On Tuesday, July 24th, sixty-three of the top female competitors from Kentucky and beyond will begin their quest to capture the 22nd Kentucky Women’s Open Championship. Conducted by the Kentucky PGA, the tournament will be played at University of Louisville Golf Club in Simpsonville, Kentucky and is open to female amateur and professional golfers. Mobile Pro Shop is a presenting sponsor of the championship, providing a unique player gift for all of the competitors in the field.

Tournament Links: Round One Starting Times | Tournament Field

Last Year’s Championship: Molly Skapik of Miamsiburg, Ohio began the 2017 Women’s Open in record fashion, shooting a blistering seven under-par 64 on day one at the Harmony Landing Campus at Big Spring Country Club. Despite facing some challenges on day two, her closing 75 was enough for a one stroke victory over Lauren Hartlage of Elizabethtown, KY. Since her victory last year, Skapik turned professional and has picked up a pair of top-10 finishes in the Ohio and Michigan Women’s Open’s, and qualified for LPGA’s Marathon Classic in Toledo, Ohio.

A total of 63 players will be vying for the Kentucky Women’s Open Championship, of which 50 are amateurs and 13 are professionals.

There are a total of three past Kentucky Women’s Open champions in the field. They are:

Christine Lindsey, Louisville, KY – 2002 Champion

Taryn Walker, Crestwood, KY - 2011 Champion

Molly Skapik, Miamsiburg, OH - 2017 Champion

At just fifteen years of age, Emily Allen (a) of Shelbyville, Kentucky is the youngest player in the field this week. Allen has picked up three victories thus far this season on the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour presented by Musselman-Kirchdorfer, and recently finished seventh at the Kentucky PGA Junior Tour Championship.

2018 Kentucky Girls Junior Amateur Champion Rylea Marcum (a) of Georgetown, KY will be seeking to capture her first Kentucky Women’s Open title. Marcum played near perfect golf at Cherry Blossom Golf Club, shooting rounds of 70-68—138 for a two stroke victory over Madison Smith (a) of Union, Kentucky, who is also in the field. In fact, four of the top five finishers in the Kentucky Girls Junior Amateur are seeking to capture the Women’s Open title (Rylea Marcum, Madison Smith, Molly Bebelaar and Taylor Edlin).

Elizabeth Elmassian of Willoughby, Australia had the longest commute of any player in the field. Willoughby is located just north of Sydney and is roughly 9,300 miles “as the crow flies” from Simpsonville, Kentucky. Elmassian was runner-up in the 2015 Australian Amateur before turning professional in 2016. She is making her Kentucky Women’s Open debut this week at University of Louisville Golf Club.

Amanda Dixon of Hillsboro, Ohio finished last year’s Women’s Open as the low professional, earning her the $1,500 first place professional prize. Dixon shot rounds of 76-75—151 for a five shot advantage over Cathy Edelen.

This year’s University of Louisville Women’s Golf team became just the second in program history to advance to the NCAA Championship, where they made the cut and finished in 15th place. A total of four players from the 2017-18 team are in the field. They are: Kristin Engle (a) (Barbourville, KY), Lauren Hartlage (a) (Elizabethtown, KY), Meghan Nay (a) (Canton, GA), and Molly Skapik (Miamisburg, OH).

About the Course: Originally built as “The Cardinal Club”, the course has been owned and operated by the University of Louisville since 2014. The course was originally designed by Spencer Holt and features wide, rolling fairways guarded by fescue and a difficult set of green complexes. The course, which is also home to the Men’s and Women’s Golf Teams, has hosted numerous championships including the 2015 Kentucky Women’s Open.

Total Par & Yardage: 6,137 yards – Par 36-36—72

Hole-By-Hole:

Holes 1-9 will play at 3,045 yards and a par of 36

Holes 10-18 will play at 3,092 yards and a par of 36