Graham Rahal and PGA Tour member Rickie Fowler had more in common than birdie putts and long drives Feb. 27 during the Kenny G Gold Pro-Am presented by Tire Kingdom at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

“We talked racing the whole way around,” said Rahal, who also was joined in the group by Wayne and Wyatt Vince and Jim Smail.

Rahal on course at Honda ClassicFowler, who grew up racing motocross, owns a Porsche GT3-RS, a Mitsubishi Evo and a Nissan GT-R. He regularly takes a car onto Palm Beach International Raceway.

Rahal, who was a member of the winning group the previous two years, said he’s hopeful of Fowler attending an IZOD IndyCar Series event this season and nabbing a ride in an Indy Racing Experience two-seater. NBC Sports will feature Rahal and Fowler in its third-round coverage March 2 of the Honda Classic.

Rahal, who played only a couple of rounds to prep for the event, said he “didn’t bring my game on the front nine but stepped it up late.”

The pro-am is a major fund-raiser for the Honda Classic’s charity, the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation.

Rahal is involved in two other charity projects.

A tour of the Dallara facility on Main Street in Speedway, Ind., iRacing.com competitions, photos and autographs with drivers and more is part of a special event from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) March 9.

Proceeds from the $10 per-person admission will be directed to the Graham Rahal Foundation, benefiting Alex’s Lemonade Stand and SeriousFun Networks.

Special race tickets to the Honda Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio on Aug. 2-4, with partial proceeds benefitting the Columbus (Ohio) Zoo, are available at www.midohio.com/zoo.

The first 1,000 of these tickets include free admission to the Columbus Zoo in 2013 and a Rahal-autographed hero card. All fans purchasing these tickets will be entered to win a VIP experience at the Columbus Zoo and a meet and greet with Rahal during the race weekend at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

Also at the Dallara facility, garage sale March 2

Lithographs, ornaments, cookbooks and one-of-a-kind items will be available during a garage sale from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. March 2 at the Dallara facility in Speedway, Ind., benefiting CARA Charities.

Admission is $5, which will be deducted from the purchase of any item over $10.

Fans can send military member to opening race

The Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg has partnered with Wish for Our Heroes, a national military charity, to implement a program focused on sending thousands of local military members to attend the season-opening IZOD IndyCar Series race March 22-24.

Individuals and businesses can make a tax-deductible donation to the program through three options. Learn more about the program at www.wish4ourheroes.org. Fans may also make a $10 donation by
texting 'America' to 20222. For military members interested in receiving free
tickets, make the request at www.wish4ourheroes.org.

Of note

National Guard Panther Racing driver JR Hildebrand will be a motorsports panelist March 1-2 during the seventh Sloan Sports Analytics Conference at MIT in Cambridge, Mass. … Mario and Aldo Andretti, along with Dragon Racing driver Sebastien Bourdais, celebrated birthdays Feb. 28. … Will Power will celebrate his 32nd birthday March 1, while Ed Carpenter's 32nd birthday is March 3. … Andretti Autosport driver James Hinchcliffe will represent the IZOD IndyCar Series at Texas Motor Speedway’s annual media day March 4. ... Single day Sunday reserved grandstand tickets to the Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg go on sale March 1. Visit www.gpstpete.com or call 1-877-283-5385.