Utah’s Black Desert is offering something seldom done on the LPGA Tour

When the first major of the LPGA Tour season came to a close in Houston this Sunday, seven private jets were waiting to take off for Utah. The Black Desert Championship — the first LPGA Tour event in the Beehive State since 1964 — is trying to roll out the red carpet for its players. That includes airfare to the course, something seldom offered on tour.

“I thought it was important to go a little bit over the top,” Patrick Manning, the resort’s managing partner, said last week. “We partnered with SkyWest, and we’re sending private charters to go pick up the entire field and a plus-one. When they get on the plane, there’s going to be custom Black Desert Championship Minky Couture blankets for them.



” Manning believes Black Desert in Ivins is the only LPGA Tour event offering chartered jet travel to a tour event. “At least not domestically,” he said. “If they go international, [maybe].

I’ve been told that there are no domestic charters doing that.” It is part of an effort for Black Desert to establish itself as a key stop on the tour. The southern Utah course opened last year, hosting a fall PGA Tour event in October.

Top LPGA golfers headed to Utah Lilia Vu plays her shot from the third tee during the first round of the LPGA CME Group Tour Championship golf tournament, Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023, in Naples, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) Unlike the men’s event, which came after the PGA’s playoff had concluded, this LPGA stop will have many of the top players in the world.

Lilia Vu, the tour’s No. 4 golfer, will tee it up. The field also includes Charley Hull (No.

8), Megan Khang (No. 22) and Allisen Corpuz (No. 30).

Six of the top 10 golfers will head to Utah. The tournament has a $3 million purse, which is on par with some of the top events outside of the majors. For context, the Mizuho Americas Open in Jersey City has a $3 million purse.

The Portland Classic in Oregon is $2 million. “I felt it was very important to really celebrate the women coming in. You know, they don’t always have the elevated experience that the men typically do,” Manning said.

The field is notably missing the top player in the world, Nelly Korda. Manning said it was due to a scheduling conflict. “The only reason Nelly specifically [didn’t come] is because she’s defending a major the week before us,” Manning said, noting Korda won the Chevron Championship last year.

Next year, Manning is hoping Korda will be on one of the planes taking players from Houston to St. George. But for now, he is planning on an elaborate reintroduction of the LPGA in Utah — hoping it attracts top players for the foreseeable future.

On the grounds in Ivins, the players will stay for free and will have access to player dining. “Nowhere else on tour can they stay privately in a whole building; it’s just theirs,” Manning said. “And they can travel from the room to the locker rooms without public interface.

They get from the locker rooms to player-only dining without public interface. So when they’re outside the ropes, they’ve got a pretty private experience if they want one.” How to attend the Black Desert Championship (Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) Practice holes at the Utah Tech golf team practice facility at Black Desert Resort in Ivins, Saturday, Oct.

12, 2024. Black Desert is offering two free youth tickets with every adult ticket purchased. It is an effort to get more fans out to the course and make the experience more affordable.

A daily pass costs $60 for Thursday’s competition and $70 on the weekend. “We want to get as many youth out as we can and frankly, make it more affordable for families to be able to come,” Manning said. Utah hasn’t hosted an LPGA Tour event since 1964, when Riverside Country Club in Provo hosted an event.

Courses in Ogden and Salt Lake also hosted LPGA Tour events in 1963 and 1962..