Author: lenz

Johnson grabs first-round lead in inaugural Senior LPGA Championship

LPGA commissioner Mike Whan, Alice Dye and Cook Group’s Steve Ferguson get the inaugural Senior LPGA Championship underway on Monday. (Sue Fracker Photo)

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – Monday’s first round of the Senior LPGA Championship was more about history than anything else.

Winds gusting to 33 miles per hour prevented spectacular scoring – with one exception. Scotland’s Trish Johnson, no stranger to the Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort, made five birdies in her last 12 holes to shoot a 5-under-par 67. That was good for a 4-stroke over Carolyn Hill, one of the early starters in the 81-player field. Johnson and Hill were the only players under par after Day 1.

Johnson, a late starter, was the 2016 winner of The Legends Championship on the same course when she beat Juli Inkster in an epic six-hole playoff. Inkster is on broadcast duty at the U.S. Women’s Open and not competing in this first major championship for senior women.

Johnson, though, was glad to be back on the Pete Dye design that is filled with dramatic elevation changes, spectacular views and confounding greens.

“I don’t really feel like the defending champion,’’ said Johnson. “I just love this golf course. It just fits my eye.’’

It didn’t seem to fit so well early in her round. After two birdies in the first four holes Johnson missed a three-foot putt at No. 5 and made double bogey on the next hole. Then the good times rolled. Johnson bounced back from the double with a bogey at No. 7 to get back in red numbers then birdied 11, 14, 15 and 18 No. 15 came on the shot of the ay, a chip-in.

Trish Johnson faces a media horde after shooting a 67.

The other players weren’t nearly as sharp as Johnson, but they weren’t complaining after finally getting their first major championship for women in the over-45 age group.

“I never thought this day would come,’’ said Nicole Jeray, an LPGA veteran from Berwyn, Ill.,who shot 75. “And, to think for this to be televised. That’s incredible.’’

Jeray was especially happy for the older players who meant so much to the development of the LPGA.

“These women are true legends, Hall of Famers,’’ said Jeray. “They paved the way for all the youngsters and I still walk around looking up to all of them – Betsy King, Joanne Carner, Sandra Palmer. And to think I’m one of them. Who would have thought that.?’’

None of the players were more appreciative than Jane Blalock, at 71 the oldest player in the field. She played in the Honors tournament held in conjunction with the Symetra Tour’s Donald Ross Centennial Classic on Sunday at the nearby Donald Ross Course.

Blalock created the Legends Tour and usually just plays in the small division for older members at its tournaments. She wanted to go all three rounds of the first Senior LPGA Championship, however, because of its significance to women’s golf. She also wants to compete in the first U.S. Senior Women’s Open, an event put on by the U.S. Golf Association at Chicago Golf Club in 2018.

A new choice viewing spot on the 18th hole is available for the Senior PGA Championship.

It’s all part of the boost that women’s golf expects to get from finally getting a major championship. This week’s has live coverage from The Golf Channel all three days and a $600,000 purse with the champion receiving $90,000.

By comparison, The Legends Championship – its predecessor at French Lick since 2013 –was by far the biggest event on The Legends Tour. When Johnson won last year it was a 36-hole tournament with $75,000 in prize money and a winner’s purse of $37,700.

“The Senior LPGA Championship is a combination of so many years of hard work striving to get the support from the LPGA,’’ said Blalock. “Obviously this tournament is because of French Lick and Mr. Ferguson (Steve Ferguson, chairman of Cook Group). I wish I could take credit, but we’re going to capitalize. I believe the world will now know that we exist, and maybe the phone will even ring.’’

Mike Whan, commissioner of the LPGA Tour, joined Alice Dye, wife of course designer Pete Dye, in hitting the ceremonial first tee shots before Monday’s round. Whan sees big things ahead for women’s golf as well. French Lick has a five-year agreement to host both the Senior LPGA Championship and Donald Ross Centennial Classic.

“We’re lucky to be here,’’ said Whan. “We’ve been launching a lot of new things and this is one that will only build with time. This is major on all kinds of fronts.’’

Two former champions in The Legends Championship enjoyed the 18th hole on Monday. Laurie Rinker (left) rolled in an eagle putt from off the green and got a high-five from Trish Johnson, who made birdie.

After 57 years Murle Breer is competing again on Ross Course at French Lick.

Erynne Lee accepts the champion’s $30,000 check after winning the Donald Ross Centennial Classic.

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – How significant is the first Senior LPGA Championship that tees off today on the Pete Dye Course here?

Well, it’s so important that Murle Breer was willing to come out of a long hibernation from tournaments to be involved in big-time golf just one more time. Breer is 78 years old and hasn’t even been playing on the LPGA Legends Tour, the senior circuit that has been the only avenue for competition for the players that got women’s professional golf on the sports map.

Breer, as the U.S. Women’s Open champion in 1962, was a welcome addition to the Honors Championship — a nine-player one-day event that was weaved into the Symetra Tour’s Donald Ross Centennial Classic that concluded on Sunday on the Donald Ross Course at French Lick Resort.

