Rich Harvest site of 2016 LPGA International Crown

    Writing from Chicago
    Thursday, January 24, 2013

    The LPGA is taking Jerry Rich’s big idea and running with it.
    Even before the 2009 Solheim Cup at Rich’s estate course, Rich Harvest Links in Sugar Grove, the multimillionaire software wizard and golf nut wanted to establish another international tournament that his course would host. He wanted one that would go beyond the Solheim’s U.S. vs. Europe mimicking of the Ryder Cup and encompass the entire world of women’s golf.
    And it appeared it was going to happen sooner rather than later. Then the Great Recession upset the financial markets, and corporate sponsors shied away from the concept. Navistar, which was said to be close to committing, was among those backing off.
    The idea was dormant.
    Then Mike Whan became the commissioner of the LPGA. First, he had to stop the bleeding away of corporate dollars, which was shrinking the tournament schedule.
    Done.
    Then he set about shoring up the tournaments that remained, and building new alliances with sponsors.
    Done.
    Then he commenced adding tournaments to the schedule, including three starting in 2013.
    Done. Well done, in fact.
    Along the way, on his idea list was Rich’s international tournament. It had to be. Three days after he took over the LPGA helm, Rich had him to Rich Harvest and pitched the idea anew.
    In 2014, it will become reality. The International Crown, the second of which will be played at Rich Harvest Links in 2016, will feature the top four players from each of the top eight-ranked countries in the world of women’s golf, as tabbed by the Rolex World Rankings.
    That means the best players from South Korea, Taiwan, the U.S., Sweden, etc. Unlike the PGA Tour’s President’s Cup, which features the U.S. against the rest of the world, excluding Europe, everybody will be eligible to compete in this international party.
    The IC will run four days and feature three days of alternate shot matches, with a final day of 10 individual matches between the top players from the five countries advancing through the three-day battles within two groups of four teams. There are provisions for a sudden-death playoff to determine that fifth team to play on Sunday, and the potential of a sudden-death playoff for the title.
    There’s also a $1.6 million purse, with $100,000 for each member of the winning team. The LPGA figures to make a bundle on this, as it does when the Solheim Cup when it’s played in the U.S., and is wise to cut the players in immediately.
    This is also a more interesting format than the Olympics will have. The 2016 Rio rodeo, assuming a golf course is built there, will be a 72-hole stroke play tournament not unlike most every week on every professional circuit. The International Crown, like the Solheim, Ryder, Walker, Curtis and so on in the cup department, will be match play, with all the angst and excitement that goes with it.
    The inaugural International Crown will be played at Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Md., near Baltimore, from July 24-27, 2014. The second edition will take place at Rich Harvest, the precise dates in 2016 to be determined.
    The biannual tournament seems destined to be played overseas – think they could sell a ticket or two in South Korea or Taiwan? – but Whan said for the time being, it will reside in the U.S. Television will likely have something to say about that.
    Rich was at the announcement of the IC on Thursday at the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, Fla., beaming in the front row while wearing his Rich Harvest jacket, something harvested from the Bruce Roberts collection.
    “Our challenge was, how do we bolster all the excitement that happens in all the homecomings (at tournaments the LPGA has overseas),” Whan said. “It’s an awesome thing that’s happening in women’s golf.”
    Whan said he didn’t want to replicate the President’s Cup, but give the golf world something new.
    “Let’s introduce something to the world of golf that can really take advantage of the women’s game,” Whan said.
    “(This) is the only time I can play for my country, and it means a lot to me,” said Yani Tseng, the top-ranked player from Taiwan. “I love to wear those uniforms, have that bag. You look so good in it! Every time I’ve watched the Solheim Cup, I’ve wished I could be there.
    “To (have the chance to) be the best country in golf, it’s a very exciting thing for me.”
    Top-ranked American Stacy Lewis, last year’s player of the year, is thrilled with the concept.
    “Finally, that was my reaction,” Lewis said. “We’ve been waiting a long time for this. In Solheim Cups, you see the players’ personalities more. There’s more emotion, more passion. I think the public and our viewers are going to see that passion in the other countries, too. They’ll get to know the other players better.
    “It’s a great opportunity for the stars, the big names of our tour, to get out there and raise the event up.”
    The IC is different from other team events for another reason. There will be no coaches nor captains. The four players on each team will decide their pairings in the best-ball competition, and also which player would play in a potential sudden-death playoff. The team meetings might be as interesting as the competition.
    For Chicago, the 2016 edition at Rich Harvest will fill the hole that will be created by the expected, though not yet signed and sealed, placing of the BMW / Western Open at Harding Park in San Francisco. The BMW / Western is essentially a Chicago tournament only in odd-numbered years, and elsewhere. There’s a hole in the 2014 schedule aside from the Champions Tour tournament to be held at North Shore Country Club, but in 2016, that hole will be filled to the brim.
    – Tim Cronin