LPGABrian KeoghLeona Maguire, Marathon Classic, LPGA Drive On Championship, Mike Whan

Leona Maguire keen for return as LPGA announces July 31 restart

LPGABrian KeoghLeona Maguire, Marathon Classic, LPGA Drive On Championship, Mike Whan
Leona Maguire keen for return as LPGA announces July 31 restart
Leona Maguire. Image ©INPHO/Morgan Treacy

Leona Maguire. Image ©INPHO/Morgan Treacy

Leona Maguire can’t wait to get back into action when the LPGA Tour resumes its 2020 season with back-to-back events in Northwest Ohio from the end of July.

The Marathon LPGA Classic presented by Dana, which had been scheduled to take place July 23-26 at Highland Meadows Golf Club in Sylvania, Ohio, has accommodated the LPGA request to shift its dates and will now be held Aug. 6-9.

“Golf is Back!!,” the Co Cavan star tweeted. “Excited to get back out competing again.”

One of the longest-running events on the LPGA Tour, the Marathon LPGA Classic will allow spectators on site following recent approval from Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.

This schedule adjustment allows the LPGA Tour to add a new three-day event in the Toledo area and provide its Members with an additional playing opportunity during the shortened 2020 season.

The Tour will now return to competition with a new event for the 2020 season, the LPGA Drive On Championship. The three-day, official tournament will be held July 31 to Aug. 2 at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio.

Televised on Golf Channel, the LPGA Drive On Championship will feature a field of 144 players competing for a $1 million purse and will take place without sponsors, pro-ams or spectators.

It will provide LPGA Tour players and TV viewers with an early look at the famed Inverness Club, which has hosted U.S. Opens and USGA National Championships, PGA Championships, NCAA Championships and is the venue for the 2021 Solheim Cup.

“Thanks in part to the generosity of our partners who could not reschedule their events in 2020, we are adding a valuable additional playing opportunity for our LPGA Tour members,” said LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan.

“We are so appreciative of our longtime partners, Marathon and Dana, as well as the memberships at Highland Meadows and Inverness, for adjusting their schedules and helping us create a valuable two-week stretch in the Toledo area as we work to safely return to competition.

“This new event will allow us to test our COVID-19 protocols before we get to welcome back our fans at the Marathon LPGA Classic presented by Dana.”