Jessica and Nelly Korda (right) playing for the USA in the Solheim Cup – now they will fight for family pride in the first of seven LPGA eTour Live events. Picture by MATTHEW LEWIS

THE Ladies Professional Golf Association is launching the LPGA e-Tour Live featuring a series of head-to-head matches played onlline over nine holes, this week.

The first event tonight (Wednesday, May 13) will see the Korda sisters – Jessica and Nelly – fight for family honour in the new matchplay event.

The LPGA has team up with World Golf Tour (WGT) by Topgolf to produce the eTour LIve series, which will also see Solheim Cup players Angel Yin and Lizette Salas go head to head later this week.

Eight LPGA and Symetra Tour players will feature in a series of seven matches twice a week.

The first match between Jessica and Nelly Korda will feature Congressional Country Club’s Blue Course – home to the 2022 and 2027 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

The Kordas became the first sisters to play in the Solheim Cup at Gleneagles when Europe famously beat the USA with the last putt, in September.

Players can choose from numerous iconic courses in the WGT portfolio, including the Old Course at St Andrews (host of the 2007 and 2013 AIG Women’s British Open), Oakmont Country Club (1992 and 2010 US Women’s Open) and Pinehurst No. 2 (2014 US Women’s Open).

They can also opt for three future US Women’s Open venues – Erin Hills (2025), the Lake Course at The Olympic Club (2021) and Pebble Beach Golf Links (2023).

LPGA e-Tour will be streamed live

The LPGA e-Tour Live series will culminate with a championship match on Wednesday, June 3. All matches will take place at 7pm UK time and will be streamed live on LPGA and Topgolf digital platforms.

LPGA’s senior vice president Brian Carroll said: “This new endeavor is a creative way to showcase our LPGA and Symetra Tour players in an innovative online format – thanks to WGT and its incredibly realistic video game technology.”

“We are excited for this partnership with WGT and Topgolf to present an entertaining and alternative golf experience for all fans alike during a time when many are starved for competition.”

Topgolf vice president Lincoln Silver said: “WGT’s ability to provide the best e-sports golfing platform combined with the LPGA’s unique series of competitions will create a powerful experience for players all over the world, who can truly immerse themselves in the competition.”

Players and times

Wednesday, May 13:
Match 1 – Jessica Korda vs. Nelly Korda
Friday, May 15:
Match 2 – Angel Yin vs. Lizette Salas
Wednesday, May 20:
Match 3 – Tiffany Joh vs. Jenny Shin
Friday, May 22:
Match 4 – Jane Park vs. Lucy Li
Wednesday, May 27:
Match 5 – Semifinal: winners of Matches 1 & 2
Friday, May 29:
Match 6 – Semifinal: winners of Matches 3 & 4
Wednesday, June 3:
Match 7 – Championship: winners of Matches 5 & 6

Kent’s former LET and LPGA star Karen Stupples, who is part of Golf Channel’s commentary team for the LPGA e-Tour

The matches will stream live on the WGT Twitch, YouTube and Facebook accounts, LPGA’s Twitter, Facebook, YouTube accounts and LPGA.com, and Discovery’s GOLFTV Twitter and Facebook accounts.

They will also be available via VOD on Golf Channel’s YouTube and GolfChannel.com.

GOLFTV’s former Girls Amateur Champion Henni Zuel, from Dorset, and Golf Channel’s Tom Abbott will add commentary during the Wednesday matches, while Golf Channel’s Karen Stupples, the former England amateur international and LPGA star from Kent, will commentate on Fridays.

•The LPGA, along with golf tours in the men’s game, was forced to postpone much of the early part of the 2020 season.

In early April, it released a revised schedule with its first event in the resumed season – the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship at Pinnacle Country Club – scheduled for June 19-21.

But at the end of April it was forced to move that event back to August and now plans to resume its tournaments on July 15 with the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational, at Michigan’s Midland Country Club.

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Payton Gordley (left) and chief operating officer Keith Waters after the American’s win in the first European eTour final based on Topgolf’s popular World Golf Tour mobile phone game. Picture by GETTY IMAGES

AMERICAN Payton Gordley defeated countryman Joshua Smith to take the trophy and $5,000 winners’ cheque in the first event of the inaugural European eTour Series.

Golfx3 – Gordley’s screenname – who participated in a one-off esports event held at last season’s Made in Denmark took the lead at the third hole from JSmithers – Smith’s screenname – playing the Wolf Creek Golf Course.

He showed no signs of weakness until a late wobble almost allowed Smith back into the game, trying to force a play-off at least.

“I feel surprised and relieved – a lot of mixed emotions,” said the 21-year-old.

“I almost gave the match away and I’m just grateful I ended up coming through and winning at the end.

“I was jokingly saying that I was going to use the prize money to buy the gold putter on the game. But realistically I’ll probably use it for my college tuition.”

Watch European eTour final video

As champion, Gordley is the first player to qualify for the global finals at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai at Jumeirah Golf Estates from November 19-22.

He will be joined by the champions from the next four European eTour events, set to take place at European Tour tournaments across the globe in the coming months.

