The Founders Cup was created in 2011 to honor the 13 original Founders of the LPGA:  Alice Bauer, Marlene Bauer Hagge, Patty Berg, Bettye Danoff, Helen Detweiler, Helen Hicks, Opal Hill, Betty Jameson, Sally Sessions, Marilynn Smith, Shirley Spork, Louise Suggs and Babe Didrikson Zaharias. Over the past five years, the tournament has quickly become a favorite Tour stop for current players and Valley golf fans alike. The JTBC Founders Cup benefits LPGA-USGA Girls Golf every year, with over $3 million dollars donated to date. This unique organization was started in Phoenix in 1989 by Sandra LaBauve. Today there are over 40,000 Girls Golf members nationwide.  

The past, present and future perfectly align each March as the world’s best golfers tee off at Wildfire Golf Club at the JW Marriott Desert Ridge. Each year the title sponsor, JTBC (a South Korean nationwide cable TV network and broadcasting company), selects two player exemptions. This year, local valley resident and student, Hannah O’Sullivan, will be joining the ranks of the LPGA’s finest. Hannah is quickly working her way into the history books, ending 2015 as the top ranked American women’s amateur golfer (WAGR) and world number two.

Much like many of the rising golf stars of today, Hannah’s love for the game started early. A few months after Hannah’s 12th birthday, she competed in the 2010 AJGA Stockton Sports Commission Junior Open. She did not just compete, in fact she won. The first of many victories. Also during 2010, Hannah won the California State Junior Girls’ Championship in Pebble Beach, California and qualified for the U.S. Women’s Amateur – both at age 12.

At just 17 years old, Hannah O’Sullivan is already setting records. In 2015 Hannah, at the age of 16, won the LPGA Symetra Tour Gateway Classic, becoming the youngest winner in the history of the professional circuit. A win had not been secured by an amateur since 1999.  

This is just one of the many success stories for Hannah. She knew at a young age that golf was something she wanted in her life. In 2014, Hannah was a semi-finalist in the US Women’s Amateur. 2015 proved to hold even more in store for her as she won not 4, but 5 prestigious tournaments: AJGA Winn Grips Heather Farr Classic, AJGA Rolex Junior Championship, AJGA Rolex Tournament of Champions, the US Women’s Amateur Championship and Symetra Tour Gateway Classic.  

Golf is often seen as a solo sport, but Hannah also found homes on the 2014 Junior Ryder Cup team as well as the 2015 Junior Solheim Cup, coming away with team wins both times. And just recently Hannah was selected as a Team USA member on the 2016 Curtis Cup, where she hopes to continue her winning streak.

Amongst the daily practice, travel, and tournaments, Hannah never loses sight of her long term goals. She enjoys being a champion of her sport, but also recognizes the importance of academics. She shares this in common with her role model, LPGA player and winner of two major championships, Stacy Lewis.  Hannah is a member of the National Honor Society and a straight A student at Hamilton High School in Chandler, where she currently resides with her family. Colleges began scouting her during her 7th and 8th grade. In her junior year, she committed to attending the University of Southern California starting in the fall of 2016. All of this was accomplished while making her mark in the world of women’s golf. Hannah looks forward to college and her pursuit of a degree in Business Administration.

Hannah’s devotion to the game of golf and to her education have not gone unnoticed by the Arizona Golf Community. In January, Hannah was recognized at the 2016 Arizona Women’s’ Golf Association Annual Meeting and awards ceremony with the 2015 AWGA Player of the Year Award.

Hannah is as calm and collected on the course as she is off the course. She demonstrates a sense of grace and maturity that almost instantly grants respect. Hannah understands and can manage her game on course. In the game of golf, your mental game has to be just as good as your physical game.  She has the ability to stay focused through each round despite distractions.  Her mother Sarah caddies for Hannah and her father Greg is often found walking each round, standing quietly just off to the side. It is easy to see where Hannah gets both her beauty and charm. Win or lose, Hannah is the first to recognize her fellow players.

There is much ahead for this rising golf star in 2016. When Gregg O’Sullivan was advised that his daughter Hannah was one of the two exemptions for the 2016 event, Greg O’Sullivan was humbled by the announcement. He was grateful that his daughter had been bestowed this honor stating that Hannah “would represent JTBC and the LPGA to the highest standards.” Hannah and all the LPGA players can be seen March 15th – 20th at the 6th annual 2016 JTBC Founders Cup at Wildfire Golf Club. Tickets on sale now at www.LPGAFoundersCup.com.