s best golfers up close,” Humana Challenge Executive Director and CEO Bob Marra said. “The Humana Military Outpost is another way we are carrying on the legacy of our tournament founder, Bob Hope. His passion for this golf tournament and unwavering commitment to entertaining the troops were legendary.”

The Humana Military Outpost, introduced during last year’s inaugural Humana Challenge, is a private hospitality pavilion offering climate-controlled indoor seating, outdoor patio seating and complimentary refreshments. The tournament also will offer free grounds admission to active military and veterans and their dependents.

Humana is looking forward to next month’s activities, the action on the course and welcoming veterans to the 2013 Humana Challenge Jan. 14-20 in La Quinta, Calif.

“We’re excited to once again host military men and women at the Humana Military Outpost,” said Mike McCallister, Humana’s Chairman and CEO. “Humana’s close connection to our Armed Forces dates back to the 1990s when Humana Military Healthcare Services was formed. Today, we’re proud to administer health coverage for approximately 3 million active duty and retired military through the TRICARE program.”

Related links
Media Day kicks off 2013 Humana Challenge
Humana Challenge Website
Humana Challenge Twitter
Humana Challenge Facebook

Volunteers work together to build a one-of-kind, multigenerational playground at the Las Casas apartment complex in Coachella, Calif, on Saturday, Dec. 1, 2012.

The swing of the first golf club may be a few weeks away, but the 2013 Humana Challenge is already teed up and off to an impressive start.

More than 100 people attended Humana Challenge media day on Dec. 5 at the tournament site in La Quinta, Calif.  “We’re thrilled by the enthusiasm the Humana Challenge has generated,” said Humana Senior Vice President for Corporate Communications Tom Noland. “Everyone at Humana is looking forward to the opportunity to work with our partners to share Humana’s message of participatory well-being.”

Golf great Phil Mickelson announced he’ll return for a second consecutive year to the PGA TOUR event, which starts January 17 and is co-sponsored by Humana and the William J. Clinton Foundation. Mickelson’s 2012 Ryder Cup teammate Brandt Snedeker, currently ranked number nine in the world, will also compete, as will last year’s Humana Challenge champion Mark Wilson.

“Having Phil, Brandt and Mark on board already bodes well for the strength of our field again this year and provides further proof of the appeal of the event,” said Humana Challenge executive director and CEO Bob Marra.

“I’m honored to be the champion last year and to be back,” Wilson told the crowd. He shared the story of a local friend who attended last year’s tournament. “He took it upon himself after that tournament to walk 3,000 steps a day.  And he’s lost 70 pounds (and)… feels like he’s in the best shape of his life.” Wilson said his friend “really credits the Humana Challenge and what they did last year in improving awareness of the importance of exercise.”

This story is one of many examples of how the Humana Challenge is about much more than golf. At the 2012 tournament, Humana gave out pedometers with the promise that if spectators and visitors would log enough steps during the event, The Humana Foundation would donate $500,000 to local charities.  Participants met the challenge, and The Humana Foundation made the donation to the Family YMCA of the Desert and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Coachella Valley.  That contribution paved the way for the Dec. 1 construction of a multigenerational playground in the Las Casas apartment complex in nearby Coachella, Calif.

As with previous playgrounds that Humana has sponsored with KaBOOM!, the playground has elements of a traditional playground for kids but also includes features designed for adults, such as exercise stations and a walking track.

Constructed by more than 200 volunteers in less than six hours, the playground effort wowed observers like Martha Jimenez, who serves on the board of the Family YMCA of the Desert.  Jimenez told The Desert Sun newspaper, “So many people came out today and the impossible became possible.”

Las Casas is the first of two playgrounds Humana is helping construct in the area; the second will go up in January just before the opening of the Humana Challenge. Humana also provided funding for a new recreation facility at the San Felipe Community and Migrant Housing Complex in Oasis, Calif., earlier this year.

At the start of Humana Challenge week, the Clinton Foundation will host its second annual Health Matters: Activating Wellness in Every Generation conference, the anchor event for the Clinton Health Matters Initiative (CHMI).  Among the expected attendees at the conference and the tournament are Barbra Streisand, Tony Bennett (who will perform) and former President Bill Clinton.

The Humana Challenge was named 2012 Sports Event of the Year by Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal and SportsBusiness Daily.

Humana takes a balanced approach in its efforts to create a golf event that’s both fun for players and fans and also serves to promote lifelong well-being.  Humana offers participants and spectators healthy food concessions, pedometers and a family fit area, among other features.

That balance is summarized in this quote from defending champion Wilson: “You’ve got to live well and enjoy life, but also be conscious of what is good for your performance.”

