CHASKA, Minn. (June 13, 2019)– Nuria Iturrioz of Spain has accepted a special exemption to compete in the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, June 18 – 23, at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota.
A member of the Epson Tour and the Ladies European Tour, Iturrioz has three career victories worldwide, all in the last seven weeks.
Iturrioz captured her initial U.S. victory on May 13 at the Zimmer Biomet Championship in Auburn, Alabama. She previously won consecutive starts on the Ladies European Tour: Lalla Meryem Cup (played in Morocco), April 28, and the OMEGA Dubai Moonlight Classic, May 3.
“I’ve been playing the best golf of my career, so I could not be more grateful to KPMG, the PGA of America and the LPGA for allowing me to measure my game against an elite field,” said Iturrioz. “I’m excited to play in a major championship in the United States for the first time, and to do so on a historic golf course like Hazeltine is a dream come true.”
A professional since 2015, Iturrioz is currently ranked No. 164 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings. She has risen 231 spots since entering 2019 in the 395th position.
With earnings of $55,250 this year on the Epson Tour, Iturrioz is presently ranked No. 4 on the Volvik Race for the Card, which annually awards LPGA membership to the top 10 players on the official season-long money list.
Iturrioz is chasing Leona Maguire ($74,993) of Ireland, the top-ranked player on the Race for the Card. In April, Maguire accepted an identical special exemption to play in next week’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
Iturrioz and Maguire will be part of a 156-player field that includes defending champion Sung Hyun Park, World No. 1 Jin Young Ko and Americans Lexi Thompson, Cristie Kerr and Stacy Lewis.
The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship — a collaboration between the PGA of America, KPMG and the LPGA Tour — continues the rich tradition of the LPGA Championship. Broadcast in partnership with NBC and Golf Channel, the Championship offers a purse among the highest in women’s golf. The event combines an annual major golf championship with the KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit and an ongoing charitable initiative (KPMG Future Leaders Program), all focused on the development, advancement and empowerment of women on and off the golf course.
Golf Channel will televise the first two rounds of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, Thursday, June 20 and Friday, June 21, from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. (ET). NBC coverage of the final two rounds, Saturday, June 22, and Sunday, June 23, will air from 3:00 - 6:00 p.m. (ET).
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