Top LPGA Players Return to La Costa Resort & Spa for Kia Classic

The current and future stars of the LPGA will come out for their chance to shine March 19-25, as the Kia Classic tees off at in Carlsbad.

Nine of the top 10 players in the most recent Rolex Rankings have already committed to the event, including Michelle Wie, world No. 1 Yani Tseng (Chinese Tapai), and Americans Paula Creamer and Christie Kerr.

In addition, the field will welcome some local golfers to the newly renovated Championship Course at La Costa: Carlsbad resident Jennifer Johnson, graduate Leta Lindley, Rancho Bernardo High School graduate Tiffany Joh, San Clemente High School graduate Ryann O’Toole, and Temecula native Sydnee Michaels.

This year, the Kia Classic returns to La Costa, where the inaugural event was held in 2010. Last year, the tournament was played at the Industry Hills Golf Club at Pacific Palms while La Costa was undergoing a $50 million renovation. Event organizers are excited to bring the popular tournament back to Carlsbad.

“We’re thrilled to have such a strong field already for the Kia Classic, and to bring world-class women’s golf back to the great fans of San Diego County,” said tournament director Dennis Baggett. “As the 2012 LPGA’s first full-field tournament in the U.S., we expect another highly competitive and exciting tournament.”

Tour organizers, along with three LPGA players spoke to the media on Friday, March 2 at La Costa, in preparation for the upcoming tournament. Sandra Gal, who won the 2011 Kia Classic, said that she’s excited to try and defend her title.

“It will be different, but I’m excited,” she said. Gal, a native of Germany, ended last year’s tourney with a birdie on the 18^th hole on Sunday, to defeat Jiyai Shin with a four-round total of 16-under par. It was Gal’s first victory on the LPGA Tour.

“I was in the zone all day, and really focused on hitting the best shots I could all day,” she said. “All that was in my head was really trying to hole that [approach] shot on 18, and I almost did.”

Johnson, a Carlsbad native, is very familiar with the changes at La Costa, as she calls it her home course. In fact, she lives in a home off of the 13^th hole on the South Course.

“I learned how to play golf at this facility,” she said. “They know how to set up a tough course.”

Johnson said that she doesn’t feel any more pressure playing on her home course, but does think that she has a slight advantage over the competition.

“I know the course, I know the greens, and I think just being comfortable and at your house is a plus,” she said. “

Johnson, who received full-status this year, is seeking her first LPGA Tour win.

Fellow Southern California native Ryann O’Toole is also seeking her first win on tour. She said winning the Kia Classic “would be a dream come true.”

Michael Sprague, the VP of Marketing and Communications for Kia, said that the car company is expanding its relationship with the LPGA, in the form of the Kia Performance Awards. He said that awards will be given in different categories “to players who achieve on and off the course.”

There are four new awards: The Power Drive Award – for the longest average driving distance; the Drive to the Top – for the most Top 10 finishes; the Most Compelling Performance Award – which is voted on by the fans in an online vote; and the Kia Community Assistance Award – for the player who shows exceptional contribution to her local community.

Winners of each of these awards will receive a brand new Kia Optima Limited, as will the winner of the tournament this year. The purse for the Kia Classic is $1.7 million.

Tickets for the four-day tournament can be purchased at the tournament’s website, www.KiaClassic.com, or by calling 1-888-SEE-LPGA. Children 17 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult, and all active-duty military members and their immediate family are admitted free with a military ID. Admission to the practice round on Tuesday is also free.

Ticket prices vary depending on access and day or weeklong packages.

Television coverage of the tournament will be on the Golf Channel, from 3:30-6 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.