Appleby's visit highlights The Presidents Cup

Julia Gillard, Prime Minister of Australia, holds the Presidents Cup in Canberra as Stuart Appleby (right) looks on.

Hours after the last putt dropped on his final-round 65 and triumphant 2010 JBWere Masters victory on Monday, Stuart Appleby was on his way to Canberra, the capital city of Australia, for a series of meetings at Parliament House to highlight the Australian Golf Industry Council and the upcoming Presidents Cup 2011 in Melbourne, Victoria.

A delegation that also included LPGA standout Rachel Hetherington and The Presidents Cup Executive Director Matt Kamienski met a number of Parliamentary Ministers and spent time with Prime Minister Julia Gillard and the Leader of the Opposition, Tony Abbott. Gillard and Abbot posed with The Presidents Cup trophy, and Appleby and Hetherington gave Abbot an impromptu golf lesson.

Gillard has been invited to participate in The Presidents Cup as Honorary Chairman for the 2011 event.

"Stuart did an amazing job explaining to Prime Minister Gillard exactly how much The Presidents Cup means to Australia -- as well as to him personally," said Kamienski. "I was proud to join him and Rachel as part of the AGIC delegation.

Appleby, Hetherington and Kamienski also attended a dinner at Parliament House that evening, where they were part of a panel discussion about golf in Australia and The Presidents Cup and its return to Australia.

"The Australian Golf Industry is an extremely important component of the Australian economy and one that transcends many areas outside of the sport, including health, the environment, tourism and trade," said Max Garske, the CEO of the PGA of Australia and chair of the AGIC.

The meetings were planned as a way to ask support for key industry projects while also increasing general awareness levels about the Australian golf industry and its positive impact. Currently, it is estimated that approximately $3 billion is generated annually within an Australian golf industry that employs more than 20,000 people.

"The Presidents Cup 2011 is the perfect vehicle to really elevate golf for Australia, both domestically and globally," said Kamienski. "An event of this magnitude is going to have an incredible impact here in Australia through charitable donations, community involvement and worldwide exposure. We're thrilled with the support we've received in Australia so far, and because of that -- not to mention the momentum from 2009 and the strong history The Presidents Cup has built since 1994 -- we are confident that next year's Presidents Cup will be a success for all involved."

This is the second consecutive year the AGIC has visited Canberra with the trip expected to be an annual event.