Uncertainty of LPGA Classic is cause for concern in Valley

There's a buzz at the 15th annual Giant Eagle LPGA Classic that has nothing to do with the field of players, which while impressive falls short of last year's gold standard when the top three money winners, Annika Sorenstam, Grace Park and Se Ri Pak, teed off at Squaw Creek Country Club.
This year, the buzz is triggered by the headline on a column Sunday by The Vindicator's veteran sports writer and golf specialist Pete Mollica: "Will Classic return? Not likely." Mollica opined that Giant Eagle, the title sponsor, will not sign another contract and that without a replacement the tournament will cease to exist.
The loss to the Mahoning Valley would be devastating. Women's professional golf has been a rite of summer in the region since 1990 when the first tournament was held under the auspices of Phar-Mor Inc. Mahoning Valley Sports Charities Inc. took over in 1993 with the collapse of Phar-Mor, and Giant Eagle signed on as one of the founding sponsors. The Pittsburgh-based supermarket chain became the title sponsor in 1997 and pumped $1 million into the tournament. That enabled MVSC to increase its championship purse to $1 million, thus putting the Mahoning Valley on the professional golf map.
Each year, the field has read like a Who's Who of the LPGA. The absence this week of such headliners as Sorenstam and Meg Mallon, U.S. Women's Open Champ, is nothing more than the result of scheduling conflicts. Last week, the tour was in Niagara Falls, Ontario, for the Canadian Open, which Mallon won, and next week the golfers will be in France for the Evian Masters.
Trying for two
But with Australian Rachel Teske, the 2003 Giant Eagle LPGA Classic winner, trying to join the small group of repeat winners, and with several popular players, including Natalie Gulbis, Tammie Green and Michelle McGann, and hometown favorite Kelly Cap of Boardman, on hand, this year's tournament should be just as exciting and just as successful as the previous ones.
That is why the uncertain future of the Giant Eagle Classic has caused such a stir. The failure of Giant Eagle to sign a contract with Mahoning Valley Sports Charities means that the nonprofit owner of the event cannot extend its relationship with the LPGA. And that prompts the question: Can a new title sponsor be found in time to meet whatever deadline the association sets for concluding the negotiations? According to Mollica, the current three-year contract expires this year, and it has always been the LPGA's policy to enter into a new agreement a year before the end of the existing one.
It is unfathomable that one of the most successful tournaments on the tour could end. The classic in the Mahoning Valley has been good for professional women's golf, good for the LPGA and certainly good for the region.
Last year, 68 charities shared a record $460,000 from the 2003 Giant Eagle LPGA Classic. MVSC reported that area children's and educational charities were recipients.
It is clear that there is more at stake here than just the future of a sporting event. The continuation of the tournament is an economic and moral imperative.
We hope that come Sunday, there will be two winners: the 2004 Giant Eagle LPGA Classic champion, and the Mahoning Valley -- with the announcement that the 2005 event will be held.