“My daughter wanted me to sign up for this,’’ said Breer. “Her husband came and my grandson was my caddie. We had a good time.’’

Using a mixed bag of clubs garnered from her daughter and French Lick director of golf Dave Harner, Breer shot 86 and tied for sixth in the Honors event, which was won – as usual – by Jan Stephenson with a 3-over-par 74. She has dominated that category during the last four years that the Legends Tour has visited French Lick.

“I never got a chance to play 18 holes before today,’’ said Breer, who plays most of her golf at Wilmington Island Golf Club in Savannah, Ga.. “I have no excuses, but my score was horrendous. I was embarrassed.’’

Murle Breer, the 1962 U.S. Women’s Open champion, recounts her return to French Lick after 57 years.

There was no need to be, as Breer’s connection to this historic event was special.

In 1960 the Ross course was called the Sheraton Hotel Country Club and it was in the last of a three-year run as an LPGA Tour site. Breer was in the field for the LPGA Championship, a major event then and now, on that layout.

“I was a youngster. I can’t remember how I finished,’’ said Breer, who was single and played as Murle MacKenzie then. “What I do remember was that they’d had a lot of rain and all the cornfields were dried because the sun came out and baked them. The sun also baked the greens and they were slick. Trying to putt on them, that’s what I remember about French Lick. It was a different sport then, but the people were great to us.’’

Breer’s caddie in 1960 was Bill Kendall, who emerged as a long-time club professional in the area. Now retired, he works part-time at French Lick and was on gate duty during Sunday’s competition.

The legendary Mickey Wright won the LPGA Championship at French Lick 57 years ago, beating Louise Suggs by three strokes. The LPGA didn’t return until the Legends – a circuit of former LPGA players who had reached their 45th birthday – landed an annual tournament on the Pete Dye Course in 2013.

Jane Blalock, a former LPGA star, organized The Legends Tour and was second to Stephenson – four strokes back – in the 18-hole Honors competition on Sunday. Both Stephenson and Blalock will be back today to play 54 more holes on the Pete Dye Course in the main event. At 71 Blalock will be the oldest player of the 81 competing over the next three days in the first nationally-television (Golf Channel) senior women’s tournament.

Jan Stephenson is the Honors winner again at French Lick.

The best golf played Sunday, understandably, was by the much younger Symetra Tour players. Their 54-hole Donald Ross Centennial Classic focused on the final threesome. Erynne Lee, of Silverdale, Wash., defeated August Kim, of St. Augustine, Fla., on the third hole of a sudden death playoff when Kim hit her second shot over the green and took a bogey.

Kim shot a 7-under-par 64 in Sunday’s final round to earn a shot at Lee, who posted a second straight 66, in extra holes. Lee, though, took home the $30,000 first prize and with it a likely place on the LPGA Tour in 2018. Interestingly, Lee and Kim were 12-under-par over their regulation 54 holes. Wright was just 4-under-par for 72 holes and Suggs, at 1-under, was the only other player to beat par during the LPGA Championship back in 1960.

“This is an amazing place,’’ said Lee, who used her father as her caddie. “The golf course was in great condition and it felt like a U.S. Women’s Open golf course. I’m just glad the greens weren’t any faster.’’

Thailand’s Benyapa Niphatsophon, who played with Lee and Kim, finished solo third – three strokes ahead of everyone else. Winnetka’s Elizabeth Szokol, who was tied for the lead midway through Saturday’s second round, struggled in with a 75 and finished in a tie for 34th.

Erynne Lee shows her winning form off the No. 10 tee at French Lick’s Donald Ross Course.

Legends Hall of Fame gets four new members

Steve Ferguson, Sandra Palmer, Nancy Scranton and Dave Harner are Legends Hall of Famers now.

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – The Legends Hall of Fame inductions had been a seasonal highlight at French Lick Resort the last four years, but none of the previous celebrations was like the event staged on Saturday night in the Hoosier Ballroom of the hotel’s Event Center.

According to script the induction was to honor two more top players – Sandra Palmer and Nancy Scranton. When the emotional night was over, however, the Hall of Fame – located in the nearby West Baden Springs Hotel – had four new members instead of two including the first men accorded the honor.

Joe Vezzoso, vice president of resort operations, also welcomed Steve Ferguson, chairman of Cook Group, and Dave Harner, French Lick’s director of golf, to the Hall – a tribute to their leadership in creating the first Senior LPGA Championship, which tees off on Monday on the resort’s Pete Dye Course.

And that wasn’t all.

Vezzoso also unveiled what is certain to be recognized as one of the most impressive trophies in all of sports. Dubbed “The Fergie’’ in Ferguson’s honor, the trophy will honor the champions of the Senior LPGA Championship and reside at French Lick. The winner will take home a smaller version.

Among those in attendance at the rousing gathering were golf architecture’s power couple, Pete and Alice Dye, and Suzy Whaley, who will become the first female president of the PGA of America in 2018. Whaley will play in the three-day 54-hole tournament on a sponsor’s exemption.

