LOMBARD TAKE OVER SPONSORSHIP OF PRO-CAPTAINS' EVENT

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY THE PGAGolf club captains will have the opportunity to team up with their PGA professional and chase a dream final after leading UK asset finance provider Lombard’s return to golf.
One of the PGA’s major tournaments has been renamed The Lombard Challenge after securing a three-year sponsorship deal from leading UK asset finance provider Lombard.
The Lombard Challenge, a PGA Pro-Captain tournament, which is open to all golf clubs in the UK and Ireland, has received significant investment from the heavyweight financial institution, which celebrates its 150th anniversary this year.
The new deal sees Lombard and the PGA reigniting their partnership, with Lombard having previously sponsored the PGA National Pro-Am Championship – known as The Lombard Trophy – between 1995 and 2006.
Lombard’s return will see the Grand Final prize fund increase from £7,500 to £25,000, plus greater opportunities for PGA professionals and their club captains to reach the final of The Lombard Challenge with 10 qualifying tournaments - an increase of three - across the PGA’s seven regions.
The final is set to return to the PGA Sultan course at Antalya Golf Club in Turkey, which hosted the event for the first time in 2010. The final will be played over 36 holes on November 25 and 26.
PGA chief executive Sandy Jones said: “It is great to welcome back Lombard to the PGA stable of sponsors given our previous long and successful partnership.
“Lombard took the PGA National Pro-Am Championship to new heights, making it the largest event of its kind in Europe. I am sure that The Lombard Challenge, with increased prize funds and more opportunities to reach the final will have an equally invigorating and inspirational impact on the tournament.
"I am confident that the PGA professionals who have previously competed in Lombard events will testify to their excellence and will be urging their captains to compete in this year’s event.
“The relationship between the PGA professional and captain is one of the most important at any club and The Lombard Challenge is a marvellous opportunity for both to put their club on the map by reaching a national final.
"Antalya Golf Club is a fabulous venue for a final and I'm sure competition will be as fierce as ever as teams bid to be one of the lucky 10 to make it through."
This will be the 14th staging of the tournament. Last year it was won by Newport-based Parc Golf Academy pro Richard Dinsdale and captain Steve Hook. Dinsdale, by coincidence, was the last winner of The Lombard Trophy.