Yesterday, I had the privilege of covering the Guiding Eyes for the Blind Golf Classic. This was the 31st year of the event being held annually and for a second straight year, Giants’ quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning was the host.

Well, Eli may have been the host for a second straight year, but this was his first since capturing a championship and instantly vaulting himself amongst this state’s all-time sports legends. And it showed.

The event had a record 450 participants/donors, who played in a golf outing that involved Eli as well as 14 of the best blind golfers in the world. It was such a big turnout that three courses (Mount Kisco Country Club, Whippoorwill Club and Fairview Country Club) had to be used to accommodate everyone.

It’s the largest fundraiser of the year for Guiding Eyes, one of the leading guide dog training centers in the country, which is based in Yorktown Heights. Ron Blackwell of Mauldin, S.C. won the prestigious Corcoran Cup, known as “The Masters of blind golf” early in the morning before the outing.

I covered this event once before and it’s amazing to see these blind golfers play. They play by the complete set of USGA rules, except they’re allowed to ground a club in a hazard. A coach helps with yardage, club selection and alignment by setting the club and then backs away for the swing.

Marvell Scott from ABC sports was on hand and he was filmed wearing a blind fold and trying to simulate the process. To his credit, he made pretty good contact with the driver, but then took off the blindfold and was told his ball had sailed out of bounds.

I was also impressed with Manning himself. First, he allowed me to briefly interview him one on one and then when we saw him out on the course, he re-did the interview so we could get it on camera for RNN. I met him at an Iona Prep sports dinner last year and he seems like a genuinely nice guy.

He can also crank a golf ball. On the 17th hole at Whippoorwill, after shaking hands, signing autographs and posing for pictures with a group, he took someone’s 9-iron and promptly skied a ball onto the left portion of the green from 154 yards.

I wish I had that kind of carry with my irons. Then again, he is 6-foot-4, 225 pounds. Oh yeah, and a world class athlete. I’ll keep dreaming…