By Rahul Banerji
Technology giant Epson has joined forces with the Ladies Professional Golf Association, LPGA, as title sponsor of its qualifying tour, it was announced on Sunday.
The LPGA-Epson alliance reflects a commitment to diversity and supports Epson’s aspirational goal of achieving sustainability and enriching communities, a statement said.
What will now be the Epson Tour was formerly called the Symetra Tour. Stage 1 of the 2022 Epson Tour will be played from August 18 to 21 at Rancho Mirage and Shadow Ridge Golf Club in California.
Stage 2 will be held between October 18 and 21 at the Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Florida.
The move signifies the enhancement of prize money in women’s golf, which suffers worldwide in comparison to the men’s game.
Just this last Sunday for example, Lydia Ko pocketed a $300,000 winner’s cheque at the Gainbridge LPGA in Boca Raton.
On the same day, Richard Bland took away just under 900,000 euro for finishing second at the Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour, formerly the men’s European Tour.
Five-year pact
With a partnership that will run for an initial five years, Epson and the LPGA said they would work together on a variety of player experiences and events focused on supporting and highlighting women’s challenges through golf.
As the official “Road to the LPGA,” the Epson Tour supports all competitors and sends the top ten finishers to the LPGA and is the most established women’s qualifying tour in the world, entering its 42nd year of structured competition in 2022.
Through the partnership, Epson will share the ongoing accomplishments of the golfers through prominent branding, broadcast, signage, and digital integration across the LPGA network.
This will include all tournament promotions, content, and social media platforms, the statement said.
In addition to naming rights for the Epson Tour, which will run through till the 2026 season, Epson has also pledged additional contributions including player ambassador funding, and product and technology support.
Unique opportunity
“Our partnership with the LPGA presents a unique opportunity to inspire future women leaders and advance the Epson brand,” said Yasunori Ogawa, global president of Epson.
“The Epson Tour is focused on providing promising women golfers with the opportunity to pursue their dreams, and young women with role models for the future.
“The LPGA is a world-class organisation and working together over a multi-year period allows Epson to take an active role in advancing the professional careers of talented women golfers.”
“We are delighted to welcome Epson to the LPGA Family,” said LPGA Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan on the occasion.
“This ground-breaking partnership will provide expanded opportunities for the future stars of the game from around the globe to test their talent and take one step closer to realizing their dreams
“We are grateful that Epson shares our commitment to supporting young female athletes as they grow and develop and to playing an active role in the growth and equity in women’s sports.
“The ‘Road to the LPGA’ has never been better.”
Long history
The Epson Tour is the official qualifying tour of the LPGA Tour and enters its 42nd competitive season in 2022.
The Tour’s mission is to prepare the world’s most promising women professional golfers for a successful career on the LPGA Tour.
This will now expand from 16 tournaments and $1.7 million in prize money to $4 million in prize money awarded over the course of 24 tournaments.
More than 435 LPGA titles have been won by former Tour players. Previous Epson Tour graduates include 27-time LPGA winner Lorena Ochoa of Mexico and Olympic gold medalists Inbee Park from the Republic of Korea and Nelly Korda of the United States.
Also read: Nishtha Madan set to make LPGA debut at Florida event
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