“The Fergie” is sure to become one of sport’s most impressive trophies.

Ferguson and Harner were instrumental in bringing the LPGA Legends Tour to French Lick in 2013, and Ferguson was taken aback with the trophy named in his honor.

“I can’t tell you how overwhelmed I am. I don’t feel I deserve this,’’ said Ferguson before the enthused attendees gave him a rousing ovation to assure him that he was.

Ferguson in turn put the focus on the $600,000 tournament that will receive three days of live television coverage on The Golf Channel. That represents the first TV coverage of the women’s tournaments at French Lick.

“This is the inaugural event,’’ said Ferguson. “It really is important, a really important time.’’

Palmer and Scranton both lauded the French Lick staff and Legends Tour for the creation of the upcoming big event. Palmer pointed out the big events that have already been played on the resort’s Donald Ross Course. It hosted LPGA events in 1958-60, the last two being a major – the LPGA Championship.

“French Lick is one of the richest communities in golf,’’ said Palmer. “Women’s golf got a big start in this community.’’

Both players also looked back fondly on their starts in tournament golf. For Palmer it came in 1964 when she left her home in Texas in a car by herself for her second professional tournament in Baltimore. She went on to a star-studded career from there, the highlight of which was a victory in the U.S. Women’s Open.

“I’m just as excited about golf now as I was then,’’ she admitted.

Scranton got her start as a teen-ager in Centralia , Ill. She went on to win three LPGA tournaments, one of them a major, and leads Legends players with five wins on that circuit. She thanked French Lick for creating a Hall of Fame for the 45-and-over circuit.

“It means so much to us to be recognized,’’ said Scranton. “We appreciate that you see the value in our tour.’’

Scranton, who combines her Legends tournaments with the demands of being the mother of 12-year old twins, credited fellow Legends Hall of Famer Nancy Lopez fot getting her serious about golf.

“I didn’t get interested until I was 15 or 16,’’ said Scranton, who received a set of clubs as a birthday present when she turned 8 years old but wasn’t excited about that gift.
“Then Nancy brought so much focus to women’s golf. I started thinking that would be a good thing to do.’’

At 19 Scranton qualified for The Rail Championship, an LPGA stop in Springfield, Ill. Her father was her caddie and a friendship with Joanne Carner, another Legends Hall of Famer, started that week with some tips on the practice range.

The induction ceremonies led into heat of the competition in the unprecedented six straight days of tournament golf in progress at French Lick. The Symetra Tour’s Donald Ross Centennial Championship concludes on Sunday and so does the Honors Division of the Senior LPGA Championship, which will be played along with the LPGA qualifying tour’s event.

Both the $200,000 Symetra event and Senior LPGA Championship will be played at French Lick for the next five years.

The Hoosier Ballroom was the site of the biggest Hall of Fame induction ceremonies yet.

With Hardy, Kelly missing this Illinois Amateur will be a wide open affair

July’s 87th playing of the Illinois State Amateur will be – at the very least – different.

The prestigious championship will be contested over 72 holes from July 18-20 at Calumet Country Club in Homewood. None of the 86 previous stagings of the State Am were played at Calumet, though the private layout is one of the oldest in the Chicago District and comes with a noteworthy tournament history.

Not only will the site be different, but so will the field. Neither Tee-K Kelly nor Nick Hardy, the tourney’s two most dominant players of recent years, will be competing. That means the battle for the title should be a wide open shootout.

Kelly, from Wheaton, played in the last four State Ams in between his collegiate years at Ohio State. He finished first at Aldeen, in Rockford, in 2013; 11th at Cantigny, in Wheaton, in 2014; first again at Panther Creek, in Springfield, in 2015; and second last year at St. Charles Country Club. He turned professional after his final collegiate season with the Buckeyes and is now playing on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica.

Hardy, from Northbrook, just completed his junior season at Illinois. His Illini teams reached the Final Four of the last three NCAA tournaments and Hardy’s record in the State Am is almost as good as Kelly’s. Hardy lost the 2014 title to Naperville’s Ray Knoll in a playoff at Cantigny, finished third at Panther Creek and then scored a rousing victory at St. Charles.

The win by Hardy last year was one for the record-books. He owned a 10-stroke margin over Kelly, which was one stroke off the tournament record for margin of victory set by Rob Grube in 2006.

Other than the Grube mention, there was nothing to compare Hardy’s brilliance with in the rich history of the tournament. Hardy’s 260 score for the 72 holes was a full 10 better than the former record set by PGA Tour player Bob Zender in 1971 and Jerry Haas’ previous record 13-under-par winning score in 1984 paled in comparison to Hardy’s 28-under at St. Charles.

With one more season of collegiate eligibility remaining Hardy could have gone for a State Am repeat, a feat last achieved by Bloomington’s Todd Mitchell in 2002-03. Instead he opted to bypass the tournament in order to take advantage of other attractive playing opportunities that his sterling record produced.

