HALF MOON BAY, Calif. -- The Samsung World Championship’s arrival at the breathtaking, scenic and challenging Ocean Course at Half Moon Bay Golf Links for the 28th edition of the event, Oct. 1-5, is cause for a celebration of golf in Central and Northern California.

The Samsung World Championship is rewarding the region’s fervent golf following with a ticket package that offers fans one any-day grounds admission to the Samsung World Championship and the Longs Drugs Challenge, Oct. 9-12 in Danville, for $35. This offer – a $19 savings from the overall value of $54 – must be purchased in advance (before Sept. 30).

“The focal point of women’s golf descends on Northern California for two weeks in October and the LPGA holds a prominent presence within the Central and Northern California sports scene. The Samsung World Championship wants to give golf fans a bang for their buck,” Samsung World Championship Director Torrey Gane said. “Watching the world’s best of 2008 competing on the Ocean Course at Half Moon Bay Golf Links makes for great sporting spectacle, fabulous scenery, fun and relaxation. I can’t think of a better experience for fans who seek the highest level of women’s golf.”

The Samsung World Championship field boasts the winners of all four LPGA major tournaments in 2008, the leading money winner on the Ladies European Tour and the leading LPGA money winners. Seventeen players who have yet to qualify will aim to challenge defending champion, LPGA Player of the Year, Money List and Vare Trophy champ Lorena Ochoa, the World No. 1 who won the first major of the year at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, McDonald’s LPGA Championship teenage winner Yani Tseng, and U.S. Women’s Open champion Inbee Park.

Golf Channel will broadcast the Samsung World Championship from 3:30-5:30 p.m. (PT) on Thursday and Friday (Oct. 2-3). NBC’s live coverage is 9:30-11:30 a.m. (PT) Saturday, Oct. 4 and 1-3 p.m. (PT) Sunday, Oct. 5. Saturday’s third-round tee times are popular with fans, who can watch the 20 players position themselves for a dramatic Sunday finish and enjoy the bulk of the day after play ends.

The Samsung World Championship is actively selling daily tickets, five-day grounds passes and corporate ticket packages by calling 888-345-LPGA (888-345-5742), or going online at the tournament Web site, www.samsung.com/golf.

The Samsung World Championship-Longs Drugs Challenge ticket offer is just one of the various ticket options available at the Samsung World Championship. The best bargain is the Five-Day Grounds Pass, which allows admission to all five days of the tournament and must be purchased in advance – before Sept. 19 – for $83 ($43 savings from ticket prices at the gate).

Daily tickets to Thursday’s first round and Friday’s second round are $24 in advance (before Sept. 30), $29 at the gate. The weekend’s final rounds, Saturday and Sunday, are $29 in advance, $34 at the gate. Admission is free to the Samsung World Championship Pro-Am on Wednesday, Oct. 1. Children 17 and under are admitted free of charge when accompanied by a paid adult. For more information on acquiring corporate ticket packages, call the Samsung World Championship tournament office at 650-712-8060.

Volunteer opportunities, serving various functions at the Samsung World Championship, are also available. More information on becoming a volunteer is available by calling the Tournament office at 650-712-8060, or by visiting www.samsung.com/golf, clicking on the “Dates & Times” link, and filling out the volunteer (.pdf) forms.

Past winners of the Samsung World Championship include many of the finest players in the history of women’s golf: Beth Daniel (1980, ‘81 and ‘94), JoAnne Carner (1982, ‘83), Nancy Lopez (1984), Amy Alcott (1985), Pat Bradley (1986), Ayako Okamoto (1987), Rosie Jones (1988), Betsy King (1989), Cathy Gerring (1990), Meg Mallon (1991), Dottie Pepper (1993), Se Ri Pak (1999), Juli Inkster (1997, ’98 and 2000), Dorothy Delasin (2001), Annika Sorenstam (1995, ’96, 2002, ’04, ‘05), Sophie Gustafson (2003) and Ochoa (2006, ‘07).
About Samsung

Samsung is a world leader in electronics, finance, and trade and services. Headquartered in Korea, Samsung operates 337 offices and facilities in 58 different countries. The company employs approximately 254,000 people worldwide, with 2006 net sales of US $158.9 billion.

Samsung believes that sports play a unique role in unifying people regardless of age, race, or gender. Samsung is a passionate supporter and active corporate sponsor of amateur and professional sporting events, training programs, teams and individual athletes in Korea and around the world.

The company extended its commitment to sports by becoming a worldwide Olympic Partner of the International Olympic Committee in 1997. Samsung’s official Olympic Games partnership will continue with the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

For more information, please visit our website: www.samsung.com.

About Half Moon Bay Golf Links
Set against dramatic cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Half Moon Bay Golf Links features 36 holes of championship golf. For over 30 years, avid golfers have been returning to this incomparable setting, enjoying the variety of play offered by our two award winning courses, The Ocean and The Old. The Ocean Course at Half Moon Bay Golf Links has been ranked as one of the top new courses that opened according to Golf Digest in 1997, and since 2005 has been ranked as one of the top 50 by Golf for Women. It earned a No. 38 ranking among top Resorts for Golf Digest and a Silver Award Winner for Golf Magazine’s top resorts issue.

Half Moon Bay has been home to Costanoan Indians, Spanish explorers, and Canadian rumrunners from the days of Prohibition. Modern-day Half Moon Bay is known for fields of pumpkins and artichokes, but it keeps the spirit alive with the legendary Mavericks and the idyllic natural beauty that makes today's explorers want to stay.

Contact: Toby Zwikel/Brian Robin/Damian Secore
Brener Zwikel & Associates, Inc., (818) 462-5599, 462-5610, 462-5614