With four marquee events teeing off in the Garden State over a six-week span in May and June, let there be no doubt: New Jersey is the epicenter of women’s golf in 2023.

On Tuesday, a media day was held for the first of those four tournaments, during which the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) announced that defending champion Minjee Lee will headline the field at the upcoming Cognizant Founders Cup, taking place May 10-14, which coincides with Mother’s Day weekend, at Upper Montclair Country Club in Clifton.

This marks the third straight year that the tournament – with its $3 million purse – will be held in North Jersey since Teaneck-based Cognizant, one of the world’s leading professional services firms, took over as title sponsor in 2021. It’s also the second consecutive year at Upper Montclair, which agreed to a three-year hosting partnership.

Earlier this week, NJBIZ reported that RWJBarnabas Health was named official health care provider for the tournament—one of the biggest and most lucrative of any LPGA events outside the majors. It will feature a 144-player field with some of the LPGA’s most talented and accomplished athletes, including New Jersey State Golf Association (NJSGA) Women’s Amateur Champion and Player of the Year, Katie Lu. The field will also include the winner of the John Shippen Cognizant Cup, an 18-hole competition for Black women golfers taking place at Upper Montclair May 7-8.

The Cognizant Founders Cup honors the 13 founding members of the LPGA. Organizers say it also helps drive the LPGA’s mission to engage, empower, and support girls and women in sports and business.

“The LPGA is excited to once again host our prestigious Cognizant Founders Cup at iconic Upper Montclair Country Club in northern New Jersey, where women’s golf is so passionately embraced by fans and sponsors alike,” said Scott Wood, senior director, Cognizant Founders Cup. “Now in our third year, this event has found a home in New Jersey and there is no better place to salute the founder of the LPGA and continue the conversation on empowering women.”

“We are thrilled to help support the talented athletes of the LPGA through our Title Sponsorship of the Cognizant Founders Cup,” said Gaurav Chand, chief marketing officer, Cognizant. “Cognizant is committed to creating equal opportunity and diversity both in and out of the workplace and recognizes the important role that women’s professional sports can play in creating a better future for the next generation of women and girls. We look forward to the LPGA season in N.J. and beyond.”

“What makes 2023 even more special is that the Cognizant Founders Cup kicks off the year of women’s golf in New Jersey and fans across the state will get to watch the best players in the world compete in four professional events over a six-week span,” Wood added.

In addition to the Cognizant Founders Cup, the other prominent, upcoming tournaments are:

• Mizuho Americas Open: May 30-June 4 at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City
• ShopRite LPGA Classic presented by Acer: June 7-11 at Seaview in Galloway Township
• KPMG Women’s PGA Championship: June 21-25 at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, which is a Major Championship

The Cognizant Founders Cup will also offer a continued chance to showcase the iconic gem that is Upper Montclair Country Club, one of the few country clubs in the world to have hosted tournaments for all three professional golf tours. The venue was previously an LPGA partner venue but had not hosted an event since 2009 prior to agreeing to the three-year partnership to host the Founders Cup, beginning in 2022.

“The membership of Upper Montclair Country Club is excited to host the Cognizant Founders Cup for a second straight year,” said Charlie Dimpfl, general manager/chief operating officer, Upper Montclair Country Club. “There is no greater supporter of women’s golf and the professional game than UMCC, and we expect today’s world-class women professionals will find our golf course as challenging, yet as fair as their predecessors.”

Organizers say the week will be filled with fun, family entertainment.

Among the beneficiaries of the event is LPGA*USGA Girls Golf, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) junior golf program that positively impacts over 100,000 girls who are learning and loving the game.

Further tournament details can be found here.