Belek course to host Ladies Tour event

ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News

The Turkish Airlines Ladies Open has been played four times at the National Golf Club since 2008 and will be played for a fifth occasion on May 9-12.

The Ladies European Tour (LET) Access Series has announced a new tournament this year, which will be played at the National Golf Club in Turkey’s up-and-coming golf resort, Belek.

The Access Turkish Open will be played on Nov. 26-28 with a field of 78 competitors. The 54-hole strokeplay event will have a 30,000 euro prize, according to a statement on the LET’s official website.

The tournament will be played at the same venue as the Turkish Airlines Ladies Open, which has been played four times in 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012 and will be played for a fifth occasion on 9-12 May this year.

“I am delighted to expand our cooperation with LET by adding the end of season event to the Access Series. We endorse our commitment to the promotion of professional ladies golf in Turkey. We will do all we can to ensure that the competitors will have a memorable stay both on and off the golf course,” said President of the National Golf Club Bülent Göktuna.

The Access Turkish Open brings the number of tournaments on the 2013 LET Access Series schedule to 13, continuing to provide greater playing opportunities for young female golfers considering a step-up to the Ladies European Tour.

“The Access Turkish Open in November will provide an exciting end-of-season climax for the players, who will all relish the opportunity to test their skills on the challenging course at National Golf Club,” said Tour Director Di Barnard. “We can see from the past four editions of the Turkish Airlines Ladies Open that National Golf Club provides a stern but fair test of golf and is sure to produce a deserving champion.”

At the close of the 2013 LET Access season, the top five players on the 2013 Ranking will earn membership of the Ladies European Tour, while players in the sixth to 20th positions will have the opportunity to progress to the final stage of the Lalla Aicha Tour School for 2014.