For the second year in a row, the LPGA’s qualifying tour has chosen the Mack Champ Invitational to be one of the tournaments included in its MVP Invite program.
Amari Avery, who is now playing for the University of Southern California, earned an exemption last year.
Here’s more from the Epson Tour:
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 15, 2022) – For the second straight year, the Epson Tour will welcome an MVP Invite exemption from three elite minority championships into select tournaments on the “Road to the LPGA.” Each MVP Invite will be selected by the respective amateur tournament’s committee and provided the chance to compete in a designated Epson Tour event.
“We are excited to continue offering MVP Invite exemptions in 2022. This unique opportunity embraces the LPGA legacy of pioneering diversity and changing the face of golf, a foundation that started with the LPGA Founders more than 70 years ago,” said Mike Nichols, Chief Business Officer of LPGA Qualifying Tours and member of the LPGA Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. “The PGA WORKS Collegiate Championship and National Women’s Collegiate Golf Championship both have a rich legacy showcasing players from HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions, while the Mack Champ Invitational featured an incredible group of competitors for the inaugural event in 2021 that will only get stronger.”
The Mack Champ Invitational is the first tournament that will provide an Epson Tour MVP Invite in 2022. Named after PGA TOUR professional Cameron Champ’s late grandfather Mack Champ, the invitational honors Mack’s legacy by identifying talented, diverse players. Tournament play runs March 19-20 at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston and the MVP Invite will earn an exemption into the Garden City Charity Classic at Buffalo Dunes Golf Club in Garden City, Kan. from April 29-May 1.
Michael Collins, aka America’s Caddie, and veteran broadcaster Scott Walker will be the lead commentators for our tournament live stream on Saturday and Sunday.
These two TV pros have been bringing insight, personality and humor to golf for years, and we can’t wait to see them covering our tournament in Houston.
Tune in right here on mackchampinvitational.com for three hours of live coverage both days. Saturday’s coverage will start about noon Central time.
During the week of the Houston Open, the PGA Tour took an in-depth look into the Mack Champ Invitational and the impact our tournament has had on diverse junior golfers like Allyn Stephens, a Houston native who will play her college golf for Texas A&M.
In addition to the video above, you can read the article on pgatour.com.
Watch the video below for a look back at the inaugural Mack Champ Invitational, including interviews with Cameron Champ, players, parents, and tournament volunteers.
In keeping with Mack Champ’s words of wisdom – “It’s not where you come from, it’s where you’re going” – Chevron has committed $50,000 to start a scholarship fund to benefit college-bound participants in the Mack Champ Invitational.
We will release more information soon about the application process.
Roman Solomon, a member of the class of 2025 from Sarasota, FL, won the boys division of the inaugural Mack Champ Invitational at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston with an even-par total.
Solomon was remarkably consistent, shooting 72 both days with three birdies and three bogeys in both rounds. Ian Davis (class of 2022) from Howey in the Hills, FL, and Xavier Bighaus (class of 2021) from McKinney, TX, tied for second at three over par.
One of the most impressive rounds of the tournament came from 10-year-old Axel Monssoh, who won the 9- and 10-year-old division with a final round 68 for a total of two over par. Aadi Parmar from Selma, TX, won the boys 11- and 12-year-old division with a two-day total of seven over par.
Amari Avery finished three under par to win the girls division of the inaugural Mack Champ Invitational at Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston.
Avery, a high school junior from Riverside, CA, who has verbally committed to play her college golf at the University of Southern California, shot 2-under 70 on Sunday to edge Bailey Davis by a shot. Davis, a member of the class of 2021 from White Plains, MD, who will play her college golf at the University of Tennessee, shot 72-70 for a 2-under-par total.
Avery is also scheduled to play the Augusta National Women’s Open from March 31 to April 3.
Shyla Brown from Matthews, NC, made an incredible run that included a 7-under 29 on the front nine on Sunday. She finished in third place at two over.
Alexis Lamadrid of Phoenix (class of 2027) won the girls 11- and 12-year-old division with a two-day total of seven over par.
On Saturday, Cameron Champ fielded questions from Mack Champ Invitational players and talked about his practice routine, mental preparation, and some finer points of preparation for elite competition.
Champ conducted the clinic on the first hole of Memorial Park Golf Course after the first round of play. Glenn Weckerlin, chairman of the board for the Cameron Champ Foundation, served as MC for the event.
Champ hit some shots and said that he preferred to get his practice on the course, not the range. Ever since he was a junior player, he said, he has liked to work on his game on the course. “That’s how you learn how to score,” he said.
After hitting a few iron shots, Weckerlin asked the juniors what club they wanted to see Champ hit. Not surprisingly for one of the longest hitters in the game, requests for driver won in a landslide. Here’s a look at what they got to see.
On Friday night before the first round of the Mack Champ Invitational, Roland Martin hosted a conversation at the Omni Houston Hotel with Cameron Champ and Lee Elder, who tuned in from home via video conference.
Elder, who broke the color barrier at the Maters in 1975 and will be an honorary starter at Augusta National in 2021, talked about his time on tour, the challenges he faced, the camaraderie he felt with other black golfers of his era, the importance of setting goals for success, and much more. He really brought the house down, though, when Martin asked him about the money games that players of his era competed in to make ends meet.
Martin asked, “Lee, you were hustling folks out of money?”
Without missing a beat, Elder replied: “I wasn’t hustling nobody. They wanted to make a donation.”
Champ spoke about his path to becoming a PGA Tour pro, his current game and tournament routine, the importance of focusing on improving his game while also maintaining a rewarding personal life, his new wife and their love of animals, and his outside-of-golf passion – drag racing.
Jeff Champ, Cameron’s father and the co-founder of the Cameron Champ Foundation, kicked off the evening with advice for the assembled golf parents and also shared some memories about his father, Mack, and Cameron’s junior golf days. Glenn Weckerlin, chairman of the board for the Cameron Champ Foundation, spoke about the foundation’s work and plans for the future.
At the end of the night, Cameron Champ surprised the crowd by handing out new Nike sunglasses for all of the players.