CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Egolf announced that the Association du Trophée Hassan II de Golf (ATH) in the country of Morocco has granted the company and the eGolf Professional Tour two spots in the European Tour's Trophée Hassan II on March 18-21, 2010, and 10 spots into the European Challenge Tour's Moroccan Golf Classic on April 21-24, 2010. It marks the first time in history that European Tour and Challenge Tour spots have been awarded to an American-based developmental golf tour.
The exemptions into the Trophée Hassan II have been awarded to eGolf Tour player Jared Hack of Sanford, FL and Macon Moye of Charlotte, NC.
The tournament, which pairs professionals with amateurs in a Pebble Beach-style format, is being recognized as an official European Tour event for the first time in 2010 as part of The Race to Dubai and will be contested at Royal Golf Dar es-Salam in Rabat. The event was first contested in 1971 and boasts past champions such as Ernie Els, Padraig Harrington, Nick Price, Seve Ballesteros and Lee Trevino.
"The ATH is pleased to provide the eGolf Professional Tour with the spots in both our Trophée Hassan II and Moroccan Golf Classic," said Karim Guessous, Sport Department Manager of the ATH. "We feel as though their tour has established itself as a top platform through which many international players ascend the golf ranks, and we are confident that this relationship will only help to strengthen our events."
Hack, 20, won the eGolf Tour's Snap Fitness Open in 2009 and was one of the most heralded junior golfers in the country prior to enrolling at the University of Central Florida. Hack won the prestigious Western Junior Amateur in 2006 and followed it up the next year with a win in the Western Amateur, a tournament which features past champions such as Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Phil Mickelson and Justin Leonard. Hack and 2007 NCAA Champion Jamie Lovemark are the only players to win the Western Junior and Western Amateur in back-to-back years since the Western Golf Association started the national junior championship in 1914.
Hack's amateur partner for the event will be former Golf Channel host Peter Kessler. A past club champion at La Costa Country Club in Carlsbad, CA, Kessler has been the host of "Making the Turn with Peter Kessler" since June of 2005, a live weekday show on the PGA TOUR Network - Sirius 209 and XM 146. From 1991-1995, Kessler was the "Voice of HBO Sports" and narrated Peabody, Ace and Emmy Award winning documentaries.
Moye, a former East Carolina University baseball standout and professional golfer, will be making a return to professional golf in Morocco after competing on the amateur level for the past 20 years. Moye's pro-am partner will be eGolf CEO K. Wesley Jones.
"We are honored that the ATH has recognized our tour as worthy of these exemptions," said eGolf Tour president David Siegel. "Morocco has long been viewed as a top golf destination, and we are certain that our players will enjoy their time there and utilize these spots to help better their careers."
The Moroccan Golf Classic will be contested at Pullman El Jadida Royal Golf and Spa in El Jadida, Morocco. Eight of the exemptions will be awarded to the top eight eGolf Tour members, in order of finish, at the tour's Golf in Morocco Classic (formerly the Columbia Open) on March 24-27, 2010. Courtesy of the ATH, players winning the exemptions will have their round-trip flight from New York's JFK airport to Casablanca, Morocco paid for, free accommodations at the Pullman El Jadida Resort and Spa, and complimentary entry into the tournament proper.
At the conclusion of the 2010 Challenge Tour season, the top 20 players on the tour money list will receive their European Tour card for 2011. Last year's Moroccan Golf Classic champion, Robert Coles of England, finished 10th on the Challenge Tour money list and earned full status on the 2010 European Tour.
The Golf in Morocco Classic will be contested at Columbia Country Club and Cobblestone Park Country Club in Blythewood, SC. The 204-player field will compete for an estimated purse of $235,000 and an expected winner's share of $35,000.
About eGolf Professional Tour
The eGolf Professional Tour is a Charlotte, NC-based professional golf tour that has conducted 54- and 72-hole tournaments in the Southeast since its inception in 2002. The tour features approximately 18 professional tournaments annually with purses ranging from $200,000 to $300,000 and field sizes from 156 to 250 players. In its seven-year history, the tour has seen the likes of Will MacKenzie, Jason Bohn, Steve Marino, Tommy Gainey, Matt Bettencourt, Tom Gillis and others ascend to the PGA Tour, while over 200 past eGolf Professional Tour players have gone on to play on the Nationwide Tour.
For Information:
eGolf http://egolf.com
eGolf Tour http://egolfprofessionaltour.com
European Tour http://europeantour.com
Challenge Tour http://europeantour.com
Contact:
eGolf Professional Tour
Stewart Moore
Chief Operating Officer
VP, Public Relations
smoore@egolf.com
