Two LPGA events may be held in Hawai'i in '05

By Bill Kwon
Special to The Advertiser

The LPGA Tour, absent from Hawai'i since the 2002 Takefuji Classic at the Waikoloa Resort, could be back here next February with season-opening, back-to-back events similar to those of the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour.

Greg Nichols, Ko Olina's director of golf, said it's "99 percent sure" that the LPGA will hold a full-field event Feb. 20 to 27 at the O'ahu resort, which was the site of the Hawaiian Ladies Open from 1990 to 1995.

A major international title sponsor has been secured, according to Nichols, who added that the event is close to signing several other presenting sponsors. An LPGA spokesperson who spoke with others in the organization said only that "discussions are ongoing" about the Hawai'i tournaments.

Having an LPGA presence here means so much for both the LPGA and Hawai'i, Nichols said.

"It's exciting. And how relevant it is now with Michelle Wie," Nichols said. "Women's golf is really strong right now. Women are the fastest growing segment in the golf industry and they are the ones who decided where to go for vacation."

LPGA Commissioner Ty Votaw told The Advertiser during the Kraft Nabisco Championship in late March that the women's tour wanted to start its season in Hawai'i.

"We've had discussions . . . with parties interested in bringing the LPGA back and we are hopeful that we'll be able to do that," said Votaw, adding that the interest Wie has generated is helping Hawaii's chances of landing a new event.

Another of the parties involved in the attempt to bring back the LPGA is Waikoloa Resort's Thos Rohr, who is trying to line up sponsors for a champions-only tournament the week before the full-field event at Ko Olina.

"We're working on it. It's expensive. It costs $3 million, and a TV deal is important," said Rohr, adding that back-to-back tournaments for the LPGA like the other two tours makes sense.

If it happens, the LPGA will follow a season-opening schedule like the PGA Tour, which starts the year at Kapalua with the Mercedes Championships, for winners from the previous season. The following week the PGA goes to Waialae Country Club for the Sony Open in Hawai'i.

Beginning next year, the Champions Tour will open with the MasterCard Championship at Hualalai on the Big Island and then its first full-field event, the Turtle Bay Championship, which previously had been held in October.