They will qualify along with three wildcards, who will compete for a bumper prize pool of $50,000.

Gordley added: “I’ve probably got finals in November, but I’m looking forward to Dubai.

“It’s the first European eTour final and I couldn’t be more excited.”

Following intense competition played in the difficult conditions setting over Merion Golf Club and Chambers Bay Golf Club, eight players earned their spots onsite at Abu Dhabi Golf Club to compete in two round-robin groups.

That was followed by straight knockout semi-finals and the final, in which Payton Gordley and Joshua Smith battled it out for first place.

The shootout was held in a specially constructed venue in the public village at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Abu Dhabi Golf Club.

The European Tour, in partnership with esports specialists DreamHack and Topgolf Entertainment Group, launched golf’s first esports series last month.

They received in excess of 45,000 entries from 169 countries worldwide.

Of those 45,000 entrants, a total of 128 players carded scores of 60 or below in the first qualifying round and progressed to the next stage – a bracket-style knockout competition played on the leading online and mobile golf game, World Golf Tour (WGT) by Topgolf.

Among those participating on stage for a total prize pool of $10,000 in the public village at the first Rolex Series event of the year were gamers from Germany, Romania, Spain, United Kingdom and the USA.

DreamHack will bring their extensive esports events and streaming production capabilities to create a premium experience.

Fans will be able to enjoy extensive live coverage as well as bespoke ancillary content of the maiden event across a multitude of platforms, including broadcast, digital and social media.

The esports industry is one of the fastest growing media sectors with an audience of more than 380 million enthusiasts worldwide.

That figure is forecasted to surpass 1.6 billion by 2022. A majority of esports fans are in the 18-34 age demographic.

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THE European Tour has launched golf’s first esports series, the European eTour – which will see players taking on Topgolf’s World Golf Tour, which is played by some 20 million people online worldwide.

And the best esport players in the world will get the chance to qualify for the live onsite events via an online tournament.

Starting at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship in January, the inaugural season-long eTour will feature six esports contests held at European Tour tournaments around the world.

A long-time leader in online golf competitions, WGT by Topgolf offers the most photorealistic golf gaming experience – giving players the opportunity to virtually play some of the most famous golf championship courses.

The eight players who qualify will compete onsite at European Tour events in an exciting nine-hole knockout matchplay format, initially in two round-robin groups, before straight knockout semi-finals and final.

The five tournament winners, along with three wildcards qualifiers, will then contest the season-ending finale at the European Tour’s own season-ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, which takes place at Jumeirah Golf Estates, from November 19-22, 2020.

Topgolf is currently developing additional European Tour virtual venues to add to its portfolio of WGT golf courses and helping the Wentworth-based Tour – along with epsorts specialists Dreamhack.

DreamHack will bring their extensive esports events and streaming production capabilities to create a premium fan experience.

Fans will be able to enjoy extensive live coverage as well as bespoke ancillary content of all six European eTour events across a multitude of platforms, including broadcast, digital and social media.

The European Tour held its first esports event earlier this year with WGT and DreamHack.

The inaugural European eTour Championship took place at the 2019 Made in Denmark, and the success of that tournament led to the development of the new series of one-day events across the 2020 calendar.

The exclusivity of the European Tour’s esports experience amplifies the benefit of players participating in the event, and the ability to virtually be part of real world tournaments, said a spokesman.

Chief content officer Rufus Hack said: “The launch of the eTour underlines the European Tour’s commitment to innovation, and we believe this is an exciting opportunity for us to be leaders in a market that has huge growth potential.

“The esports industry allows the European Tour to engage with our existing audience in a different way and attract new fans outside of our traditional demographic through our broadcast and digital platforms.

“Our inaugural event in Denmark earlier this year gave a glimpse into the popularity of esports and we are looking forward to launching golf’s first esports Tour in 2020.”

Dreamhack Sports Games chief executive Peter Nørrelund said: “We see a great future for sports games in esports.

“The combination of a good game and a strong player in traditional sports is a winning recipe.

“World Golf Tour is a superior golf game and natural platform for golf esports, and European Tour is one of the strongest brands in the world of sports.

“With our ability to create content, media products and build strong communities I am sure, the European eTour will be a smashing success.

“I am thrilled with the partnership,” Mr Nørrelund added.

Topgolf media president YuChiang Chen said: “We are constantly innovating around how we can connect people in meaningful ways and the competition of esports brings a large, diverse group of people together to share a common experience.

“WGT was always built to be a realistic simulation of golf – rewarding skill and mirroring the level of strategy, course management and mental toughness required to win in professional golf.

“The WGT players have been urging us to take this next step and we look forward to partnering with such innovative partners to further enhance the modern competition of golf and launch an unmatched esports tournament experience on WGT.”

The esports industry is one of the fastest growing media sectors with an audience of more than 380 million enthusiasts worldwide which is forecasted to surpass 1.6 billion by 2022.

A majority of esports fans are in the 18-34 age demographic.

•Find out more about Topgolf’s World Golf Tour by clicking here.

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