GREENSBORO, NC – Girls Golf of America Inc and the Peggy Kirk Bell Girls Golf Tour (PKBGT) are excited to host the first two PKBGT Tradition events in the coming weeks. The mission of the PKBGT Tradition Ambassador program is to increase exposure to American girls golf. Current LPGA Tour professionals Katherine Perry-Hamski & Emma Talley are the tour’s inaugural Tradition Ambassadors for 2021. The Ambassadors will provide exciting mentorship opportunities with current PKBGT members in addition to hosting a tournament in their home states.
The series schedule will begin next weekend at the PKBGT Katherine Perry-Hamski Girls Tradition at UNC Finley Golf Club in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on March 13-14, 2021, followed by the PKBGT Emma Talley Girls Tradition presented by Kentucky Jr Golf Tour at Bowling Green Country Club in Bowling Green, Kentucky on April 17-18, 2021.
Over 170 PKBGT members from fourteen states applied to play in the inaugural PKBGT Katherine Perry-Hamski Tradition, including seventeen players committed to play collegiately. The PKBGT Emma Talley Tradition is shaping up to be one of the strongest girls junior events ever hosted in the state of Kentucky, including five players ranked inside the top 20 in the state of Kentucky and the tenth best player in the state of Tennessee according to Junior Golf Scoreboard.
Additionally, a personalized mentorship experience for players of the PKBGT will be hosted by the Ambassador. The structure and date of this experience are to-be-determined because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the forthcoming LPGA Tour schedule. This experience will be designed to give the girls the opportunity to learn from the Ambassador, interact with them, and help further the juniors’ love for golf.
“The Girls Golf of America foundation and the Peggy Kirk Bell Girls Golf Tour are proud to partner with these professionals and various state golf associations to promote girls golf,” Mike Parker, PKBGT Director stated. “The Girls Tradition events will provide a national platform for girls to compete and shine a light on the great golfing talent in each region.”
Making her second start since returning from maternity leave, Katherine Perry-Hamski will tee it up with Emma Talley and three additional PKBGT alumna in the LPGA Drive On Championship presented by Volvik this weekend at Golden Ocala in Ocala, Florida.
Katherine Perry-Hamski, a North Carolina native and LPGA Tour member, was an All-American performer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A four-year veteran on the LPGA Tour has two career top 10 finishes including a 6th place finish at the 2019 Volunteers of America Classic. As a junior, Perry is the most decorated champion in Peggy Kirk Bell Girls’ Golf Tour history, with 9 national event victories to her name and a two-time Order of Merit champion. An All-American performer at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, the selection of UNC-Chapel Hill Finley Golf Club to host the Katherine Perry-Hamski Girls Tradition was a perfect fit.
“I am honored to be a PKBGT Ambassador and to be involved with an organization that believes in growing girls golf in an affordable and competitive environment,” Katherine Perry-Hamski, PKBGT Tradition Ambassador stated. “I wouldn’t be where I am today in my golf career without the foundation and competition that PKBGT provided during my junior golf days! I’m excited to see how the PKBGT can continue to grow and reach more girls across the US.!”
Emma Talley, a Kentucky native, and LPGA Tour member was a four-time All-American performer at the University of Alabama. In her three-year career on the LPGA Tour, she has five top 10 finishes including a 5th place finish at the 2020 Marathon LPGA Classic presented by Dana in August. A stand-out amateur, Talley one of only five women to win both the NCAA Individual Championship (2015) and U.S. Women’s Amateur (2013). Bowling Green Country Club, the host to the Emma Talley Girls Tradition, has special memories for Emma, having won three KHSAA State Championships on the course while playing for Caldwell County High School.
“I am excited and honored to be a part of the Emma Talley Girls Tradition on the Peggy Kirk Bell Girls’ Golf Tour in 2021,” Emma Talley stated. “Girls Golf of America has done an excellent job of growing the game and inspiring confidence in young ladies, and it is a privilege to partner with them for this event.”
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About PKB Girls’ Golf Tour
Founded in 2007 by Girls Golf of America, a non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization, as a local girls’ golf tour and LPGA-USGA Girls Golf program in North Carolina. The tour began as a simple concept: create more effective and affordable competitive playing opportunities for girls. By utilizing innovative yardage-based divisions instead of the traditional age-based format, the tour focuses on developing tournament experiences at the players pace. In 2021, the PKBGT will feature over 1,000 members and operate over 130 tournaments in 11 states across the Eastern United States. PKBGT events frequently rank as some of the top 100 ranked girls’ events in the country. Learn more about the PKBGT at pkbgt.org.
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