ING New England Golf Classic
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The ING New England Golf Classic was an annual golf tournament for professional women golfers on the Futures Tour, the LPGA Tour's developmental tour. The event was played from 1999 to 2011 in the Hartford, Connecticut area.
Prior to 2009, the tournament had various title sponsors, most recently CIGNA, a health service company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 2009 season opened with the tournament lacking a title sponsor. In mid-June 2009 it was announced that ING, a global financial institution, would become the new title sponsor.[1]
The tournament was a 54-hole event, as are most Futures Tour tournaments, and includes pre-tournament pro-am opportunities, in which local amateur golfers can play with the professional golfers from the Tour as a benefit for local charities. The benefiting charity from the New England Golf Classic was Chip in for a Cure, a Connecticut-based breast cancer charity.
Tournament names through the years:
- 1999: SNET Women's Classic
- 2000: Connecticut Futures Golf Classic
- 2001–2003: Lincoln Financial Futures Golf Classic
- 2004: GMAC Futures Golf Classic
- 2005–2008: CIGNA Golf Classic
- 2009–2011: ING New England Golf Classic
Winners
[edit]| Year | Champion | Country | Score | Tournament location | Purse ($) | Winner's share ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Riko Higashio |  Japan | 206 (−7) | Blue Fox Run Golf Course | 50,000 | 6,600 |
| 2000^* | Christel Tomori |  United States | 140 (−2) | Blue Fox Run Golf Course | 50,000 | 7,000 |
| 2001* | Kathryn Cusick | United States | 212 (−1) | Blue Fox Run Golf Course | 60,000 | 8,400 |
| 2002 | Linda Ishii | Japan | 208 (−5) | Blue Fox Run Golf Course | 60,000 | 8,400 |
| 2003 | Stacy Prammanasudh | United States | 203 (−10) | Blue Fox Run Golf Course | 60,000 | 8,400 |
| 2004 | Nicole Perrot |  Chile | 209 (−4) | Blue Fox Run Golf Course | 70,000 | 9,800 |
| 2005^ | Virada Nirapathpongporn |  Thailand | 142 (−2) | Gillette Ridge Golf Club | 70,000 | 9,800 |
| 2006 | Song-Hee Kim |  South Korea | 216 (E) | Gillette Ridge Golf Club | 70,000 | 9,800 |
| 2007* | Taylor Leon | United States | 215 (−1) | Gillette Ridge Golf Club | 80,000 | 11,200 |
| 2008 | Vicky Hurst | United States | 209 (−7) | Gillette Ridge Golf Club | 80,000 | 11,200 |
| 2009 | Dewi Claire Schreefel |  Netherlands | 202 (−8) | Wintonbury Hills Golf Course | 100,000 | 14,000 |
| 2010 | Tiffany Joh | United States | 200 (−10) | Wintonbury Hills Golf Course | 100,000 | 14,000 |
| 2011 | Brittany Johnston | United States | 199 (−11) | Wintonbury Hills Golf Course | 100,000 | 14,000 |
^ Tournament shortened to 36 holes because of rain.
* Championship won in sudden-death playoff.
Tournament records
[edit]| Year | Player | Score | Round | Course |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Nicole Materne | 65 (−6) | 1st | Blue Fox Run Golf Course |
| 2002 | Michele Vinieratos | 65 (−6) | 2nd | Blue Fox Run Golf Course |
| 2007 | Mollie Fankhauswer | 67 (−5) | 1st | Gillette Ridge Golf Club |
| 2009 | Song Yi Choi | 64 (−6) | 1st | Wintonbury Hills Golf Course |