National, 2 February 2022: Epson, a worldwide technology leader, joined forces today with the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) to become an Official Partner. The LPGA and Epson alliance reflects both organizations’ commitment to diversity and supports Epson’s aspirational goal of achieving sustainability and enriching communities.
With a partnership that will run for an initial five years, Epson and the LPGA have committed to work together on a variety of player experiences and events focused on supporting and highlighting women’s challenges through golf. Additionally, Epson will become the title sponsor with exclusive naming rights to the LPGA’s qualifying tour. As the official “Road to the LPGA,” the Epson Tour supports all competitors and sends the top ten finishers to the LPGA and is the most established women’s qualifying tour in the world, entering its 42nd year of a structured competition in 2022.
Through the partnership, Epson will share the ongoing accomplishments of these athletes through prominent branding, broadcast, signage, and digital integration across the LPGA network, as well as across all tournament promotions, content, and social media platforms. In addition to exclusive naming rights for the Epson Tour, which will run through the 2026 season, Epson has also pledged additional contributions including player ambassador funding, and product and technology support.
“Our partnership with the LPGA presents a unique opportunity to inspire future women leaders and advance the Epson brand,” said Yasunori Ogawa, global president of Epson. “The Epson Tour is focused on providing promising women golfers with the opportunity to pursue their dreams, and young women with role models for the future. The LPGA is a world-class organization and working together over a multi-year period allows Epson to take an active role in advancing the professional careers of talented women golfers.”
“We are delighted to welcome Epson to the LPGA Family. This ground-breaking partnership will provide expanded opportunities for the future stars of the game from around the globe to test their talent and take one step closer to realizing their dreams,” said LPGA Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan. “We are grateful that Epson shares our commitment to supporting young female athletes as they grow and develop and to playing an active role in the growth and equity in women’s sports. The ‘Road to the LPGA’ has never been better.”
The Epson Tour is the official qualifying tour of the LPGA Tour and enters its 42nd competitive season in 2022. The Tour’s mission is to prepare the world’s most promising women professional golfers for a successful career on the LPGA Tour. Expanding from 16 tournaments and $1.7 million in prize money to $4 million in prize money awarded over the course of 24 tournaments, more than 435 LPGA titles have been won by former Tour players. Previous Epson Tour graduates include 27-time LPGA winner Lorena Ochoa of Mexico and Olympic gold medalists Inbee Park from the Republic of Korea and Nelly Korda of the United States.
