GolfCarolina.com
October Notebook:
Fort Mill's Regent Park
to Host LPGA Event
GolfCarolina.comOctober Notebook:
Fort Mill's Regent Park
to Host LPGA Event
By Shane Sharp, TravelGolf.com Senior Writer
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Regent Park Golf Course in Fort Mill, S.C. learned Thursday that it has been selected to host an LPGA event beginning in 2002.
The yet-to-be-named tournament, a new 72-hole event on the LPGA Tour, is tentatively scheduled for the week of Sept. 16-22, 2002. The LPGA and tournament organizers are expected to sign a three-year contract with Regent Park.
The Golf Channel is expected to carry four hours of live coverage each day, with players competing for $1 million in prize money, the average purse on the tour this year.
The final piece of the puzzle will be securing a sponsor, but tournament director Jack Sullivan said a sponsor could be lined up within the next "15 to 60 days."
The tournament could provide the York County area with a major economic shot in the arm, and would be the second professional golf tournament held annually within the Charlotte metropolitan area. The Home Depot Invitational, a Senior Tour event, is held each year at the TPC at Piper Glen.
The LPGA's last visit to the area was 1997, the last year of the Fieldcrest-Cannon Classic at the Peninsula Club, north of Charlotte. Rob Neal, the LPGA's vice-president for tournament and business affairs, said the LPGA has been hoping to get back into this area for some time.
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Regent Park to Host Inaugural Charlotte Invitational
A large void will soon be filled in the Charlotte golf calendar. The inaugural Charlotte Invitational Pro-Am takes place Oct. 15-16 at Regent Park Golf Club and should provide the Queen City with its first top-notch regional golf event in many years.
The tournament has been founded by Reid Spencer, publisher of Metrolina Golf Magazine, and Todd Lawton, director of golf at Regent Park. Metrolina Golf Magazine and Regent Park are also sponsoring the event.
“We’re trying to determine the best pros and amateurs in this region, with an emphasis on the Charlotte area, and we’re putting up $10,000 to ensure we draw the best possible field,” Spencer said. “Charlotte traditionally hasn’t had a highly visible tournament that brings together the best pros and amateurs in the Carolinas in a stroke-play format. We can’t wait to see which golfers will be the first to have their names engraved on the permanent trophy, because this will become a major annual event.”
The tourney features a unique format. The first day is two-person, better ball competition, with amateurs and pros paired by blind draw and competing for prizes. However, despite the better-ball format, both players will post first-round scores. The field will then be split into amateur and pro divisions for the second day of the 36-hole stroke play portion of the tourney.
“It combines a one-day team competition with a stroke-play competition to determine the top pros and amateurs in the region. We plan to pay a minimum of 30 places in the professional division and a yet-to-be-determined number of places in two amateur flights,” said Spencer.
Entry fee is for the Charlotte Invitational Pro-Am is $200 for pros and $150 for amateurs. The field is limited to 88 pros and 88 amateurs with USGA handicaps, with a minimum guaranteed purse of $10,000 in the pro division. Spencer is also looking for corporate sponsors. For info, call Regent Park at (803) 547-1300, or Reid Spencer at (704) 895-9908.
Carolina Blonde Tour Grand Finale Set
St. James Plantation will host the 2001 Carolina Blonde Amateur Tour Championship on its Players Club and Members Club courses.
The 36-hole stroke-play championship is Oct. 27-28. It brings together top golfers from 14 regional Carolina Blonde Tours, sponsored by Carolina Blonde beer, scattered throughout North and South Carolina, and Virginia. A field of at least 300 players is expected.
“It will be the largest tournament that we’ve had at St. James Plantation,” said director of golf Rob Brothers. “We’re excited to have the tour here.”
Tour president Dennis McCormac of Charlotte worked with Wilmington tour director Bob Parker to select the site. Parker hosted a Wilmington event earlier this year at The Gauntlet (pictured), another course at the upscale 63-hole semi-private golf plantation.
“The two courses we are going to play require good shotmaking,” said McCormac. “With these being the best players we have on tour, we wanted to challenge them.”
The Players Club is designed by Tim Cate and stretches 7,062 yards from the tips. The Members Club is 6,887 yards from the tips and was designed by Hale Irwin. Both are par 72.
“The Members Club reminds me of a Pinehurst-type course,” said Brothers. “There are rolling fairways with a little bit of elevation change. It’s more user-friendly. The Players Club is cut very tight off the tee and you have to use course management. Finger marshes jut into the course that you have to maneuver around.”
The 2001 Blonde Tour Championship is open only to top 10 golfers in points standings of each flight in 14 markets: Asheville, Greenville/Spartanburg, Charleston, Charlotte, Columbia, Fayetteville/Pinehurst, Gastonia/Shelby, Myrtle Beach, New Bern/Greenville, Raleigh, Rock Hill, Triad, Virginia Beach, Wilmington. Flights are based on skill level: Championship Flight (0-5 handicaps), A Flight (6-10), B Flight (11-15) and C Flight (16-20).
Total purse for the event is $10,000 in gift certificates awarded to the top 10 finishers in each of the four flights at St. James. For information, call Dennis McCormac at (704) 844-8264.
Shane Sharp is a Contributing Writer with TravelGolf.com. Contact him at sharp@travelgolf.com
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