The 2019 HUGEL-AIR PREMIA LA Open starts today at Wilshire Country Club, featuring 96 of the top 100 professional women’s golfers competing for the top prize. The final field of 144 players will compete over 72 holes at Wilshire Country Club for a share of the $1.5 million purse. The tournament runs through Sunday, 28, 2019, and will be televised live on Golf Channel.
Signs have been posted, but take care to pay attention near the country club because there will be more traffic congestion, especially over the coming weekend. Attendance today and tomorrow is expected to be much lighter than on the weekend.
“Thursday and Friday is really for golf junkies,” tournament spokesman Jon Show told the Buzz. “You can walk around and enjoy the golf with relatively few people. But we are expecting a lot more people over the weekend.”
Rosewood Avenue, between Lillian Way and Cahuenga Blvd., may be closed over the next few days during tournament hours from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m., for the safety reasons, explained Show. The shuttles bringing guests from various parking garages on Hollywood Blvd. are loading and unloading guests at the rear entrance of the club on Rosewood Avenue. The street may be open if there’s not much traffic, but when it gets busy, the street is likely to be closed.
Show also told the Buzz that tournament staff are happy to work with neighbors to address any issues that arise. We understand that all residents in the Hancock Park cul de sac streets were given free tickets for the weekend.
For the rest of us, ticket packages start at $25. Children ages 17 and under (accompanied by an adult) are admitted free. All first responders and members of the military also receive free entrance each day, courtesy of SERVPRO. In addition, tournament staff told the Buzz that anyone who brings three or more non-perishable food items will be admitted free today for the first round of play. Last year, the food collected at the tournament fed 1,900 families.
This year marks the centennial celebration at Wilshire Country Club, which opened in 1919. Throughout the years, the course has hosted events on the LPGA, PGA TOUR and PGA TOUR of Champions, as well as the PGA Championship.
“Wilshire Country Club is once again thrilled to host the annual LA Open tournament and we are honored it will add to our extensive golfing legacy,” said Patrick O’Grady, President of Wilshire Country Club in a statement posted on the Club’swebsite. “We will be celebrating our 100th anniversary in 2019 and the LPGA tournament simply reaffirms the tremendous and sustained relevance of our classic golf course within the heart of Los Angeles.”
The tournament has added two new local sponsors this year: CBB Bank will become the tournament’s Official Korean-American Bank, and UCLA Health will become Official Healthcare Services Provider.