Hardy was named to the U.S. team for the Palmer Cup matches June 9-11 in Atlanta and also received a rare amateur sponsor’s exemption to the PGA Tour’s John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run, in the Quad Cities, in July.

“I considered playing in the State Amateur again, but June is busy and I have two tournaments in July that conflict,’’ said Hardy. The John Deere Classic concludes on July 16 and the Western Amateur starts at Skokie Country Club in Glencoe on July 31. Squeezing the State Am in between those two would be difficult.

In bypassing the State Am Hardy gave up the chance to join six players who have won the title in back-to-back years since the tourney went to a stroke play format in 1963 – Zender (1970-71), Gary Hallberg (1978-79), Joel Hirsch (1988-89), Jay Davis (1991-92), D.A. Points (1998-99) and Mitchell. Zender, Hallberg and Points either were or (in Points’ case) are members of the PGA Tour.

Calumet Country Club, meanwhile, may not have hosted a previous State Am but it did host the Chicago District Amateur three times (1930, 1933, and 1947). Interestingly, each of those years produced a champion in the process of winning back-to-back titles. Jack Westland, a three-time winner, had two of his victories in 1930 and 1931. George Dawson won in 1933 and 1934 and Frank Stranahan took the crown in 1946 and 1947.

The CDGA Amateur wasn’t the biggest tournament played at Calumet, however. The club’s Donald Ross-designed course opened in 1901 and hosted the 1924 Western Open, won by Bill Melhorn. Known as “Wild Bill’’ for his sometimes errant tee shots, Melhorn won 20 times on the PGA Tour, was runner-up in the 1925 PGA Championship and finished third in two U.S. Opens.

Calumet also hosted the 1945 Chicago Victory Open, which was one of Byron Nelson’s wins when he took a record 11 tournaments in a row. The course now play 6,619 yards from the tips and is a par 71.

The field for this year’s State Am was decided at nine qualifying rounds played across the state in June. Thirty-five players were exempt from qualifying off past performances. The entire field plays 18 holes on July 18 and 19 and the low 35 and ties go 36 more to determine the champion on July 20.

Here’s why the John Deere Classic is so successful in the Quad Cities

Just how good can things get for the John Deere Classic?

Illinois’ only annual PGA Tour event will be played for the 47th time from July 10-16 at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, IL., on the outskirts of the Quad Cities of Moline and Rock Island in Illinois and Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa.

That’s the smallest market on the PGA Tour but its tournament is the circuit’s best. Some may want to argue that, but the 2016 JDC was named the Tournament of the Year by the PGA Tour and the event also received first place awards for Most Engaged Community and Best Social Media Activation.

And that’s not all. The tournament received those accolades despite being pushed out of its usual July dates to avoid conflict with the Olympics golf competition in Brazil. The schedule conflict also hurt the tournament’s field, but that had little effect on the event’s success either.

Last year’s JDC, played in August, raised a record $10.54 million for charity and 491 participating charities benefitted from that. The tourney, known under various titles and played at different locations, has raised $81.3 million since its founding in 1971. Last year the tournament ranked first in per capital contributions at $28.10 for each of the 375,000 residents of the Quad City area.

The tourney’s volunteer base has grown nearly 30 percent over the last two years with 1,700 offering their services to the tune of 22,000 hours in 2016. And that doesn’t count the 750 boys and girls who participated in the tournament’s annual Youth Day on Tuesday of tournament week.

On the social media side the JDC’s Facebook page generated more than 150,000 “Likes’’ – more than any other event page on the PGA Tour—and the 38,000 combined followers on Twitter and Instagram was second on the circuit.

Most of the tourney’s great numbers came after locally based John Deere signed on as the title sponsor, and that event will be celebrated this year. John Deere will mark its 20th year with its name and financial backing on the tournament and the company has signed on through 2023.

Sam Allen, the chairman and chief executive office of John Deere & Company, earned an Evans Scholarship for his efforts as a caddie and played golf in college. His passion for the game are a big reason why John Deere and tournament golf are such a great fit but he insists that the event’s success isn’t just due to good sponsorship.

“You’ve got to recognize everybody that’s been involved with it,’’ said Allen, “and for the first so many years it was all about survival. It’s a great story from that perspective, that they were able to keep this tournament going without a title sponsor or the same title sponsor. That part of the journey was the hardest.’’

Now it’s not like that. Allen spent time on the tournament’s executive board when the partnership was evolving. John Deere was all in right from the start. The first contract signed 20 years ago was a nine-year agreement. A sponsorship agreement of that duration was unheard of at the time, but it was worth it to all concerned.

“We’ve emphasized that this is not the Quad City Open sponsored by John Deere,’’ said Allen. “It’s the John Deere Classic. The brand is first and foremost, and (the tournament) has got to end up shining the brand, not tarnishing the brand, and it has done that in spades.’’

