Commissioner Michael Whan announced that the LPGA remains committed to bringing the Founders Cup to the Phoenix market for “many years to come,” with the 2014 Founders Cup set to take place March 20-23 at the Wildfire Golf Club at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort and Spa. Following three successful seasons, the Founders Cup will continue to build on its successful model of remembering the past, celebrating the present, and paying it forward to the future of women’s golf via the LPGA-USGA Girls Golf program.

In celebrating the LPGA’s past, the 2014 Founders Cup will also honor two Pioneers who have left an indelible imprint on the LPGA. Kathy Whitworth and Renee Powell have been selected as this year’s Pioneers, as they are two women who were trailblazers and helped lead the way for the LPGA to become one of the premier women’s sports organizations in the world.

“When you develop a new, out-of-the-box idea, you need a strong corporate partner to help you bring it to life,” Whan said. “Three years ago, Tom Quinlan and his RR Donnelley team told me – if you can build it, we’ll help you get it off the ground. Now, after doing everything they said they would, they have committed to continue supporting the LPGA-USGA Girls-Golf program for many more years to come – that is a great partner.”

While RR Donnelley is stepping aside and the name of the new title sponsor for the Founders Cup will announced at the beginning of the year, Commissioner Whan made it quite clear the title sponsorship for the Phoenix event has been secured, ensuring that the LPGA Founders Cup will continue to follow the philosophy of the 13 LPGA Founders (leave the game better than you found it), for years to come.

“For the LPGA, the Founders Cup is MORE than just a tournament – it’s a chance to say ‘thank you’ to those who blazed the trail before us, and to make a real difference in the future of the game,” said Whan. “Our dream of bringing 50,000 new girls per year to the game of golf, is quickly becoming a reality.”

In three years on the LPGA schedule, the Founders Cup has generated $1.5M for LPGA-USGA Girls Golf. That money – and the exposure for Girls Golf generated by the global television and media coverage of the Founders Cup – has been a catalyst for rapid growth in the number of girls taking up the game. In 2010, prior to the launch of the Phoenix-based tournament, roughly 5,000 girls came through the Girls Golf program annually. In 2013, more than 30,000 are expected to participate in the program.

The LPGA & USGA’s initial vision of reaching 50,000 young women per year by 2016 through the Girls Golf program now appears very achievable, given a long-term agreement with both a new title sponsor and RR Donnelley’s continued support to grow the game. Thanks to the continued support of RR Donnelley, the LPGA-USGA Girls Golf program will once again receive a $500,000 donation at this year’s event.