The Scandinavian Mixed was announced on Monday, a tournament that will pit men and women playing for the same trophy. The Scandinavian Mixed is set for June 11-14, 2020, and is being sponsored by both the European Tour, and the Ladies European Tour.
The event will be held at the Bro Hof Slott Golf Club in Stockholm. The Scandinavian Mixed is being hosted by two of Sweden’s most famous golfers, Annika Sorenstam and Henrik Stenson. Stenson, who plays on both the PGA and European tours, says this event should grow the game.
”The European Tour has been leading the way in terms of innovative formats, and I believe this is certainly one that can be part of the way golf is played in the future,” Stenson said.
Annika Sorenstam Unretiring for Scandinavian Mixed?
Sorenstam hasn’t played competitively since retiring in 2008. While Stenson says he is entering the Scandinavian Mixed, one of the all-time great female golfers says she is staying retired.
Sorenstam does have plans, however, to play in the Wednesday pro-am. Her presence at this event in her home country is important to her.
”(It) is exciting for fans in Sweden, and for the global game as we continue to showcase golf is a game for everyone,†Sorenstam said.
Sorenstam is no stranger to playing with the other sex. In 2003, she entered the PGA Tour’s Colonial and teed it up with the men. She missed the cut, but those two rounds of golf taught her about her own game, and she said made her a better player. When she hung it up five years later, she finished with 72 wins, including 10 major championships.
Now she is more than happy to let other women have the same experience she did. Though details haven’t been finalized for the Scandinavian Mixed, it should create the type of innovation the European tours are striving to achieve.
One similar event was held last April and featured men and women from other tours, including European’s over 50 set, and the Challenge Tour. Men played from 7,100 yards, while the women were at 6,100 yards. The event was won by Daan Huizing of the Netherlands, who plays on the Challenge Tour. He won by two shots over Meghan MacLaren, who is on the Ladies European Tour.
Another First-Time Winner on PGA Tour
Lanto Griffin has lived a lifetime in 31 years, and on Sunday, he added first-time winner to his life’s resume. Griffin, who was a 40/1 long shot to win, captured the Houston Open on Sunday.
The pro lost his father before he was a teenager, and almost gave up professional golf a few years ago. He told reporters how happy he was he stuck with his chosen profession, and how much his late-father influenced him.
“I bet he’d be pretty proud,†Griffin said. “He got me started. He got me a set – I don’t know if I’ll be able to tell this story – but for Christmas in 1996, he got me a 5-iron, 7-iron, 9-iron, putter, 3-wood, and he got me into golf.â€
Two Aces for Cardinals’ Pitching Coach
Longtime pitching coach Mike Maddux made not one, but two aces Monday morning at Army-Navy Golf Club in Arlington, Virginia, about six miles from the site of the third game of the National League Championship Series.
Maddux, an avid golfer, now has a reported six aces in his career. The odds of a recreational player making two hole-in-ones in the same round are 67 million to one.
