The Justin Rose Ladies' Series will feature seven 18-hole tournaments and a 36-hole grand final. Justin and Kate are contributing £35,000 pounds to the prize money and all eight golf courses are giving up their facilities free of charge. The tournaments are to be played behind closed doors, but Sky Sports is to broadcast the series. As of this week, American Golf is to sponsor a £35,000 Order of Merit prize fund for the series.
The first event is at Brockenhurst Manor Golf Club on 18 June. The one-day tournament was the brainchild of Ladies' European Tour player Liz Young and Brockenhurst Manor's Head Professional, Jason MacNiven, who also runs a custom club-fitting company at the Hampshire course.
Liz Young, who is attached to Brokenhurst Manor, said:
“It is to find a way to put on a tournament for women’s professionals, so that we can be competitive again and have the chance to earn a little money in these uncertain times and to boost the profile of the women’s game.”
“There was controversy a few weeks ago over the first golf in the US being men’s only. Because golf is a sport that can be played safely now it is key that the women get exposure, too.”
Until Justin and Kate Rose stepped in the one-off event was without a sponsor and a broadcast partner.
Kate Rose, who was an European champion gymnast and worked for IMG, the management company that represented her husband when they met, said:
"I read about what Liz was trying to do and thought that Justin and I had to help.”
“It is so important for the visibility of ladies’ golf that they can play at good courses and on TV because they need to be out there to both attract sponsors and keep their current sponsors happy as well as allowing more people to get to know who they are."
The Justin Rose Ladies' series will also include a stop at Royal St. George’s, which was due to host The 2020 Open Championship before The R&A cancelled the event due to the coronavirus pandemic. Other courses that have been signed up to host the series are Moor Park Golf Club, Buckinghamshire Golf Club, JCB Golf & Country Club, Bearwood Lakes Golf Club and The Shire London Golf Club.
The Roses’ intervention has come at a time when women’s professional golf is lagging well behind the men's as far as being able to re-start their tours. The LPGA Tour is not due to re-start until the end of July, almost seven weeks after the men's first PGA Tour event. Whilst LET professionals, who haven't been in action since the Investec South African Women's Open in Cape Town in mid-March, are not due to see the LET Tour re-start before the middle of August.
Justin Rose said:
“I am keenly aware that I now have the opportunity to go back to work and compete on the PGA Tour, but this is not the same for the ladies and some junior tours as well."
"I am sad that the Ladies European Tour has been suffering so badly and doesn’t really have a start date yet from what I know. To me this seems somewhat unfair."
“My wife Kate and I felt there was an opportunity to step up and help. The prize money is modest because it is me throwing in some money and then the ladies are paying an entry fee and being able to play for a pot. We wanted to give them the opportunity to play and to be ready for when the opportunities arise later in the summer.”
While Justin is back on the road with the PGA Tour, Kate is helping organise the series along with Justin's agent Paul McDonnell, who will be acting as the series manager. Excel Sports Management, which looks after Rose and other leading players such as Justin Thomas and Matt Kuchar, will be running the tournaments. Liz Young and Jason MacNiven also remain involved, as Liz confirmed:
"Kate was keen for us to be involved with the whole thing as it was our idea in the first place, she was very conscious of not taking that away from us."
The Justin Rose Ladies' Series schedule is as follows:
18 June - Brokenhurst Manor Golf Club
25 June - Moor Park Golf Club
2 July - Buckinghamshire Golf Club
9 July - Royal St George’s
16 July - JCB Golf & Country Club
23 July - Bearwood Lakes Golf Club
30 July - The Shire London
6-7 August - Final TBC
Well done to Justin & Kate Rose, what an amazing gesture of support for the women's game, at a time when it need their help the most. It proves that even in difficult times, good things can and do happen.
No comments:
Post a Comment