 |
||||||
           |
 |
|---|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Safeway Classic Amateur Open Will Provide Guaranteed Spot in LPGA Tournament to Winner
May 15, 2007, Portland, Oregon
Tournament Golf Foundation, the organizers of the Safeway Classic LPGA Tournament, announced a unique event that will guarantee a spot in the prestigious LPGA event to the winner of a one day amateur qualifying tournament.
The Safeway Classic Amateur Open will be held at Langdon Farms Golf Club in Aurora, OR (fifteen minutes south of Portland) on Friday July 6th, beginning at 7:30 AM. Any woman amateur golfer with an established USGA handicap of 2.0 or less is eligible to compete.
The winner of the event will earn a guaranteed spot in the 54-hole Safeway Classic tournament proper to be held August 24-26, at Columbia Edgewater Country Club, in Portland. The second and third place finishers will earn spots in the tournament Qualifying event for LPGA players, to be held on Tuesday, August 21. The two low scores from the Qualifier will also earn entry into the Safeway Classic.
According to Tom Maletis, President of Tournament Golf Foundation, “TGF has been a supporter of women’s golf in the Northwest over our 36 year history. With the popularity of The Big Break on The Golf Channel, we are offering our own version. One round and the winner gets a big break of their own in the Safeway Classic.” Last year, 17-year old Sydnee Michaels, now a freshman at UCLA, won the event.
The Safeway Classic Amateur Open will have a $75 entry fee and players can get an application by calling the Tournament Golf Foundation office at 503-626-2711 or by visiting www.safewaygolf.com. Entry deadline for the event will be July 2nd, 2007.
The Safeway Classic is the second-oldest event on the LPGA Tour. The 2007 Safeway Classic will mark the 36th consecutive year the LPGA tour event has been brought to Portland by TGF. The event, originally called the Portland Classic, has now donated over $11 million to local children’s charities since its inception in 1972, with $7 million coming in the past ten years with Safeway as title sponsor. In 2006 the tournament raised $1.01 million through the Safeway Foundation for Oregon charities.
The 2007 edition of the The Safeway Classic, presented by Pepsi, will be held at Columbia-Edgewater Country Club, August 20-26. The purse for the event will be $1.7 million. The tournament will be broadcast all three days of tournament play on ESPN2.
Pat Hurst won the 2006 Safeway Classic by one shot over Jeong Jang and Kim Saiki. Tournament Golf Foundation is a local Portland area group of volunteers who donate their time and provide the primary operations for the annual event. Begun in 1972, the group is now comprised of 40 local individuals and couples. TGF is also the owner and operator of the Safeway International, in Phoenix, AZ.
For more information on the Safeway Classic and Tournament Golf Foundation, visit their website: www.safewaygolf.com. For more information on Langdon Farms Golf Club or for practice rounds, visit www.langdonfarms.com or call 503-678-4653.
|