Twenty four of the top junior girls in the country will compete at the new Mizuho Americas Open, which will take place June 1-4 in Jersey City, N.J. and "feature a field of 120 players vying for a purse of $2.75 million, one of the largest among non-major events,” according to Beth Nichols of GOLFWEEK. Mizuho Americas ambassador Michelle Wie West will serve as tournament host. Mizuho President & CEO Jerry Rizzieri told Golfweek that while they “did look at several PGA Tour options, which would’ve been more advantageous in terms of viewership numbers,” that is “not what drove the mission.” Mizuho views this as a “purpose-driven sponsorship.” While major championship purses have "seen sizable increases” in recent years, week-to-week purses on the LPGA “still lag behind.” LPGA Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan said that going forward, new tournaments on the schedule will “start with a minimum $2 million purse," though Mizuho “pushed that higher with the hope of making an impact and creating a premiere, destination event.” She also said that the event, owned and operated by Excel Sports Management, “ticks all the boxes the tour is looking for in a new partner.” In 2023, Wie West will be joined by Annika Sorenstam as an LPGA tournament host as The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican “takes place in November” in Belleair, Fla.(GOLFWEEK.com, 9/23).