This year the tournament is back on its familiar July dates, the week before the British Open, and it has an admirable defending champion. Ryan Moore used his victory in last year’s JDC to do even greater things. He was the last player named to the U.S. Ryder Cup team and he delivered the 15th and clinching point for the U.S. at Hazeltine National in Minnesota.

Moore has always played well at the JDC, which has called Deere Run home since 2000. Since 2012 he was tied eighth, tied 22nd, tied seventh and tied 24th prior to his win last year. This year he also played well in the first of the four major championships, finishing in a tie for ninth at the Masters.

This year Moore will bring his family – wife Nicole and two sons – to the Quad Cities in hopes of extending his run of 23 sub-par rounds at Deere Run. He shot 22-under last year with rounds of 65, 65, 65 and 67 and was bogey-free on the weekend.

“I want to go back and try to do the same thing this year,’’ he said. “(The tournament staff) has done a phenomenal job of making it a fun week, a family week, and really just a great event.’’

This year’s tournament will feature a record purse of $5.6 million with $1 million going to the champion.

Lopez smacks first tee shot to get historic week underway at French Lick

The Donald Ross Course was dressed up for its centennial celebration with Symetra Tour.

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – It all began with Nancy Lopez smashing the ceremonial first tee shot to kick off the inaugural Donald Ross Centennial Classic on Friday.

While the 144 Symetra Tour players were starting to tee off on the Donald Ross Course Lopez was hurrying over to the nearby Pete Dye Course to participate in the first of two pro-ams leading into Monday’s debut of the first Senior LPGA Championship. Lopez, recently married and winding down her competitive career, won’t play in the historic 54-hole battle but her presence was duly noted and most appreciated on the first of six straight days of championship women’s golf in this small southern Indiana town.

The Senior LPGA Championship will have two other notable absentees. Juli Inkster, relatively new to senior ranks, needs to do preparatory work for her role as a television analyst for Fox Sports at next week’s U.S. Women’s Open. A winner of The Legends Championship in 2015 at French Lick and loser of the title in a playoff to Trish Johnson last year, Inkster was at French Lick in spirit.

Amy Alcott, a Hall of Famer, was also a late withdrawal because of injury. She was replaced by Rebecca Bradley, who made 48 LPGA starts in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

And they’re off. The parade of carts heads to the Pete Dye Course for the first of two pro-ams.

Betsy King, one of the four Hall of Famers left in the field, has considered herself basically retired for 11 years and played in only two previous tournaments this year. Still, she wouldn’t have missed the Senior LPGA Championship.

“It’s nice to be part of the first senior event on television,’’ said King. “I wish I was a little bit younger and that this had come about 10 years ago, but I’m still looking forward to the week. It’s nice to play in firsts, and it will be very competitive. The advantage goes to the players who still play a little on the LPGA Tour and are a little bit younger, but I can always look back on my career and say I played in the first Senior LPGA Championship.’’

The starting field of 81 players was finalized with the addition of the two players from this week’s 11-player qualifying round – Laura Shanahan Rose and Bobbi Salmon – and the final sponsor exemption – Lisa DePaulo.

Rowe, who won the 2008 LPGA Teacher & Club Professional Championship at Pinehurst, was medalist with a 76 and Salmon posted a 78. DePaulo had been the LPGA T&CP champion in 2007.

Nancy Lopez hits ceremonial first tee shot at the Donald Ross Centennial Classic. (Sue Fracker Photo)

“I’ve been working so hard for the last month to get out here,’’ said Salmon. “I just so wanted to qualify that I was playing 54 holes a day in 120-degree weather in Palm Springs, Calif.’’

Salmon played in four U.S. Women’s Opens but never thought she might play on TV again. The Senior LPGA Championship will be broadcast from 4-6 p.m. Monday through Wednesday on The Golf Channel.

“When they started The Legends Tour all my friends would ask me if I’m going to be on TV,’’ said Salmon, “and I’d say, `Not unless I’m naked or catch on first.’ So, this is truly a big deal.’’

Illinois will be well-represented throughout the six straight days of tournament golf. Berwyn’s Nicole Jeray might have been able to play in both the Donald Ross Centennial Classic and Senior LPGA Championship. She played on all three women’s circuits last year and has done the same in 2017. Jeray made 10 starts on the Symetra Tour and one on the LPGA Tour in addition to her Legends appearances this season, but she’ll be in only the Senior LPGA Championship here.

Nicole Jeray picked Senior LPGA Championship over Symetra, LPGA Tour tournament options.
“I didn’t inquire as to whether I could play in both (Ross Centennial or Senior LPGA) events,’’ said Jeray. “I don’t think I could play six straight days.’’

Jeray could have played on the LPGA Tour this week, as she qualified for the new Thornberry Creek Classic in Wisconsin. Her caddie, Jody Keepers, is working in that event, which ends on Sunday, and will be in French Lick on Monday in time to carry Jeray’s bag in the Senior LPGA Championship.

