WPGA announces Drummond Golf Melbourne International at Latrobe Golf Club
WPGA Tour CEO Karen Lunn today announced a new event on the 2022 WPGA Tour of Australasia, The Melbourne International, to be held at Latrobe Golf Club on 24th and 25th January.
The event will carry prizemoney of $50,000, equalling the richest pro-am purse in the history of the WPGA Tour.
Miss Lunn said, “We are delighted to announce The Melbourne International, an exciting new event to our 2022 WPGA Tour calendar. I would sincerely like to thank the team at Latrobe Golf Club for their hard work in getting us to this point, particularly in a pandemic environment.
“The Board, Staff and Members at Latrobe Golf Club are a passionate and forward-thinking group, particularly when it comes to promoting our game to women and junior players.
“Latrobe is a very progressive golf club and its strong focus on women and girls makes it the perfect venue for us to launch this new event which will be played so close to the heart of the Melbourne City Centre.
“The prizemoney of $50,000 will make it one of the largest purses ever contested for in a WPGA Pro-am in Australia and I have no it doubt will attract some of the cream of Australia’s female talent. Hopefully, if restrictions allow we can also welcome some of our international members and foreign players in 2022”
Latrobe Golf Club Captain Simon Preece was delighted to be launching this progressive new event, Mr Preece said, ‘It’s staggering that nationally there are less than 15 Women’s professional golf events and not a single Women’s professional order of merit golf event held in Melbourne which is renowned as the sporting capital of the world.
“I’m proud that the Board of Latrobe Golf Club had the vision to drive a concept that was presented to them which has now become the Drummond Golf WPGA Melbourne International. The Drummond Golf WPGA Melbourne International not only provides another great event for professionals to compete in. It will also have a strong focus on our introduction pathways to the game for Women and Juniors looking to ‘give golf a go’. This includes our SwingFit programs for women, junior clinics and The Island at Latrobe, a 5-hole short course providing a less intimidating experience to start the game.
“We would like to thank all our sponsors for backing this vision. We are excited to be hosting the Drummond Golf WPGA Melbourne International at Latrobe Golf Club and with the continued support from our sponsors, Vic Health and the Victorian State Government we look forward to growing this event into a marquee event over the coming years.”
Mr Ravi Mabeyaratne Marketing Director of title sponsor Drummond Golf said,
“As a long-term partner of Golf Australia and the Women’s Australian Open, Drummond Golf is committed to helping grow the game for women. With that in mind, supporting this event is a logical step in Drummond Golf continuing to support women’s golf in Australia.
“We love the energy and enthusiasm Latrobe Golf Club has for growing the game for women and juniors. This was evident from the development of the 5 hole course. It showed that they have a great understanding that new golfers need a less intimidating environment to start their golf journey. It is a sizable financial commitment from the club, this reflects a genuine commitment. This partnership is a “no brainer” for Drummond Golf.
“As most know, thanks to the pandemic there has been an influx of new golfers. It’s important that we capitalise on this and continue to grow the game. Initiatives like this go a long way to achieving this.
“We are very much looking forward to the first edition of the Melbourne International in January 2022. We want this event to be seen as a celebration of golf in our community, and use it to encourage new people from all backgrounds and walks of life to our sport.”
In a coup for the event organisers, Melbourne star Su Oh has confirmed that she will play in the event in 2022.
