Stacy Lewis (photo by Tom Briglia)
ShopRite LPGA Classic Defending Champion Stacy Lewis was at Stockton’s Seaview Country Club to announce her participation in this year’s tournament May 31-June 2.
The current LPGA Player of the Year, Lewis was also honored for her personal $20,000 donation to the Community FoodBank of New Jersey-Southern Division after Hurricane Sandy last year. Go here for the story.
Stacy Lewis
Stacy Lewis is a top player on the LPGA tour, but she admitted after her second straight round of 65 Saturday during the ShopRite LPGA Classic, that she has never played particularly well at the Seaview Bay Course. However, at 12-under after two rounds with a 6-stroke lead over Anna Nordovist, she has positioned herself to finally conquer the course for her first ShopRite Classic victory. Her second round featured eight birdies and only one blemish, a double bogey on hole six.
Other golfers in the hunt who have the best chance to catch Lewis include Azahara Munoz (-5), Paula Creamer (-5) who would like to bust out of her current slump of n0 top ten ten finishes in 2012, and the LPGA’s top player Yani Tseng (-4).
Seaview's golf shop earns high praise
GALLOWAY — The golf shop at Seaview – A Dolce Resort has been honored as one of “America’s 100 Best Golf Shops” by the Golf World magazine for the second consecutive year, and is now an 11-time recipient of the distinction.
“We are honored that our golf shop has been recognized by Golf World two years in a row,” says Kevin DeDonato, PGA director of golf, for Seaview Golf Resort, in a media release. “We take great pride in providing both our members and guests with the highest level of customer service while offering a great selection of products from top brands.”
Seaview – A Dolce Resort is located near Reed’s Bay in Galloway Township on 670 acres of wooded land. Home of the ShopRite LPGA Classic, the golf course includes 36 holes and the hotel resort features 270 guestrooms and an Elizabeth Arden Red Door Spa. — Julie Pipitone
2011 ShopRite LPGA Champion Brittany Lincicome.
While golf fans come to the annual ShopRite LPGA Classic to watch some of the best female golfers in the world, the event has always been an outstanding contributor to local charitable organizations.
Since the LPGA started tracking charitable contributions in 1981, the cumulative charitable donations from the LPGA and its tournaments has totaled more than $200 million, $24 million of which comes from the ShopRite LPGA Classic.
The tournament, in coordination with title sponsor ShopRite, will continue this tradition of giving, and has announced that for the 2012 event, “Ticket Drive for Charity” partners will receive 100 percent of all advance ticket purchases. Each ticket buyer will choose which charity partner will receive the contribution on behalf of the ShopRite LPGA Classic. To date, there are 18 charity partners of the 2012 ShopRite LPGA Classic, including AtlantiCare Foundation, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey Foundation, and Community FoodBank of New Jersey – Southern Branch.
“Due to the tremendous support of ShopRite and our other corporate partners, we are now in a position to offer this special opportunity to our charitable beneficiaries,” said Tim Erensen, Executive Director of the ShopRite LPGA Classic. “We hope this adds to the experience for our charity partners, especially those who have been such an integral part of the triumphant return of the ShopRite LPGA Classic.”
The ShopRite LPGA Classic, takes place May 28-June 3, 2012, at the Bay Course at Seaview Resort. The Tournament will include a $1.5 million purse and three days of televised coverage on The Golf Channel.
Defending champion Brittany Lincicome.
The ShopRite LPGA Classic officially announced the 2012 tournament dates, Monday, May 28 through Sunday, June 3. The best players from the Ladies Professional Golf Association will return to the Bay Course at Seaview Resort to compete for a $1.5 million purse in the 54-hole, LPGA-sanctioned official event. The ShopRite LPGA Classic will again be televised on Golf Channel. Go here for coverage of last year’s event, won by Brittany Lincicome.
“Thanks to the continued support of our partners at ShopRite, Stockton College, Seaview Resort and many others, we are thrilled to once again bring world-class entertainment back to the Jersey shore” said Executive Director, Tim Erensen. “The event has taken great strides since its return to the LPGA schedule two years ago, and we look forward to continuing this shore tradition with another great week in 2012.”
Since the 1990s, ShopRite has donated more than $24 million to charities by sponsoring LPGA tournaments. In 2011, ShopRite again raised over $1 million for charitable organizations in ShopRite’s trading area, aiding hospitals, food banks, educational institutions and other agencies.