Related Links:

• Video: Playground built in advance of Humana Challenge
• Humana Challenge website
• Humana Challenge Twitter
• Press Release: Phil Mickelson to begin his PGA TOUR season at Humana Challenge for second straight year
• Video: Mirage in the desert – Building a Multigenerational Playground

The Humana Well-Being Tour, a national mobile health initiative, appeared at the Shell Houston Open for its second appearance of a national seven-month tour on March 29, 2012, in Humble, Texas. The Tour displays a variety of interactive Humana innovations aimed at spreading the message of well-being.

Humana brought its Well-Being Tour, a national mobile health initiative, to the Shell Houston Open on March 29, 2012, in Humble, Texas. The Tour, which debuted at the Humana Challenge PGA TOUR golf tournament in partnership with the William J. Clinton Foundation in January, displays a variety of interactive Humana innovations aimed at spreading the message of well-being and demonstrating fun ways to be healthy. Activities include:

• Walkit: Attendees receive a free pedometer with an RFID tag through the HumanaFit program to track their steps during the event and beyond.
• Humana Biometrics Stations: Participants visit one of four (non-invasive) biometric screening stations to receive personalized health results and ask questions of qualified professionals.
• Xbox Kinect: Fans experience the Humana co-branded Xbox Kinect “Your Shape” game that demonstrates how being healthy can also be fun.
• Photo Station: Visitors share physical feats using green screen technology.
• Well-Being Wall: Participants join in a living collage by sharing personal definitions of well-being.

As with the Humana Challenge, select stops on the Humana Well-Being Tour will include a charitable donation from The Humana Foundation tied to the WalkitSM program. For example, at the Shell Houston Open, Humana gave free pedometers to fans who visited the Well-Being Tour. Tournament attendees were encouraged to track their steps throughout the event, after which The Humana Foundation will donate $1 for every 50 recorded steps, up to $100,000, for local Houston charities.

The Tour will continue across the country for seven months with stops at fairs, festivals and PGA Tour events, on a mission to challenge and inspire people to live life fully.

Humana Challenge winner, Mark Wilson, receives the Bob Hope Memorial Trophy from the Desert Classic Charities board president John Foster, Mike McCallister, CEO of Humana and Tim Finchem on Sunday, January 22, 2012 in La Quinta, Calif. (Rodrigo Pena/AP Images for Humana)

The Humana Challenge wrapped up Sunday when Humana Chairman and CEO Mike McCallister presented the Bob Hope Memorial Trophy to Mark Wilson, who won the event by completing the course 24 strokes under par.

The PGA TOUR featured lifelong well-being as its theme, challenging everyone to improve their health by making positive behavioral changes that lead to happier, healthier lives. In keeping with that theme, the week of activities included events such as the national health and well-being conference, “Health Matters: Activating Wellness in Every Generation,” which was hosted by the William J. Clinton Foundation; building a multigenerational playground in partnership with KaBOOM!; launching a Well-Being Tour; hosting a farmer’s market that highlighted healthful diets; and a Healthy Fun Fair and a Well-Being Walk.

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Bob Hope’s legacy remains at the center of the tournament and memorial trophy, which was designed to embody the spirit and wholeness of a healthy lifestyle in tribute to Hope, who lived to be 100, and his wife, Delores, who lived to be 102.

Acclaimed Kentucky artist Kenneth von Roenn designed the glass trophy, which depicts a golf ball on a tee with a spiraling design that embodies Humana’s commitment to growth, health and movement, and captures the mission of the William J. Clinton Foundation.

The golf tournament began Thursday and includes pros like Phil Mickelson, Davis Love III and Greg Norman. You can get the latest on the tournament by visiting http://humanachallenge.com.

Mike McCallister (center) meets with Tim Finchem (right) and President Clinton before the press conference held at the Clinton Foundation in Harlem.(Photos by Adam Schultz/Clinton Foundation)

Humana Chairman and CEO Mike McCallister joined President Bill Clinton and PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem at a recent press conference in New York to discuss the new direction that the Humana Challenge will take in January 2012. The former Bob Hope Classic is still a premier PGA TOUR event, but in addition to the new name, it will have a new focus on health and well-being and showcase the benefits of living healthier lives.

Tournament week, Jan. 16-22, will feature a national conference on health and well-being, highlighted by a keynote address from President Clinton. The tournament provides a unique opportunity to immerse people of all ages in a variety of innovative and fun events around the theme of lifelong well-being, which makes it a perfect fit for the sponsors, Humana and The William J. Clinton Foundation. Humana and the Clinton Foundation understand the challenges we all face as we strive to live healthier, happier lives and demonstrate a commitment to helping us do just that through initiatives such as the Alliance for a Healthier Generation, multi-generational playgrounds, programs that reward healthier behaviors, a bike-sharing program and Humana Games for Health.

For more information about the Humana Challenge, read coverage of the press conference from The New York Times, USA Today and Golf Digest.