March 17, 2011
PHOENIX, Ariz.—Arizona State women’s golf alum Azahara Munoz, competing in the inaugural RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup in Phoenix, Ariz., has pledged to donate her entire tournament winnings from the LPGA event to the Sun Devil Club, the community owned fundraising arm for Arizona State athletics.
The tournament, held at Wildfire Golf Club at the J.W. Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa, features 134 players competing for a purse of $1 million dollars, which will be donated entirely to charity.
“I always love coming to Arizona because it’s like coming home,” said Munoz of competing in the RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup. “The Sun Devil community has always supported me and been a huge part of my success. This is my opportunity to give back and say thank you. And I hope it’s a big thank you.”
Munoz is emerging as one of the top golfers to beat on the LPGA tour. Earning her tour card in 2009, the Sun Devil won the 2010 LPGA Rookie of the Year race last season. Munoz was so dominant in her rookie campaign that she clinched the Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year award with two events remaining in the season.
In her time at Arizona State, Munoz led the Sun Devils to the 2009 NCAA National Championship and two Pac-10 Championships in 2007 and 2009. The four-time All-American also reached the pinnacle of her collegiate individual career, winning the 2008 NCAA Individual National Championship on a 25-yard putt on the first playoff hole against conference rival Tiffany Joh of UCLA.
The Sun Devil Club is the official fundraising arm for Arizona State athletics that operates as a community owned entity.
The RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup is a one-of-a-kind event that will honor the past, celebrate and showcase the present and provide for the future of the game. Come Sunday, $500,000 will be donated to the LPGA Foundation and its LPGA-USGA Girls Golf program, and another $500,000 to player-designated charities. The $500,000 allotted for player-designated charities is a pool which will be distributed to the top-10 finishers with the following breakdown: 1st: $200,000; 2nd: $100,000; 3rd: $55,000; 4th: 40,000; 5th: $30,000; 6th: $25,000; 7th: $20,000; 8th: $15,000, 9th: $10,000; 10th: $5,000.
The RR Donnelley LPGA Founders Cup will be held Mar. 18-20 at the J.W. Marriott in Phoenix, Ariz. For more information click HERE.