Evian Masters inked as the fifth major on LPGA Tour
Evian Masters has been added to the list of majors on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour. The event, co-sanctioned by Ladies European Tour (LET) and LPGA, will be executed as the fifth major of the season from 2013 onwards.
The news was disseminated via Golfweek in their weekly edition. According to the magazine, the tournament officials and LPGA commissioner Mike Whan reached a contract after the tournament agreed to incorporate a few changes in the Evian Masters Golf Club,
which is the venue for the four-day event. According to the insiders, the LPGA officials demanded the tournament officials to lengthen the course, which currently stretches on 6,344 yards.
After this change, Evian Masters will be scheduled after Women’s British Open, which takes place after the US Women’s Open, the LPGA Championship and the Kraft Nabisco Championship.
This is the first time that a change has been brought in the schedule of major championships since 2001. Earlier, the du Maruier Classic was included in the majors from 1979-2000, but was soon struck off due to some complications related with the sponsors
and course conditions.
After this change, there is a possibility of another major addition to the tour schedule. The LPGA officials are considering adding an Asian major to the schedule and increase the number of majors to six. That means, there will be six major winners competing
for the Super Grand Slam. However, another speculation says that an American major will be dropped out of the major series.
With the addition of Evian Masters as a fifth event to the line-up of majors, LPGA has earned itself the credit of being the second tour to have five majors. Before LPGA, the Champions Tour set the record of holding five majors in a season, in 2003.
While LPGA now holds the honour of staging five major championships, it also means that there will be five major winners each season. That makes the Grand Slam all the more competitive and it will be interesting to see how this new development shapes the
season after 2013.
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