West Allis, WI – The Wisconsin PGA is pleased to release its 2019 tournament schedule, which features over 40 different events and qualifiers that stretch throughout the state of Wisconsin.  The events kick off in early March with our WPGA Las Vegas Pro-Am and wrap up in mid-October with the final in-state event, the Fall Pro-Pro Scramble.  The tournament schedule will once again offer a great variety of competitions for both WPGA professionals and amateurs.

WPGA Professional Championships

The extensive slate of events will once again be led by the major championships, which includes the four WPGA Professional Championships and three event Wisconsin State Open series.  The excitement of the unknown headlines the Professional Championships as each event will venture to a layout that will be hosting that particular event for the first time (Note – La Crosse CC did host in 1936, but it was on their original golf course).  These events will kick off in mid-May with the 52nd playing of the WPGA Match Play Championship.  This year’s event will have the players tackling the tricky and undulating greens of the Langford and Moreau designed West Bend Country Club.  For the second season in a row the tournament will be stretched out over the course of the WPGA season.  The scheduling layout will again have the qualifying round and first three rounds of Match Play take place at the host site on May 13th-14th.  Then the final eight will branch off to play the quarterfinals, semifinals and final match by stated deadlines, at sites mutually agreed upon by both players in each match.  The event champion will be crowned by September 1st.  Next up on the tee will be the National Car Rental WAGPA (Assistants) Championship and WPGA Senior Professional Championship.  For the fourth straight year the two events will share a venue and a date on the calendar.  The assistants will tackle all 36 holes and complete their entire event on Monday July 22nd, while the seniors will play back to back rounds on the 22nd and 23rd.  The championships will put a premium on accuracy as the participants will battle the tree lined Old Hickory GC in Beaver Dam.  Lastly the WPGA Professional Championship will pack up and head west to La Crosse Country Club.  The 36-hole championship will run over the course of September 9th-10th.

Wisconsin State Open Series

Helping bring together the best professional and amateur golfers in the state, the 2019 State Open series will again have a great trio of host sites.  Kicking off the series will be the playing of the 23rd Wisconsin State Women’s Open.  The event will take place on Wednesday-Thursday, June 12th-13th at Stevens Point CC.  Following up the Women’s Open will be the 99th Morgan Stanley Wisconsin State Open.  The oldest and largest of the three State Opens will travel to one of the top resorts in the state, Geneva National GC.  Each participant will play one round on both the Palmer and Trevino courses before the field is cut down to the low 60 and ties.  The final 36 holes will then conclude on the Trevino course on Wednesday, August 21st.  Finally the series will wrap up with the 35th Wisconsin State Senior Open on September 3rd-4th.  The best golfers 50 and older will battle it out at Nakoma GC, in hope of bringing home the winner’s trophy.

What Changes Are in Store for 2019 – Formats, Dates, Policies?

  • The in-state WPGA schedule will start and close with two player scrambles.
  • The WPGA Pro-Senior has been converted into a regular pro-am.
  • The 18-hole Hornung’s Classic will take place in the month of July as South Hills G&CC finishes their course renovation work this coming spring.
  • The Morgan Stanley Wisconsin State Open will take place at two courses and feature an expanded field of 204 players for the first time ever.
  • The WPGA Tournament Policy Board has also adjusted the Wisconsin State Open residency rules.  In 2019 any player that graduated from a Wisconsin high school or secondary school will be allowed to attempt to qualify for the event.
  • A last chance Morgan Stanley Wisconsin State Open qualifier has been added to the schedule on Tuesday, August 13th.  The qualifier will give players a second chance to qualify, or possibly help someone that missed the original deadline to sign up.
  • Shorts will be allowed at Wisconsin State Open qualifying.
  • For the first time since 1977 the Wisconsin PGA will use 36 holes of play to determine their stroke play champion.

Pro-Am Series Rolls Out Another Great Slate For 2019

The very popular Wisconsin PGA four-player pro-am series will roll out another impressive set of courses in 2019.  The series will feature nine events in total, blending together a mix of new and old venues.  The 2019 calendar will kick off at one of the most recent renovations in the state, the Beloit Club on April 29th.  Over the course of the next five months the series will then make stops at Oneida G&CC, Trappers Turn GC, Racine CC, Nakoma GC, the Irish Course at Whistling Straits, Tuckaway CC and a to be announced facility.  These eight “regular season” pro-ams will lead into the Oliphant Golf Management Pro-Am Championship for the 4th straight year.  Throughout the season the top finishing teams will earn an invite to the Links Course at The GC’s of Lawsonia, as they fight it out to determine the series champion on October 7th.

Registration for the majority of WPGA events will start on March 15th, with the State Opens, WSGA/WPGA Summer Showdown and American Family Insurance Championship Qualifying opening on April 1st.