LPGA Tournament comes to Wilshire Country Club

Billy Taylor | April 26, 2018 | 0 Comments

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES rises behind clubhouse at Rossmore Ave. and Beverly Blvd.

Wilshire Country Club opened its gates to the best players in women’s professional golf at the HUGEL-JTBC LA Open, April 19-22.

During the four-day event, thousands of spectators descended on the venerable country club to watch players give Oscar-worthy performances in the shadow of the famed “Hollywood” sign. Fans unable to attend watched live coverage of the event on the NBC Golf Channel.

Taking the top spot, Moriya Jutanugarn, 23, from Thailand, won her first Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) tour event, taking home $225,000 in winnings.

Jutanugarn finished with a three-under par 68, leaving her at 12-under par for the tournament, two strokes ahead of Jin Young Ko and Inbee Park.

Winner Moriya Jutanugarn answers questions after victory.

The tournament, one of three new events on the LPGA 2018 schedule, featured 144 women golfers competing over 72 holes for a share of a $1.5 million purse. The Wilshire Country Club last hosted the LPGA in 2001.

Earlier in the week

The 99-year-old Club welcomed invited guests a day early for a Pro-Am tournament, whose proceeds helped cover costs of the overall event. Participating in the fun was “Dancing With the Stars” judge Len Goodman, Maroon 5 drummer Matt Flynn, KNBC-TV reporter Jane Yamamoto and former professional baseball player Nick Swisher, among others.

Word on the streets

There was a lot of spectator parking on the streets of Hancock Park during the event, and there were shuttle buses running to and from the Hollywood Bowl. Asked about local issues following the event, Hancock Park Homeowners Association president Cindy Chvatal said: “Very happy to say all went very well!”

With Koreatown located only a short distance away, Asian golf fans came out in droves to see their favorite players. Korean player Inbee Park said she felt like she was playing “back home” with so many fans in the crowd: “I never played a tournament outside of Korea having this much Korean supporters out. It’s almost like a little Korea.”

VIP accommodations and spectator bleachers at #18 hole.

The tournament, which is sponsored by Hugel, a South Korean-based maker of Botox, and Korean broadcasting company JTBC will return to Wilshire for the next two years, at least, making the event a fixture on the Los Angeles sports landscape.

Visit hugeljtbclaopen.com.