Joining Jeray in the Senior LPGA field are Nancy Scranton, formerly of downstate Centralia; Allison Finney, of Winnetka; and Audra Burks, of Springfield. Scranton will be inducted into The Legends Hall of Fame on Saturday night at the West Baden Springs Hotel.

In addition to the Illinois seniors, Winnetka’s Elizabeth Szokol was in the Symetra field on the Donald Ross Course and she got off to an excellent start, posting a 4-under-par 68 in the first round. A rookie on the Symetra circuit, Szokol finished her college career at Virginia after spending her first two years at Northwestern.

Symetra event celebrates Ross centennial, starts six-day golf tourney marathon

French Lick Resort is all decked out for six straight days of LPGA golf on its two courses.

FRENCH LICK, Ind. – It all begins on Friday, the most innovative tournament concept in recent golf – and not just the women’s version.

The Symetra Tour, the Ladies PGA Tour’s qualifying circuit, will hold a $200,000 tournament on the Donald Ross Course at French Lick Resort starting on Friday to kickoff off six straight days of tournament golf in this small southern Indiana community that’s not just the boyhood home of Larry Bird.

French Lick is also a place rich in golf history, and that’s what is going to be celebrated in these days leading into the U.S. Women’s Open.

After the Symetra tournament ends on Sunday an even bigger 54-hole competition — the first Senior LPGA Championship — takes over the spotlight.

The Symetra event is called the Donald Ross Centennial Classic because it’ll be played to commemorate the 100-year anniversary of the course that it’s being played on. In any other year that’d be enough to make it a big event. This is not just a focal point for historical purposes, however. The prize money is the second biggest on the Symetra Tour, with the champion receiving $30,000. This 13th event of the Symetra’s 23-tournament season will go a long way in deciding which 10 players move up to the LPGA Tour in 2018.

Underscoring the importance of this event to the players, 18 of the top 20 on the Symetra money list are in the field, and the only ones missing have good excuses.

No. 1 Nanna Koerstz Madsen wants to prepare for the following week’s U.S. Women’s Open at Trump National in New Jersey and No. 16 Rachel Rohanna got into the LPGA’s tournament in Wisconsin this week.

Banners galore declare that a special golf event has come to town.

The Donald Ross Centennial Classic will feature 144 of the top rising stars of women’s golf and 30 countries are represented in the field.

In addition to having 10 players who are LPGA members the field includes Yu Liu of China who reflected the high quality of play on the Symetra circuit in the previous week’s Tullymore Classic in Michigan. She made 22 birdies in 54 holes in posting a 16-under-par 200 and climbed from 10th to fifth on the Symetra money list.

As exciting as all that sounds, the clear highlight of this golf extravaganza will come in the first-ever Senior LPGA Championship on the nearby Pete Dye Course. It’ll feature 81 LPGA stars of the past, most of whom are already familiar with the layout that was selected as the course-of-the-year for 2017 by the National Golf Course Owners Association. The Legends Championship has been played there since 2013.

French Lick has a five-year contract to host the Senior LPGA Championship, so it’s much more than an attempt by the LPGA to beat the U.S. Golf Association to the punch in putting on the first major championship for senior women. The USGA won’t conduct its first-even U.S. Women’s Senior Open until 2018 at Chicago Golf Club, America’s first 18-hole course.

French Lick is already rich in golf history, but the next week will add greatly to it.

The two majors are a little different. The USGA’s version will be for women 50 and over. At French Lick the age break starts at 45. The USGA’s is also a walking event with qualifying rounds held around the country to determine 120 finalists. How either will be accepted by the players an fans remains to be seen, but the French Lick version is committed to the tune of a $600,000 prize fund and national television coverage on The Golf Channel for its first staging.

TV coverage is made possible by the unusual weekday dates. The tournament will be played Monday through Wednesday, July 10-12, and the champion will receive $90,000.

The field fpr the Senior LPGA Championship includes five World Golf Hall of Famers—Amy Alcott, Pat Bradley, Laura Davies, Betsy King and Hollis Stacy — and players with a combined 339 career LPGA wins and 43 major championships.There are 19 players in the field who have won an LPGA major and 53 of the 81 have won at least one LPGA tournament.

A special sponsor’s exemption to the tournament is Suzy Whaley, who will become the first female president of the PGA of America in 2018.

Six straight days of LPGA tournaments are on tap at French Lick

The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, which ended Sunday at Olympia Fields Country Club, was a success by most every account. This week women’s golf moves in a new direction at a long-time destination.

Indiana’s French Lick Resort offers both the historic Donald Ross Course and the Pete Dye Course that was named the 2017 Course of the Year by the National Golf Course Owners Association. Both will be used in back-to-back tournaments by the other circuits encompassed by the Ladies PGA Tour, meaning there’ll be six straight days of tournament golf in the little southern Indiana town that is rich in golf history.

