Daytona Beach, FL (Sports Network) - The LPGA Tour
will return to the Augusta, Georgia area for the first time in 35
years for the inaugural Augusta International Championship, a 72-hole
event to be held September 20-23 at Mount Vintage Plantation Golf
Club in North Augusta.
The tournament will feature a $1.2 million purse,
the seventh- highest purse on the LPGA Tour's 41-event schedule,
with a first prize of $180,000.
"We celebrated our 50th anniversary last year,"
said LPGA Commissioner Ty Votaw in a recent news conference. "Part
of that history is here in Augusta. We're thrilled to come back
to a place that is such a rich part of our history."
The Titleholders Championship, a designated major
held from 1937-66, was the last LPGA event to be played in Augusta.
Hall of Famer Kathy Whitworth collected $1,500 for winning the 1966
tournament.
Votaw confirmed that a multiyear agreement had
been signed with the Mount Vintage club.
