Here are the top seven Ohio golf stories of the year.
- Renee Powellwas recognized with more awards in 2020, but one of her favoriteswas being chosen to captain the 2021 U.S. Junior Solheim Cup Team. Her team of the best junior golfers will face off against the European Junior Solheim Cup Team captained by Annika Sorenstam. The Junior Solheim Cup will be played at Sylvania Country Club and will be contested September 1-2, just prior to the Solheim Cup to be held at Inverness Club.
- The Toledo District Golf Association (TDGA) and the Northern Ohio Golf Association (NOGA) announced their intention to merge operations effective January 1, 2021. NOGA will become the managing organization and golfers in both will now have access to more courses and opportunities to enter amateur tournament action.
- Toledo-born Stacy Lewis’ last win had come in Portland in 2017, but shereturned to the winner’s circle at the Scottish Women’s Openin August. She returned to golf in 2019, after the birth of her daughter in late October, 2018. She was working her way back to world-class form, when a tie for ninth at the Marathon Classic preceded her win the following week in Scotland.
- Afterearning $13 million in prize money during hisvery successful 13-year career, Ohio native Jason Kokrak won his first PGA TOUR title. He collected $1.775 million for taking first place at the CJ Cup, which had been moved from Korea to Shadow Creek Golf Club in Las Vegas. His career had included making 150 cuts with 28 top 10 finishes prior to the win.
- When the LPGA Tour resumed tournament play it did so with the Drive ON Championship at Inverness with Danielle Kang grabbing the win. Inverness proved to be a major championship style venue and gave golf fans a taste of what they can expect next year when the Solheim Cup comes to town. Danielle completed a double dip by also besting the field at the Marathon Classic the following week, when former Marathon champion, LydiaKo made a mess at the final hole to give the title to Kang.
- The PGA Tour restarted professional golf at the end of June at The Travelers, moved to Detroit, for the Rocket Mortgage Classicthe following week and then held two events in Ohio. Muirfield Village hosted both the Workday Charity Open and the Memorial in consecutive weeks in July. Collin Morikawa won the first week and Jon Rahm followed up with a convincing win in the Memorial. Both would go on to win other big events in 2020, Morikawa the PGA Championship and Rahm the BMW Championship in the FedEx Cup Playoffs.
- COVID 19 was definitely the top story in Ohio and the entire golf world for 2020. It forced the closing of golf courses across the state, plus professional tournaments were added and rescheduled to accommodate public health concerns. Country Health officials across the state had to be convinced that golf could be enjoyed without experiencing safety concerns. Although courses were closed early in the year, the balance of 2020 saw record numbers flocking to golf courses as it became apparent that golf was a sport that could be enjoyed safely.
