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Giant Eagle LPGA Returns to July
VIENNA, Ohio -- Following a one-year stint in the month of June, the 2004 Giant Eagle LPGA Classic has been moved back to its original time frame in July. The 2004 event will be played July 12-18 at Squaw Creek Country Club here."2004 will mark our 15th anniversary in the Valley and none of this would be possible without the generous support of our sponsors, volunteers and fans from across the country," says Eddie Thomas, executive director of the tournament.Returning the tournament to July, he adds, will eliminate the end of the school year conflicts for some volunteers. "And we hope to avoid the sometimes unpredictable June weather which we encountered last year," he says.The 2004 event will be preceded by the U.S. Women's Open in Hadley, Mass., July 1-4 and the BMO Financial Group Canadian Women's Open in Niagara Falls, Ontario, July 8-11. This year's event also will serve as a final tune-up for the world's top players as they travel to the Evian Masters in France and the Women's British Open in Berkshire, England in the weeks following the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic.This year, the Home Savings/Butler Wick Pro-Am will kick off the week's events July 12. Also on Monday are the two clinics hosted by the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic; the TMH Foundation Golf Clinic and the YSU Junior Golf Clinic. July 13, brings the popular Schwebel's Long Drive Contest. where the longest hitting pros will try to break the record drive of 322 yards set by Caroline Blaylock in 1998. July 14 and 15 mark the Classic Pro-Am presented by Cellular One. Professional practice rounds will take place all day July 13, with the professional competition scheduled for July 16-18.The 2004 event follows an extremely successful 2003 tournament, which included a record donation of $460,000 to local children's and educational charities and an exceptional champion in Rachel Teske, who finished 9th on the final LPGA Tour money list in 2003, earning just shy of $1 million for the season.The Giant Eagle LPGA Classic is owned by Mahoning Valley Sports Charities Inc., a Youngstown, Ohio-based nonprofit organization. In 11 years, more than $3.8 million has been donated to local children's and educational charities on behalf of MVSC. Tournament Founders Club sponsors include Cellular One, Trumbull County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Giant Eagle, National City Bank, Pepsi, Superior Beverage Group, Dean Dairy Products Co., Friends of Squaw Creek and Superior Printing Co. "