Grow-the-game initiatives have been popping up around the globe for male amateurs for the past decade, but now women’s opportunities are catching up, too. On Monday, the R&A, together with the ANNIKA Foundation, announced the creation of the first Women’s Amateur Latin America.
The event mirrors the Latin America Amateur Championship created for men in 2015. That event debuted at Pilar Golf in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and the women’s version will, too. The inaugural event will take place Sept. 3-6, 2020.
A 60-woman field will compete over four days and 72 holes of stroke play. Players will be invited based on their position in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. Two players, Texas Tech junior Sofia Garcia of Paraguay and Agustina Zeballos, 16, of Argentina, are currently ranked among the top 20 in the WAGR. Both have secured invitations to the upcoming Augusta National Women’s Amateur. Zeballos won last year’s ANNIKA Invitational Latin America.
A spot in the AIG Women’s British Open is on the line at the Women’s Amateur Latin America. Sorenstam, whose foundation puts on five invitationals around the globe for junior girls, called it a major milestone for that global circuit of women’s golf events.
“Not only are we furthering our influence in a region that we feel holds great promise for growth, but offering the winner a place in the AIG Women’s British Open speaks to the great strides we’ve made since our first ANNIKA Invitational Latin America in 2016,” she said. “This is a big day for golf in Latin America and we’re honored to be a part of it.”
The Women’s Amateur Latin America is a similar initiative to the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific, which was to be played later this month for the second time. Due to concerns over coronavirus in the region, the event in Thailand has been postponed.
“It is important for us to provide the very best women’s amateur golfers in Latin America with opportunities to compete and excel at the very highest level as part of our drive to grow and develop golf in key regions around the world,” Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said.
“We have seen how the Latin America Amateur Championship has unearthed talents such as Abel Gallegos, Joaquin Niemann and Alvaro Ortiz and so we look forward to working with the ANNIKA Foundation to replicating this success and identifying the next generation of golfers in the women’s game in the years to come.”
