Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic explained

Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic
Location:Prattville, Alabama, U.S.
Establishment:2007,
Course:Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, Capitol Hill, Senator Course
Par:72
Yardage:[1]
Tour:LPGA Tour
Format:Stroke play - 72 holes
Purse:$1.3 million
Aggregate:267 Mi Jung Hur (2014)
To-Par:−21 Mi Jung Hur (2014)
Final Year:2016
Final Champion: Ariya Jutanugarn

The Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic was a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. The 72-hole event made its debut in September 2007 at the Capitol Hill location on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail in Prattville, Alabama, a suburb northwest of Montgomery. Maria Hjorth won the inaugural event on the Senator Course by one stroke over Stacy Prammanasudh.[2]

Top-ranked Lorena Ochoa then won consecutive titles, in a playoff in 2008[3] and by four strokes in 2009.[4] Katherine Hull won in 2010 by a single stroke and set the tournament scoring record at 269 (−19).[5]

The event saw the then youngest-ever winner of an LPGA event in 2011, with Lexi Thompson's five-stroke victory at age 16.[6] (Amateur Lydia Ko lowered the record to age 15 in 2012 in Canada.) In 2012, Stacy Lewis won her third event of the season by two strokes over Thompson, who carded a 63 (−9) on Thursday, but had a 74 (+2) on Saturday.[7]

The Senator Course at RTJ Capitol Hill converted its greens from bent grass to Champion Bermuda grass in the summer of 2011.[8] The title sponsor was Navistar International, a manufacturer of commercial trucks, engines, and school buses. Following the 2012 event, it elected not to continue as title sponsor, and the tournament was dropped from the schedule in 2013.[9] [10] The tournament reappeared in 2014 when the Yokohama Tire Corporation took over as the title sponsor.[11]

Formerly played later in the season, it was moved up in the schedule to May in 2016. The LPGA Tour event in Mobile, last played as the Airbus LPGA Classic in 2014, was held in May at an RTJ Golf Trail course.

Tournament names

Course layout

See main article: Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. Capitol Hill, Senator Course (2014)

Hole123456789Out101112131415161718InTotal
Yards3701653903695403851745073763,276 5474003911633633891525154113,3316,607
Par434454354365443443543672
Source:[1]

Winners

YearDates ChampionCountryWinning scoreTo parMargin
of victory
Purse ($) Winner's
share ($)
May 5–8 70-69-63-72=274 −14 1 stroke 1,300,000 195,000
Aug 27–30 71-68-67-65=271 −17 1 stroke 1,300,000 195,000
2014Sep 18–21 64-70-67-66=267 −21 4 strokes 1,300,000 195,000
2013No tournament
2012Sep 20–23 66-70-65-69=270 −18 2 strokes 1,300,000 195,000
2011Sep 15–18 Lexi Thompson1 66-68-67-70=271 −17 5 strokes 1,300,000 195,000
2010Oct 7–10 68-67-67-67=269 −191 stroke 1,300,000 195,000
2009Oct 1–4 Lorena Ochoa (2) 66-68-66-70=270 −184 strokes1,300,000 195,000
2008Sep 25–28 Lorena Ochoa 67-67-69-70=273−15 Playoff 21,400,000 210,000
2007Sep 27–30 70-67-70-67=274 −14 1 stroke1,300,000 195,000
1 Thompson, age 16, was not an LPGA member at the time of this win in 2011.
2 Won in a three-player sudden-death playoff in 2008 on the second extra hole.

Tournament records

YearPlayerScoreRound
200763 (−9) 1st
63 (−9) 4th
63 (−9) 4th
200963 (−9) 2nd
201063 (−9) 2nd
63 (−9) 4th
201263 (−9) 1st
201663 (−9) 3rd

External links

32.444°N -86.396°W

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Course . Yokohama Tire LPGA Classic . 2014 . September 18, 2014.
  2. News: Hjorth captures first LPGA Tour win since 1999 . ESPN . Associated Press . September 30, 2007 . February 21, 2013.
  3. News: Ochoa nips Kung on 2nd playoff hole for Navistar Classic crown . ESPN . Associated Press . September 28, 2008 . February 21, 2013.
  4. News: Ochoa ends 11-start skid with repeat . ESPN . Associated Press . October 4, 2009 . February 21, 2013.
  5. News: Katherine Hull wins second LPGA event . ESPN . Associated Press . October 10, 2010 . February 21, 2013.
  6. News: Lexi Thompson wins Navistar Classic . ESPN . Associated Press . September 18, 2011 . February 21, 2013.
  7. News: Stacy Lewis wins Navistar Classic . ESPN . Associated Press . September 23, 2012 . February 21, 2013.
  8. Web site: Senator Course Renovation Update . Navistar LPGA Classic . August 16, 2011 . September 19, 2012.
  9. LPGA builds on Lewis' success with '13 schedule . Golf Week . Baldry . Beth Ann . January 15, 2013 . February 21, 2013.
  10. Web site: LPGA releases 2013 schedule . NBC Sports . Mell . Randall . January 15, 2013. February 21, 2013.
  11. Web site: Yokohama Tire Corporation to be Title Sponsor of LPGA Tournament in Alabama . LPGA . February 4, 2014 . March 10, 2014.