FOUNDERS TRIBUTE PREVIEW

MESA, Ariz. — The third stop on the 2020 “Road to the LPGA” takes the Symetra Tour to Longbow Golf Club in the Grand Canyon State for the inaugural Founders Tribute. The event is named in honor of the 13 women that established the LPGA in 1950 to pave the way for female golfers.

The Founders Tribute is the second tournament of the Symetra Tour’s return to play following a four-month hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship at Battle Creek Country Club in Battle Creek, Mich., from July 24-26, was the official restart to the 2020 season.

“FireKeepers Casino Hotel and the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi were honored to be the first stop back for the Symetra Tour and these professional women golfers,” said Kathy George, the Tournament Director and FireKeepers Casino Hotel CEO. “The protocols and back to play plan the Tour had in place, in conjunction with the FireKeepers Casino Hotel protocols, were very thorough and met all local CDC guidelines and state regulations. We are looking forward to following the players throughout the rest of the 2020 season starting with their next event in Arizona.”

The same back to play protocol will remain in effect for the Founders Tribute and is one of the many reasons Visit Mesa is excited to host the Symetra Tour. Mesa offers the opportunity to experience the beauty of the desert with all the comforts of home. Known as “City Limitless,” the geographic location of Mesa allows for majestic views of the Superstition Mountains, picturesque drives into Tonto National Forest and unforgettable experiences of local culture.

“Visit Mesa is extremely excited and honored to welcome back the Symetra Tour to Longbow Golf Club this August for the inaugural Founders Tribute,” said Suzanne Cecil, Director of Sports at Visit Mesa. “Mesa has a long history in hosting notable and highly competitive golf championships. We are confident that Symetra Tour athletes will be challenged by, yet relish their time on, a true desert course such as Longbow.”

Greeting the 144-player field in Mesa, Ariz., is a total purse of $125,000. Individuals are set to compete in a 54-hole stroke play format with a cut to the low 60 players and ties after 36 holes. The winner’s share for the event is $18,750.

University of Arizona alumna Krystal Quihuis (Tucson, Arizona) is eager to compete in her home state and is looking forward to playing the desert course where she has found success before.

“When the new tournament schedule came out, I was thrilled to see we had a tournament in my home state, especially at Longbow Golf Club,” said Quihuis. “I won the AJGA’s PING Heather Farr Classic in 2013 and it brings back great memories. I’m looking forward to playing in this prestigious event, and I am very excited to see my friends from the Tour in Arizona.”

Action gets underway at 7:00 a.m. MST all three days with play starting off No. 1 and No. 10 tees in each round. A trophy presentation on No. 18 green is set to follow final round play.

ABOUT THE SYMETRA TOUR

The Symetra Tour is the official qualifying tour of the LPGA Tour and enters its 40th competitive season in 2020. With the support of entitlement partner Symetra, the Tour’s mission is to prepare the world’s best young women professional golfers for a successful career on the LPGA Tour. Since Symetra’s inaugural sponsorship year in 2012, the Symetra Tour has grown from 16 tournaments and $1.7 million in prize money to a record $4.0 million in prize money awarded in 2019. With more than 600 alumnae moving on to the LPGA, former Symetra Tour players have won a total of 445 LPGA titles. Follow the Symetra Tour on the web at www.SymetraTour.com, as well as Facebook.com/Road2LPGA, Twitter.com/Road2LPGA and Instagram @road2lpga.

ABOUT SYMETRA 

Symetra Life Insurance Company is a subsidiary of Symetra Financial Corporation, a diversified financial services company based in Bellevue, Washington. In business since 1957, Symetra provides employee benefits, annuities and life insurance through a national network of benefit consultants, financial institutions and independent agents and advisors. Symetra began its partnership with the Road to the LPGA in 2010 as the title sponsor of the Symetra Classic. It secured naming rights for the Symetra Tour in November 2011. In addition to its title sponsorship of the Tour, which runs through 2021, Symetra sponsors two events on the tournament schedule—the Symetra Classic and the season-ending Symetra Tour Championship. For more information about Symetra, visit www.symetra.com.