Kevin Purcell, executive director of the New Jersey State Golf Association, and some key staff were doing their usual goodwill last fall with a visit to iconic Baltusrol Golf Club to discuss how the organization could help the PGA of America with the upcoming KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
The discussions there evolved into a celebration known as the Year of Women’s Golf in New Jersey.
With four LPGA events in the Garden State and the inaugural New Jersey Women’s Open Championship in 2023, there is certainly ample reason for recognition, programming and special events.
“After finding out about all the LPGA events that are coming up to the area, we said we should focus on this somehow and make a big deal,” Purcell said. “We had already been talking about the Women’s Open and we had some success with women’s golf days.”
The cover of the association’s winter magazine headlined the initiative and rolled out the idea to the golf public.
“We are talking all the time about how to reach more women,” Purcell said. “When we go to the IAGA (International Association of Golf Administrators) and PGA conferences, there is always talk about how to get more women in the game, so it’s been a focus for us for a while. It is something that the board takes to heart, that we need to provide more programming and get more women involved.”
Purcell was quick to point out the good work of the wide variety of in-state women’s golf associations, which include the LPGA Amateur Golf Association (multiple New Jersey chapters), Women’s Golf Association of New Jersey (WGANJ), Women’s Metropolitan Golf Association (WMGA), Garden State Women’s Golf Association (GSWGA), Women’s New Jersey Golf Association (WNJGA) and The Dufferettes.
“We want to support them and turn some attention to the opportunities at the New Jersey State Golf Association, through events and our championships,” Purcell said.
The first example came on National Girls and Women in Sports Day on February 1. For the second year, the NJSGA organized an event at its headquarters at Galloping Hill Golf Course in Kenilworth, New Jersey.
NBC Sports’ Kathyrn Tappen, Golf4Her founder Christina Thompson and former Evans scholar Samantha Boehmcke presented encouraging and engaging viewpoints on the opportunities that are available for high school and college-age females who aspire to a career in sports.
“By looking at Title IX history, you can see where we came from in the past, where we are now, and where we can go in the future,” Tappen told the NJSGA audience. “You can implement changes using your voice.”
Other ideas are targeted for the Year of Women’s Golf in New Jersey, including the association’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony on May 3 for decorated amateur/administrator Ann Probert, architect Robert Trent Jones Sr., and Golden Age player Oswald Kirkby. This addition comes right before the LPGA envelopes the state with competition.
The first of four LPGA events in 2023 is the Cognizant Founder’s Cup at Upper Montclair Country Club (May 11-14), followed by the Mizuho Americas Open at Liberty National Golf Club (June 1-4), the ShopRite LPGA Classic at Seaview Golf Club (June 9-11), and the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Baltusrol (June 22-25).
And then there is the inaugural New Jersey Women’s Open Championship on June 21-22, a 36-hole stroke-play event at Montclair Golf Club (using the second and third nines). Golf aficionados in New Jersey can take a page from Chicago Cubs Hall of Famer Ernie Banks’ famous line “Let’s play two” on June 22, and take in the Women’s PGA and the New Jersey Women’s Open. The courses are approximately 15 miles apart.
“I believe we are entering a very exciting era of women’s golf in New Jersey and the region.” – Michelle Melia
The concept for the New Jersey Women’s Open was first suggested by Noelle Maertz, who played college golf at Wagner College, and her swing coach Jeff Maines, one of the pros at Montclair. It was approved almost immediately after presentation to the NJSGA board and staff.
“We have a number of female amateurs who were winning our Junior Girls and Women’s Amateur six or seven years ago, and some of them turned professional after they left college,” said Brad Bardon, the NJSGA director of championships. “This gives them a chance to come back to New Jersey and compete for a purse. Maybe this becomes their first professional win, which launches them into a successful Epson (Tour) season and then becoming an LPGA player. I’ve also thought about what happens when players determine that the tour is not their ultimate goal, and now maybe that allows them to come back to New Jersey and become a club professional knowing they have the State Open and some other opens to play in.”
The Open will be limited to 78 contestants – 46 pros and 32 amateurs. The NJSGA is actively in discussions with a sponsor and purse details are still pending.
The initiative for the Year of Women’s Golf in New Jersey has surely resonated. Take the words of Michelle Melia, a former Rutgers University player who was the coach of the Monmouth University women’s team and Fairleigh Dickinson University’s men’s and women’s teams.
“I believe we are entering a very exciting era of women’s golf in New Jersey and the region,” said Melia, who is a recent inductee into the FDU Hall of Fame with her 2007-2008 team. “This past year marked the 50th anniversary of Title IX. When I began my golf career as a junior there were very limited opportunities for girls and women. In 2023, we will see the NJSGA conduct its first ever Women’s Open, and the LPGA will host four events.
“Over my professional career, I have watched an explosion of girls and women playing the game. 2023 is definitely the Year of Women’s Golf in New Jersey.”