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The 2012 Ricoh Women’s British Open poster has been revealed, highlighting the stellar international field gathering for the first time at Royal Liverpool in Hoylake, England, 13th to 16th September.
World number one, Yani Tseng, is pictured amongst many of the world’s best women golfers underlining the global nature of the women’s game today. The headline players featured alongside the defending champion include American’s Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr and Michelle Wie, Korean stars, Ji Yai Shin and Na Yeon Choi, Japan’s Ai Miyazato and Australia’s Karrie Webb, herself a three time winner of the Ricoh Women’s British Open. Catriona Matthew, winner of the 2009 Ricoh Women’s British Open headlines the home challenge along with 1986 winner, Laura Davies and England’s rising star, Melissa Reid.
Paula Creamer, winner of the 2010 US Open and a brand ambassador for Ricoh, enthused “There are 12 really great players from all over the world pictured on the 2012 Ricoh Women’s British Open poster and it is pretty amazing to think how many other girls should probably be pictured too. I think it shows just how strong the women’s game is right now and how many different players could be challenging at the final Major of 2012. I definitely hope I am amongst those on the leader board on Sunday as it is one of my favourite events of the year and a tournament I would dearly love to win.”
Scotland’s Catriona Matthew, the 2009 champion commented, “The Ricoh Women’s British Open will be the pinnacle of the summer for all of us and seeing the marketing material going out makes me realise it isn’t too far away. I have fantastic memories of playing in the Curtis Cup match at Hoylake in 1992 and I really am looking forward to playing in my first professional tournament there. Having won just down the road at Royal Lytham & St Annes, I can’t wait to return to the North West and I am hoping for a really great week and, if at all possible, a repeat of my performance in 2009.”
Michelle Wie, who graduated from Stanford last weekend added, “I have a couple of months to get my game in great shape for Royal Liverpool and I will be working extremely hard and getting all the advice I can from my coach David Leadbetter as to how best to tackle this famous course.”
Shona Malcolm, the LGU’s CEO added, “We already have a wonderful array of the world’s best women golfers entered for this year’s Championship. Once again we are set to have the most international field of all the majors along with an extremely strong contingent of home players. With the added intrigue of tackling the historic course at Hoylake for the first time, we are looking forward to a fantastic Championship in September.”
This year fans will again be able to watch the BBC’s extensive coverage of the Ricoh Women’s British Open in HD (high definition) underlining the significance of the Championship in the BBC’s sports portfolio.
The Ricoh Women’s British Open was founded by the LGU in 1976 and is staged in conjunction with IMG, the world’s largest sports marketing company. The event has been co-sanctioned by the LPGA and LET since 1994 and gained Major status in 2001.
Ricoh, the leading technology provider of Managed Document Services and Production Printing, has been the title sponsor of the Ricoh Women’s British Open since 2007.
For further information please visit the new look website at www.ricohwomensbritishopen.com or contact:
| About the Ladies’ Golf Union (“LGU”) |
Founded in 1893, the LGU is the encompassing body for ladies’ amateur golf in Great Britain & Ireland. The LGU Executive Council includes representatives of ladies’ golf’s national governing bodies in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Operational activities are undertaken by a wholly owned subsidiary, LGU Championships Limited (“LGUCL”), which in particular owns and runs the Ricoh Women’s British Open, founded by the LGU in 1976 and one of the four Major Tournaments for Professional Women golfers. LGUCL also has responsibility for running British Amateur Championships and Home International events, and preparing the Great Britain & Ireland teams for representative matches, such as the Curtis Cup and the Vagliano Trophy.
Further information about the LGU is available on www.lgu.org.
| About Ricoh |
Ricoh is a global technology company specialising in office imaging equipment, production print solutions, document management systems and IT services. Headquartered in Tokyo, Ricoh Group, operates in more than 200 countries and regions. In the financial year ending March 2012, Ricoh Group had worldwide sales of 1,903 billion yen (approx. 23 billion USD).
The majority of the company’s revenue comes from products, solutions and services that improve the interaction between people and information. Ricoh also produces award-winning digital cameras and specialised industrial products. It is known for the quality of its technology, the exceptional standard of its customer service and sustainability initiatives.
Under its corporate tagline, imagine. change. Ricoh helps companies transform the way they work and harness the collective imagination of their employees. For further information, please visit www.ricoh.com/about/
| About IMG |
IMG Worldwide is a global sports, entertainment and media business, with nearly 3,000 employees operating in 30 countries around the globe. IMG’s areas of expertise are diverse and wide ranging: IMG College; IMG’s Joint Ventures in China, Brazil and India; IMG Media; IMG Events and Federations; IMG Fashion; IMG Models; IMG Art+Commerce; IMG Clients; IMG Academies; IMG Consulting and IMG Licensing. More information is available at www.imgworld.com. Follow us on twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/IMG_Worldwide and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/IMGWorldwide
