Sybase to hold LPGA Match Play event in Gladstone

Posted via MyCentralJersey.com:

The LPGA's Match Play Championship is returning to Hamilton Farm Golf Club.

Octagon and Sybase Inc. have announced that Sybase will sponsor the 64-player tournament from May 20-23.

A field of 64 players will be invited to compete in the $1.5-million event. The winner will earn $375,000, which is tied for the third largest payout on the LPGA Tour in 2010.

"Sybase is excited to extend our partnership with the LPGA by sponsoring the Sybase Match Play Championship," Sybase chief executive John Chen said. "We are committed to providing outstanding opportunities for world-class golf as well as valuable charity endeavors."

Sybase was the title sponsor of the Sybase Classic on the LPGA tour from 2001-09, with the last three years being played at the Upper Montclair Country Club in Clifton.

The club and Octagon, which manages the event, decided not to renew their contract and for a while it seemed that Sybase would not have an event this year.

"We're pleased that Sybase has enabled the LPGA to bring a prestigious women's golf event back to the Greater New York area," LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan said.

Hamilton Farm Golf Club was the site of the Women's World Match Play Championship in 2005 and '06, when the event was sponsored by HSBC.

"We are very thankful for our great partners at Sybase and Hamilton Farm Golf Club for their continued support of women's golf," said Andy Bush of Octagon Golf, who also serves as the event's executive director. "It took a lot of hard work and dedication to make this happen, and we are thrilled to continue Sybase's nine-year commitment to the LPGA."

The hilly Hamilton Farm course was designed by Dr. Michael Hurdzan and Dana Fry.