Meg Mallon commits to ADT Championship

BY iseekgolf.com | LPGA Tour | 2004 ADT Championship | General | 27 Jul 2004

Meg Mallon, who is enjoying a resurgence in her career, will return to Trump International Golf Club, Nov. 18 – 21, to defend her title at the ADT Championship, the season-ending tournament of the LPGA Tour.

The ADT Championship features the top-30 players from the ADT Official Money List following the conclusion of the Mobile LPGA Tournament of Champions (Nov. 14). Trump International Golf Club, one of the most exclusive and highly rated modern golf facilities in the world, will host the $1 million, 72-hole championship, which concludes the LPGA Tour’s official season. This is the fourth year for the exclusive club to host this prestigious event.

The winner of the ADT Championship will earn US$215,000. The championship will be televised nationally. The Golf Channel will air the first three rounds and CBS will televise the final round.

Mallon, who became the first female to win the U.S. Women’s Open and Canadian Open titles in the same year, will be trying to make more history by becoming the first back-to-back winner of the ADT Championship. Karrie Webb (1996, 2001) and Annika Sorenstam (1997, 2002) are the only players to win the championship twice.

The 17-year veteran won’t be lacking in confidence. Mallon has racked up three of golf’s most prestigious titles since celebrating her 40th birthday in April 2003. The first was her impressive victory in last year’s ADT Championship when she shot a final-round 67 to rally from three strokes off the pace to defeat defending champion Sorenstam by a single stroke.

It was her first victory in over a year, but not because she had been playing poorly. Mallon had nine top-10 finishes, including a pair of runner-ups, before making the ADT Championship her 15th career title.

Mallon’s next victory was in the U.S. Women’s Open conducted by the USGA in which she won her fourth major championship and set a record for most years (13) between Open titles. Mallon’s other two major championships are the 1991 Mazda LPGA Championship and the 2000 du Maurier Classic.

She rode that momentum into Canada where she won another national championship, the BMO Financial Group Canadian Women’s Open.
“I am just enjoying everything right now,” Mallon said. "At the age of 41, you learn to appreciate your good days. They don’t come along that often."

In addition to Mallon, Sorenstam and Webb, the event boasts an impressive roster of past champions: Laura Davies, 1998; Se Ri Pak, 1999; and Dottie Pepper, 2000. The ADT Championship is a joint partnership between the LPGA and IMG, which also organizes and stages the tournament.

The ADT Championship tournament week begins with practice rounds on Tuesday, Nov. 16, followed by a Pro-Am on Wednesday, Nov. 17. The 72-hole championship begins Thursday, Nov. 18 and runs through Sunday, Nov. 21. The charity beneficiaries will be Children’s Place at Home Safe and United Way of Palm Beach County and local junior golf programs.