The inaugural Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational marked the birth of the first-ever official LPGA Tour team event, and the well-received event generated a lot of interest from players and fans looking for a unique format.
For the second year of the event, the tournament will be even more appealing. In 2020, the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational will have the biggest purse on the LPGA Tour outside of the five majors and the CME Group Tour Championship, coming in at $2.3 million. The first-place team at Midland Country Club in Michigan will split a $559,000 payout.
In 2019, Cydney Clanton and Jasmine Suwannapura won by six shots over Jin Young Ko and Minjee Lee to split $482,538.
The 2020 Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational will be played July 15-18.
The five LPGA majors and the CME Group Tour Championship will be the only events on the schedule to have larger purses.
The U.S. Women's Open has the biggest purse in women's golf, with the United States Golf Association setting the 2019 purse to $5.5 million, with the winner getting a record $1,000,000. The season-ending CME Group Tour Championship has the second-largest purse at $5 million, with a $1.5 million first-place payout as the largest on tour.
The AIG Women's British Open has the third-largest purse in women's golf, with the R&A increasing the 2019 purse by $1.25 million to $4.5 million in 2019.
The Evian Championship has the fourth-largest purse in women's golf, with its purse set at $3.85 million. The fifth-largest LPGA purse in women's golf is the KPMG Women's PGA Championship, which is currently at $3.65 million. The ANA Inspiration, the first major of the year, has a purse under $3 million.
“We were incredibly proud to bring the best female golfers in the world to the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational,” said Jim Fitterling, chief executive officer of Dow. “As a company and as an LPGA tournament host, we look forward to continuing our efforts to make this one of the premiere stops on the LPGA Tour and hosting visitors from around the Great Lakes Bay Region and beyond.”
This year's Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational attracted 35,000 visitors to the Great Lakes Bay Region throughout the course of the event. More than 1,000 volunteers helped the tournament. More than $500,000 was donated to nonprofits throughout the region thanks to the tournament.