Brittany Lincicome
Brittany Lincicome had waited a long time to hoist a championship trophy. The 25-year-old Floridian, whose last win was the Kraft Nabisco Championship in 2009, reached the 18th tee at the ShopRite LPGA Classic tied at -10 with Jiyai Shin, who was in the clubhouse. Cristie Kerr, in the final group, was just a stroke behind.
After a solid drive on the par five Lincicome, one of the longest hitters on the LPGA tour, hit her second shot into the long grass to the left of the green. Now the pressure was on, with a difficult shot to try and save her par opportunity and a tie with Shin. And of course Kerr was waiting in the wings at the 18th tee.
Instead of seeing her title opportunity slip away, she hit a gorgeous wedge shot from the grass with just the right speed to get her within five feet of the hole. The hard part out of the way, she knocked in the birdie putt to take the ShopRite title with a -11 for the tournament. Kerr also birdied the 18th, to earn a second place tie with Shin at -10.
Said the delighted Lincicome, “It’s been a long time since I won. It feels great to be in the winner’s circle again.”
Catriona Matthew, who started the day in second place behind Kerr, also birdied the 18th to finish at -9, good for fourth place.
Seaview Golf Resort in Galloway Township, home to the famed Bay and Pines courses and the ShopRite LPGA Classic, will be undergoing a series of renovations designed to improve the championship golf experience. The $1.4 million project is slated for completion by March 2011, just in time for the new golf season.
The Troon Golf-managed facility is already considered one of the premier resort destinations in the Northeast, but the renovation project will offer golfers a fresh new look and experience. Highlighting the renovations to the Bay Course will be a complete bunker restoration project, complemented by re-turfed fescue mounds along the fairways and an improved drainage system on select holes.
The Pines Course will receive bunker restoration, the removal of select trees throughout the course in order to open up the fairways, and a cart-path upgrade. In addition to the on-course project work, golfers at Seaview will also enjoy new-look changes to the interior of the golf club, including a refresh of both the men’s and ladies’ locker rooms with new lockers, carpeting and showers. The golf shop will receive new carpeting, fixtures and lighting.
Miyazato holds ShopRite trophy.
Ai Miyazato celebrated her 25th birthday yesterday. This afternoon she gave herself a great birthday present, the ShopRite LPGA Classic championship. With the win, she moved into first place on the Rolex rankings, making her the top female golfer in the world. Her final round 64, including a birdie at 18, gave her a two stroke victory (-16) over second round leader M.J. Hur of South Korea. Miyazato earned her fourth win of the year on tour and her first win ever in a U.S. tournament.
Miyazato begins a championship day. (Photos by Donald Kravitz)
A dozen players started the day with a legitimate shot at the title, but Miyazato took the lead early and never lost it. When she birdied fourteen for a three stroke lead, the rest of the field knew it was playing for the runner-up spot. That included fan favorite Paula Creamer, who has a remarkable run considering she was in her first tournament since suffering a serious thumb injury that she thought might threaten her career. Instead she battled the pain all weekend and ended the day in seventh place at -10.
Imbee Park used a final round 67 to take third place (-12), followed by a trio of players at -11, Suzann Pettersen, Hee-Won Han and Katherine Hull. Hall of Fame member Karrie Webb used a final round 64 to tie for 8th place (-9) with Angela Stanford, Morgan Pressel and Karine Icher
The return of the ShopRite Classic was a major success with big crowds and great golf.
Lexi Thompson
Alexis Thompson, just 15, is making her pro debut tomorrow at the LPGA ShopRite Classic at Seaview – A Dolce Resort. The LPGA has been looking for an American player with the skill to make an impact as a top player and Lexi Thompson might be that player a few years from now.
In the meantime she will try to make a splash in her pro debut. She won’t be the youngest player ever in the ShopRite. Michelle Wie was just 13 when she played in the tournament in 2003. Paula Creamer made her debut at the ShopRite in 2004 as a 17-year-old amateur and finished second that year to champion Cristie Kerr. Creamer, who has been nursing a serious thumb injury, is making her first appearance in a tournament since her injury left her unable to play.
Pictures from the pre-event interviews, courtesy of Donald Kravitz. For a preview of the tournament go here.
Paula Creamer
Michelle Wie
Paula Creamer hopes to return to LPGA at ShopRite Classic.
Paula Creamer, one of the top players in the LPGA, has been sidelined all season by a thumb injury. However, it was announced today, May 17, that Creamer is scheduled to return to the tour when she plays at the ShopRite LPGA Classic June 14-20 at the Seaview Country Club in Galloway Township. Go here for the story.
