When he’s not running the nation’s 11th largest city, Detroit Mayor Dave Bing likes to tour the links. In July, the former Detroit Pistons guard and basketball Hall of Famer took part in the George Blaha 20th Annual High Hopes Golf Invitational at Forest Lake Country Club in Bloomfield Township. The event raised funds for Vista Maria, a child-welfare agency for girls and their families, in Dearborn Heights.
“Golf is a game I enjoy, but I don’t get to play it as much as I’d like,” says Bing, who, after hanging up his high-tops, built a successful auto-supply business in Detroit. He wasn’t able to stay for dinner either, citing the need to return to Detroit to negotiate with unions over possible pay cuts to help shrink a city deficit estimated to be between $275 million and $300 million.
Still, he says, he enjoyed the round of golf with his foursome, which included his wife, Yvette; Palace Sports & Entertainment president Tom Wilson; and newly appointed Pistons coach John Kuester.
“It was a great day,” he says, “and as much as I [would like to have] stayed for dinner, the business of running the city of Detroit comes first.”
