2013 LPGA Golf: The Evian Championship Preview and Television Schedule

The number one player on the LPGA’s Rolex Rankings, Inbee Park will lead a strong field of players into Paris for the last major tournament of the year. The Evian Championship has been a part of the LPGA schedule since 2000, but was added as a fifth major only this year. The Evian Masters Golf Course in Evian-les-Bains, France is located near Paris.

Inbee Park comes to the Evian with three of the five majors for 2013 already on her resume, but her last win came at the US Women’s Open back in June. Since then, her best finish was a T 13 at the CN Canadian Women’s Open a couple of weeks ago. Park is the defending champion. She finished at 17 under par in 2012, two strokes ahead of Karrie Webb, and the Rolex number two player, Stacy Lewis.

The Evian Masters Golf Course is 6428 yards for the ladies, and plays to a par of 71. The tournament offers a purse of $3.25 Million Dollars. Action gets underway on Thursday morning, and will be carried on the Golf Channel all four days. The first two rounds will be televised at 7:30 AM continuing until 12:30 PM, Saturday’s coverage starts at 6:30 AM until 11:30. Sunday early coverage will also be on the Golf Channel from 8:30 AM until Noon. NBC takes over at Noon until completion. All times are Eastern Daylight Time.

Change of Course: Golf architects Dave Sampson, Jeremy Slessor and Steve Smyers were instrumental in helping the course undertake a multimillion dollar redesign that focused on the four-hole finishing stretch, now called the “Evian Puzzle.” Formerly a reachable par-5, the 18th hole has been transformed into a demanding par-4, creating a more dramatic finish. Additional changes include “swing” holes on the newly redesigned 13th and 15th holes, which can be set up as reachable par-5’s, and the new par-3 16th hole which will be played over water to a pitched green. The fifth hole has also been shifted from a par-4 to a picturesque and demanding par 3.

Although Inbee Park didn’t make history at the Women’s British Open with a fourth consecutive win, she has an opportunity this week to make history of her own by being the only golfer to win four professional majors in history. She didn’t play well at St. Andrews back in July, and was beaten by Stacy Lewis. Now with five majors on the schedule, she gets another chance.

Rounding out the top five players in the Rolex Rankings who will be in the field are Number two, Stacy Lewis, Number three, Suzann Petterson, from Sweden, number four, Na Yeon Choi from South Korea, and number five, So Yeon Ryu, also from South Korea. THe hottest golfer among the top five is Suzann Petterson. Petterson won the Safeway Classic two weeks ago in Portland.