The ING New England Golf Classic was an annual golf tournament for professional women golfers on the Futures Tour, the LPGA Tour's developmental tour. The event was played from 1999 to 2011 in the Hartford, Connecticut area.
Prior to 2009, the tournament had various title sponsors, most recently CIGNA, a health service company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The 2009 season opened with the tournament lacking a title sponsor. In mid-June 2009 it was announced that ING, a global financial institution, would become the new title sponsor.
The tournament was a 54-hole event, as are most Futures Tour tournaments, and includes pre-tournament pro-am opportunities, in which local amateur golfers can play with the professional golfers from the Tour as a benefit for local charities. The benefiting charity from the New England Golf Classic was Chip in for a Cure, a Connecticut-based breast cancer charity.
Tournament names through the years: 1999: SNET Women's Classic 2000: Connecticut Futures Golf Classic 2001–2003: Lincoln Financial Futures Golf Classic 2004: GMAC Futures Golf Classic 2005–2008: CIGNA Golf Classic 2009–2011: ING New England Golf Classic
Winners Year Champion Country Score Tournamentlocation Purse ($) Winner'sshare ($)1999 Riko Higashio 206 (−7) Blue Fox Run Golf Course 50,000 6,6002000^* Christel Tomori 140 (−2) Blue Fox Run Golf Course 50,000 7,0002001* Kathryn Cusick 212 (−1) Blue Fox Run Golf Course 60,000 8,4002002 Linda Ishii 208 (−5) Blue Fox Run Golf Course 60,000 8,4002003 Stacy Prammanasudh 203 (−10) Blue Fox Run Golf Course 60,000 8,4002004 Nicole Perrot 209 (−4) Blue Fox Run Golf Course 70,000 9,8002005^ Virada Nirapathpongporn 142 (−2) Gillette Ridge Golf Club 70,000 9,8002006 Song-Hee Kim 216 (E) Gillette Ridge Golf Club 70,000 9,8002007* Taylor Leon 215 (−1) Gillette Ridge Golf Club 80,000 11,2002008 Vicky Hurst 209 (−7) Gillette Ridge Golf Club 80,000 11,2002009 Dewi Claire Schreefel 202 (−8) Wintonbury Hills Golf Course 100,000 14,0002010 Tiffany Joh 200 (−10) Wintonbury Hills Golf Course 100,000 14,0002011 Brittany Johnston 199 (−11) Wintonbury Hills Golf Course 100,000 14,000 ^ Tournament shortened to 36 holes because of rain. * Championship won in sudden-death playoff.
Tournament records Year Player Score Round Course2002 Nicole Materne 65 (−6) 1st Blue Fox Run Golf Course2002 Michele Vinieratos 65 (−6) 2nd Blue Fox Run Golf Course2007 Mollie Fankhauswer 67 (−5) 1st Gillette Ridge Golf Club2009 Song Yi Choi 64 (−6) 1st Wintonbury Hills Golf Course
References
External links Futures Tour official website Blue Fox Run Golf Course official website Gillette Ridge Golf Club official website Wintonbury Hills Golf Course official website