The developmental Symetra Tour will compete in the $200,000 Donald Ross Centennial Classic, the focal event of that layout’s 100-year anniversary, from Friday through Sunday. Then 81 stars from the LPGA’s past will do battle on the Pete Dye Course in the first Ladies Senior LPGA Championship from July 10-12. The $600,000 Monday-through-Wednesday event will lead directly into the U.S. Women’s Open, which will begin on Thursday, July 13, at Trump National in Bedminster, N.J.

When the Open is over there will have been an unprecedented 10 consecutive days of women’s professional competition encompassing three tours.

French Lick’s Ross Course hosted the 1924 PGA Championship, the first of four straight Walter Hagen victories in that major championship, and was also home to the LPGA Championships of 1959 and 1960, won by Betsy Rawls and Mickey Wright. The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship was a renamed version of those tournaments from the past.

The LPGA Senior Championship grew out of The Legends Championship, an event jointly created by the resort and the Legends Tour, a circuit of players 45 and older who starred on the LPGA Tour. The Legends have played their major event on the Pete Dye Course since 2013 and the circuit’s Hall of Fame is located in the nearby West Baden Springs Hotel. Nancy Scranton and Sandra Palmer will be inducted during the upcoming festivities.

In launching the Senior Championship the LPGA will beat out the U.S. Golf Association in creating the first senior major for women. The USGA’s first U.S. Women’s Senior Open will be played at Chicago Golf Club in 2018.

JDC won’t get Spieth

Two-time winner Jordan Spieth considered returning to the John Deere Classic, which tees off in Silvis, IL., on July 13 but decided to rest up for the following week’s British Open instead. Spieth didn’t defend his last JDC win last year because the tournament was played opposite the Olympics’ golf competition in Brazil, and Spieth later decided to just not play in either event.

“I love the (JDC) tournament, I love the golf course and – more important – I love the people,’’ said Spieth, who has already won twice this year. “While my schedule doesn’t permit me returning to the Quad Cities this year, I plan to be back in the future.’’

The JDC field will be strong even without him, as Bubba Watson and Davis Love III have committed after skipping the event for several years and Ryan Moore is expected to defend his title, though he’s currently recovering from a back injury.

Wheaton’s Kevin Streelman will also be in the field. His play has been solid since a two-week break during the U.S. Open. Streelman tied for eighth at the Travelers Championship and tied for 17th at the Quicken Loans National since returning to action.

Here and there

Drake Bushong, a Bradley University golfer playing out of Lick Creek in Pekin, won the 98th Chicago District Amateur. He beat DesPlaines’ Michael Fastert in the title match at Briar Ridge in Schererville, Ind.

The Illinois PGA will conduct its Senior Masters Championship on Monday (JULY 10) at Onwentsia in Lake Forest. On that same day the Chicago Baseball Cancer Charities Outing, which features celebrities playing with each foursome, is on tap at Twin Orchard in Long Grove.

The Palatine Hills Golf Association will conduct the Discover/Salute Charity Outing at Rolling Green Country Club in Arlington Heights on July 17. It’ll benefit the financial, physical and emotional needs of military service members, veterans and their families.

Cog Hill, in Lemont, will hold its first Junior Amateur Monday and Tuesday (JULY 10-11) on the facilities Nos. 2 and 4 courses.

Kang made her first LPGA win a tribute to her late father

Danielle Kang had been 0-for-144 in LPGA tournaments before she won her first tournament – and she picked a great event for her breakthrough.

The 63rd KPMG Women’s PGA Championship – formerly called the LPGA Championship – is rich in tradition, being second in longevity and prize money to only the U.S. Women’s Open.

On Sunday Kang became the eighth player to make this major championship her first professional victory. She did it by stringing four birdies in a row on the back nine of the North Course at Olympia Fields Country Club and then hanging on to win by a stroke thanks to a two-putt birdie on the last hole.

Kang became the first American to win the event with a birdie on the 18th hole since Meg Mallon did it in 1991 and she’s just the fourth American champion in the last 20 years. Going into the tournament Kang was only No. 43 in the Rolex Rankings

Her win was built on the back nine birdie blitz, but even that wasn’t quite enough. She had a three-stroke lead after the last of those string of birdie putts dropped at No. 14 but the lead was down to one after she made bogey at the par-3 17th.

“Without drama it’s not a major,’’ said Kang when she could laugh about her near collapse afterwards. Canadian Brooke Henderson, trying to make a successful title defense, actually pulled even with Kang at 12-under-par for a few minutes.

Henderson, playing in the group in front of Kang, rolled a 30-foot eagle putt to within an inch of the cup at No. 18, a par-5 easily reachable in two shots. The tap-in birdie pulled Henderson even with Kang, who was on the tee when Henderson’s putt came so close. Both were at 12-under-par then.

Kang heard the noise from the near-miss, stepped back to regroup and then played the way champions are supposed to play the rest of the way. She blasted her drive down the left side of the fairway, put her second shot from 236 yards to 30 feet below the hole and then lagged to two feet short of the cup.

The tap-in birdie brought an end to her winless record as a professional. Now only Kang and Juli Inkster own wins in both the U.S. Amateur – Kang won it in both 2010 and 2011 – and the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

“Pretty awesome,’’ said Kang. “I feel fantastic, absolutely fantastic.’’

