(Sandwich, Mass. – September 6, 2023) – The Legends of the LPGA are poised to appear on Cape Cod for the 6th staging of the BJ’s Charity Championship this Friday, September 8, and the field is jam-packed with some of the greatest names in the history of women’s golf. In a rare team event format, 12 pairs of Legends will partner up and compete in an 18-hole, two-woman scramble at The Ridge Club in Sandwich, Mass. Tee times start at 9:30 a.m.
“This year’s pairings are stellar,” says LPGA & World Golf Hall of Famer Pat Bradley of West Hyannisport, Mass. Bradley teamed up with Jamie Fischer of Lake Forest, Ill, in last year’s event when the pair combined for a tournament record score of 59 to win by two shots. “You’ve got Trish Johnson, the U.S. Senior Women’s Open champion, plus Patricia Meunier-Lebouc who is playing well right now. And Juli Inkster is back with Pat Hurst, so it’s going to be a tough road,” points out the defending champion.
“Miracles do happen though,” adds Bradley at the prospect of a repeat performance for her and Fischer. “I felt one last year.”
Two years ago, World Golf Hall of Famer Jan Stephenson and two-time LPGA Tour champion Laura Diaz played their way into the BJ’s Charity Championship winner’s circle with a simple strategy they hope to repeat.
“I’m not a long hitter,” admits Stephenson, a 16-time LPGA Tour champion with three major championship titles. “Playing it from where she hits it is really fun. I get to hit my short irons a lot, and I love to do that. My job is to get the ball close and make the putts. Hers is to bomb it. That’s what we did before, but I think she’s hitting it even further this year.”
Diaz is excited to return to the Ridge and hopes to give the fans something to remember, noting that holes 17 and 18 have traditionally provided plenty of drama in the end. “At 17, the fans sit behind the green and it’s really set up for making a hole-in-one or getting it close,” says Diaz. “The par 5 18th is a ‘go for it’ hole with a good drive. It’s pretty much an island green, so it’s a risk reward for sure. That first year when we won, we hit the green in two and had a good look at eagle. Fans always like to watch eagle putts go in, so it’s a terrific finishing hole.”
Rosie Jones and Michele Redman
Other previous champions in the field include two-time LPGA Tour winner Michele Redman, who won the event with Patti Rizzo in 2017 and Rosie Jones in 2019, and Trish Johnson, a winner with Dame Laura Davies in 2018. Redman and Jones, a 13-time winner on the LPGA Tour with eight wins on the Legends Tour, will team up once again for this year’s tournament. Johnson, a three-time senior women’s golf major championship title holder, will team up with LET standout Becky Morgan.
“Becky is one of my best mates on the European tour, and she’s fun and easy going,” says Johnson, winner of the U.S. Senior Women’s Open in August. “I think we’ll have a great time.”
Ridge Club member and tournament host Jane Blalock of Cambridge, Mass., a 27-time LPGA Tour champion, will team up for the third consecutive year with fellow Kraft Nabisco (now known as The Chevron Championship) winner Patricia Meunier-Lebouc of France. “The course is in the best shape I’ve ever seen it,” says Blalock. “Despite all the rain we had this summer, the big heat wave and so forth, our superintendent, Parish, has spent a lot of time getting it ready just for us, which is special.”
Gates open at 9:00 a.m. and admission is free. There is no parking at The Ridge Club, but fans can park for free next door at Holly Ridge Golf Course where shuttles will be available to and from the main tournament entrance. Tee times featuring six foursomes run from 9:30 a.m. to 10:20 a.m. on Hole 1. Play is expected to finish at approximately 3:30 p.m. A trophy ceremony will immediately follow play on the 18th green.
For more information, please visit LegendsoftheLPGA.com.
Patricia Meunier-Lebouc and Jane Blalock
Here are the Pairings and Tee Times for the BJ’s Charity Championship on Friday, September 8, 2023:
9:30 a.m.
Jane Blalock & Patricia Meunier-Lebouc
Sherri Steinhauer & Hollis Stacy (HOF)
9:40 a.m.
Elaine Crosby & Cathy Johnston-Forbes
Michelle McGann & Suzy Whaley
9:50 a.m.
Lorie Kane & Nancy Scranton
Jan Stephenson (HOF) & Laura Diaz
10:00 a.m.
Wendy Ward & Vicki Goetz-Ackerman
Rosie Jones & Michele Redman
10:10 a.m.
Juli Inkster (HOF) & Pat Hurst
Becky Morgan & Trish Johnson
10:20 a.m. Liselotte Neumann & Alicia Dibos Pat Bradley (HOF) & Jamie Fischer
PHOTO Credit: Rick and Linda Sharp
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About BJ’s Charitable Foundation Established in 2004 by BJ’s Wholesale Club, the BJ’s Charitable Foundation provides essentials needs to families in the local communities BJ’s members and team members live and work. Through local and national non-profit partnerships, the Foundation focuses its giving efforts on three main pillars: hunger relief, education and health and wellness. Learn more at https://www.bjs.com/esg
About the Legends of the LPGA The Legends of the LPGA is the official senior tour of the LPGA providing competitive opportunities for LPGA Tour professionals and eligible amateurs, age 45 and over. The tour was founded in 2000 by twenty-five veteran LPGA Tour professionals with the goal of continuing to showcase the talents of some of the greatest women golfers of all time. Legends of the LPGA members, including 15 LPGA and World Golf Hall of Fame members, have combined for over 750 LPGA Tour victories including eighty-four major championships. Legends of the LPGA has helped raise nearly $30 million for charity. For more information on the Legends of the LPGA, visit LegendsoftheLPGA.com or follow the Legends on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter at @legendsofthelpga.