Sheldon Zoldan/Special to WGCU

17-year-old Gianna Clemente throwing out first pitch at the April 14 Yankee game highlights a busy year

Bonita Springs City Council pledges $17 million toward trail project.

Southwest Florida is living up to its reputation as one of the golf capitals of the United States.The region is hosting three U.S. Golf Association qualifiers, one in April and two in May. Crown Colony in south Fort Myers is hosting the senior men’s 18-hole qualifier April 25 and the men’s 18-hole U.S. Open qualifier May 8. Grey Oaks Country Club in Naples is hosting the women’s 36-hole U.S. Open qualifier May 13.The senior men’s open and the men’s and women’s U.S. Opens are three of the most prestigious events in golf.The Florida State Golf Association selects the qualifier sites.

Philanthropist Stephen Saks gives an additional $11 million to other Southwest Florida organizations.

A new outpatient center is the first at Lee Health to offer the 3T MRI magnet, which produces high-resolution images with a magnetic field that’s twice as strong as a standard MRI.

Estero’s Gianna Clemente, at the age when most teens are getting their driver’s licenses, took a trip down memory lane during her speech accepting the 2024 Rolex Junior Player of the Year Award earlier this month in San Antonio, Texas.

The South County Regional Library is getting more than a makeover, it’s getting an $11 million facelift.The library, just north of Corkscrew Road on Three Oaks Parkway, is closing at 5 p.m. September 7 for the facelift. The work is expected to take as long as a year.It’s the first major renovation since the library was converted from a bank data processing center in 1996.

Neil Durrant moved to Charlotte County in 2019 and it didn’t take him long to learn about Hurricane Charley.“It was one of those central moments,” he said. “There was before Charley and there’s after Charley. Charley wasn’t just an event, it is always going to be a big part of Punta Gorda’s history, Charlotte County’s history. It’s always going to be one of those standout moments.

Southwest Florida baseball fans will be able to tune in to Tampa Bay Rays and Florida Marlin games, but it’s going to come with a price.Rays and Marlin games became available again on the Bally Sports Network (channels 401 and 402) on Thursday. Comcast removed the channels on May 1 when it couldn’t reach an agreement with Diamond Sports, owners of the Bally Sports Network.

Not many people move from Abu Dhabi to Estero — even fewer move from Abu Dhabi and open a multi-million-dollar entertainment center.But Tony Sandhu did just that. 810 Billiards and Bowling opens Thursday in the Miromar Outlets.