But she still teared up when asked about her late father K.S. Kang, who passed away four years ago after battling cancer. Kang, 24, still writes to him in a journal.

“If I could wish anything I would wish that my Dad saw me win,’’ she said. “It’s been a really difficult road for me for the past four or five years. That’s life, though. You have to pick yourself up, keep working hard and believe in what you’re doing.’’

Kang’s father was of Korean descent and he took the family from California to live there briefly when Danielle and her brother, Web.com Tour player Alex Kang, were growing up. Kang developed her skills at Sherwood Country Club in Los Angeles, a hot spot for celebrities, and she received congratulatory messages on Sunday from Dustin Johnson, Wayne Gretzky, Caitlyn Jenner and Marcus Allen, among many others. She now lives in Las Vegas.

A 68 in the final round gave Kang a 13-under-par 271 total for the 72 holes. Henderson was one shot back after posting a 66 – the low round of the day. Korean Chella Choi, who started the final round tied for the lead with Kang, was another shot back in third.

Kang and Choi started the final round in the last twosome and only Henderson made a serious challenge from the other groups.

“It was a great day for me,’’ said Henderson. “I got off to a pretty fast start – three birdies on the front nine – and I wasn’t really making any mistakes.’’

In her victory last year at Sahalee, in Washington, Henderson closed with a 65 and then beat New Zealand’s Lydia Ko in a playoff. Kang wouldn’t let Sunday’s battle go to extra holes.

“Danielle played great,’’ said Henderson. “When she got to 13-under pretty early in the back nine I knew I had a lot of work to do coming down the stretch. A few days ago I would have been really happy with a second-place finish and, to have the chances and the opportunities that I did the last few holes, I’m happy.’’

Lexi, Lewis, Wie couldn’t keep pace with Kang in KPMG wrap-up

An American scored a rare victory in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship on Sunday – but Danielle Kang wasn’t the one you would have expected.

Only four Americans have won the title in the last 20 years, and Lexi Thompson, Stacy Lewis and even Michelle Wie would have seemed the most likely to do the honors.

Lewis had the best final round among the Americans, a 67 that elevated her into a tie for ninth place. Thompson made an early charge with three birdies in her first seven holes to get within three shots of the lead but then backed off. She settled for her third straight 69 and wound up in a tie for seventh.

“On the back nine I honestly got tired. I don’t know what hit me,’’ said Thompson, who is skipping this week’s LPGA tournament in Wisconsin to rest up for the following week’s U.S. Women’s Open.

Wie needed a birdie on the last hole to shoot 73.

“It was one of those days where I mis-read every single putt,’’ she said. “I hit every dang one of them perfect, and just mis-read the speed. I had a lot of lipouts. If those would have fallen it would have been a completely different story.’’

The game’s newly-designated No. 1 player, Korean So Yeon Ryu, wasn’t dazzling either. She shot 71-72 on the weekend to finish in a tie for 14th.

WHAT’S NEXT? The LPGA players don’t have much of a wait before their next major championship. The U.S. Women’s Open, at Trump National in Bedminster, N.J., tees off on July 13, and the fourth of the circuit’s five majors I also barely a month away – the Ricoh Women’s British Open Aug. 3-6 in Scotland.

Before those biggies, however, the circuit has a regular tour event starting on Thursday – the inaugural Thornberry Creek Classic in Oneida, Wis., near Green Bay. Ariya Jutanugarn, the No. 2 player in the Rolex Rankings, heads the field. She endured a tough time at Olympia Fields, shooting 77 in the first round immediately after losing her No. 1 ranking to Ryu. Jutanugarn improved to a 68 in the second round but still missed the 36-hole cut by one stroke.

Also in the Thornberry field are Brooke Henderson, Cristie Kerr and Suzanne Pettersen.

TWO IN ONE: The LPGA’s two other circuits will combine for an even more special new event starting next week in French Lick, Ind.

The developmental Symetra Tour will compete in the Donald Ross Centennial Championship from Thursday through Sunday on the 100-year-old Donald Ross Course at French Lick Resort, then the first LPGA Senior Championship will take over the nearby Pete Dye Course for a three-day run from July 10-12.

Players in the new Senior event, all in the 45 and over age group, have been to French Lick the last four years for The Legends Championship. As was the case during Legends week, there will be an induction ceremony for the Legends Hall of Fame as part of the LPGA Senior Championship festivities. The new inductees to the Hall, located in the West Baden Springs Hotel, will be Nancy Scranton and Sandra Palmer.

KEMPER’S ON THE CLOCK: In a unusual bit of scheduling the PGA of America and LPGA decided to hold the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in the same area two years in a row but on different courses. It was played in the south suburbs at Olympia. Next year it’s in the north suburbs, at Kemper Lakes in Kildeer. That course hosted one men’s major – the 1989 PGA Championship won by Payne Stewart.