A new LPGA Legends team event is headed for the Bluegrass region June 4-8, 2024.
(LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY – May 1, 2024) – A new professional golf event is headed for the country’s Bluegrass region as The Woodford Golf Club in Versailles, Kentucky prepares to welcome 28 Legends of the LPGA on June 4-8, 2024. The Woodford Legends Invitational powered by Suran Systems marks the first competitive event featuring LPGA Tour players to be held in the state of Kentucky in over five decades.
“I actually played my first LPGA Tour event in Kentucky in 1969 – the Bluegrass Invitational that was held at Hunting Creek until the mid-1970’s,” recalls Jane Blalock of Cambridge, Massachusetts, a 27-time LPGA Tour champion who helped orchestrate this summer’s legendary return to The Bluegrass State along with Woodford Club owner and operator, Randy Clay.
“This new LPGA Legends team event is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the area’s growing passion for women’s golf and to inspire women and young girls to get out and play,” adds Blalock.
Blalock and her fellow Legends of the LPGA now playing the senior circuit will pair up and compete in a unique two-person team format across a 36-hole, two-day tournament set for Friday, June 7 and Saturday, June 8. The tournament field will also feature six additional teams comprised of 12 area women amateurs who will play alongside the Legends and compete for low amateur honors. An 18-hole pro-am will be held on Thursday, June 6.
"There’s no better sport and there’s no better activity than golf for so many people to come together like this,” says Bob Baldassari, PGA Certified Professional and CEO of Reimagine Golf at The Woodford Club, and one of The Woodford Legends Invitational’s lead organizers. “Golf is a connector. Golf brings a community together, and that’s what we want to do at The Woodford Club.”
Legends in the Woodford field have combined for over 200 LPGA Tour wins.
Legends of the LPGA competing in the inaugural Woodford Invitational include five World Golf Hall of Fame members – Amy Alcott, Pat Bradley, Laura Davies, Hollis Stacy and Jan Stephenson - and 12 major championship titleholders. The field has combined for 218 wins on the LPGA Tour. Thirteen players have competed in the Solheim Cup; seven have served as a Solheim Cup Captain or Assistant Captain.
“The Woodford course is fun to play, but it is challenging,” says Bradley, who will team up with Jamie Fischer of Lake Forest, Illinois, a past champion on the Legends of the LPGA. “We’ll need to drive it well, and we’ll need to deal with the many elevation changes,” adds Bradley. “We’re looking forward to being in Lexington – it is truly beautiful horse country.”
Major championship winner Tammie Green of Daytona Beach, Florida is thrilled to be partnering with Amy Alcott of Santa Monica, California - winner of 29 LPGA Tour events – and equally excited to be headed to Woodford County for the tournament. “Not only do I have a great partner in Amy, but I will have the rare opportunity to sip some of the finest bourbon in the world on the storied Bourbon Trail,” says Green. “Can’t wait to set foot in the great state of Kentucky, where the sun shines bright!”
Tournament proceeds will benefit official charity partners United Way of the Bluegrass and KVC Kentucky. United Way of the Bluegrass invests in local programs and organizations that support quality childcare, family support, early intervention, school readiness and student success for all youth. KVC Kentucky provides an array of mental and behavioral health, substance abuse and child welfare services that target problems families face.
“The Legends of the LPGA have set the bar so high and have made history in the game of golf,” says Baldassari. “Not just in America, but around the world. It’s really going to be a special week to bring these incredibly talented ladies to Central Kentucky and for them to experience what we love here in this area.”
Laura Davies and Trish Johnson will team up to take on The Woodford Club.
Here are the Legends of the LPGA two-person teams set to appear in the 2024 Woodford Legends Invitational in Versailles, Kentucky:
--Amy Alcott (Santa Monica, Calif.) and Tammie Green (Daytona Beach, Fla.)
--Jane Blalock (Cambridge, Mass.) and Patricia Meunier-Lebouc (Dijon, France)
--Pat Bradley (West Hyannisport, Mass.) and Jamie Fischer (Lake Forest, Ill.)
--Elaine Crosby (Jackson, Mich.) and Nancy Scranton (St. Augustine, Fla.)
--Laura Davies (Surrey, England) and Trish Johnson (Porthcawl, South Wales)
--Pat Hurst (Danville, Calif.) and Wendy Ward (Spokane, Wash.)
--Rosie Jones (Hilton Head, S.C.) and Michele Redman (Plymouth, Minn.)
--Michelle McGann (North Palm Beach, Fla.) and Laura Diaz (Ponte Verde, Fla.)
--Becky Morgan (Abergavenny, South Wales) and Catriona Matthew (North Berwick, Scotland)
--Liselotte Neumann (Finspang, Sweden) and Jean Bartholomew (Garden City, N.Y.)
--Hollis Stacy (Holmes Beach, Fla.) and Martha Leach (a) (Hebron, Ky.)
--Sherri Steinhauer (Madison, Wi.) and Lisa DePaulo (Austin, Texas)
--Jan Stephenson (Sydney, Australia) and Alicia Dibos (Lima, Peru)
--Suzy Whaley (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) and Leta Lindley (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.)
For tournament engagement, spectator and ticket information, please visit http://www.thewoodfordclubfoundation.org or contact legends@thewoodfordclub.com.
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