- THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup will be played May 8 at Upper Montclair Country Club in New Jersey to providean exemption into LPGA’s Cognizant Founders Cup
- Women’s field plays June 6-7 at Blythefield Country Club in Grand Rapids for exemptions into the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give and Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational
- Men’s field plays June 24-25 at Detroit Golf Club for an exemption into the Rocket Mortgage Classic
The John Shippen National Invitation is a series of tournaments designed to provide playing opportunities for the nation's top black men and women golf players. There is a lack of representation in business and leadership roles within the business of sports for people of color.
In the third year of its existence, The John Shippen has hosted 76 black golfers, awarded nine playing opportunities on the PGA TOUR and donated $320,000 to local charities. SHIPPEN alumni were successful beyond the National Invitation. At the Great Lakes BayInvitational, Sadena Parks and Anita Uwadia made the cut and finished T-36, while Willie Mack III and Tim O' Neal earned their memberships on the TOUR through the Q-school.
John Shippen, Jr. was both the first American-born golfer and the country's first black golfer.
In the first two years of THE JOHN SHIPPEN, two players made the cut and two more earned membership on the Korn Ferry TOUR. "We want to build on the impact of the events as we look to create more year-round exposure and Black representation in golf." The Intersport and Rocket Mortgage teams are passionate about diversity, equity and inclusion. We are excited to be able to provide these talented athletes and individuals with the platforms they deserve, which will hopefully break barriers for talented Black golfers and aspiring business professionals.
The John Shippen Cup will be held at the Upper Montclair Country Club in New Jersey on May 8th. The men's and women's competition of THE JOHN SHIPPEN National golf invitational will be held in Detroit, Michigan, on June 24 and 25, respectively.
The John Shippen Cup is an 18-hole stroke play competition that will be held at Upper Montclair Country Club. The winner of the event will be granted an exemption into the LPGA's Cognizant Founders Cup, marking a continuation of the company's support of equal opportunity and diversity in the game of golf and beyond.
“This is Cognizant’s third year as a part of the THE JOHN SHIPPEN Cognizant Cup,” said Shameka Young, Global Head, Diversity and Inclusion at Cognizant. “We’re passionate about supporting this influential event and the role it plays in broadening representation in golf. We are pleased to provide an additional on-ramp to more Black female golfers qualifying for LPGA tournament play. Cognizant is committed to advancing diversity and inclusion both in technology and sports.”
The women's invitational will return to its previous location in the year 2022. The home of the Meijer LPGA Classic will be the site of the 36-hole stroke play competition. The winner of the event will receive an exemption into the Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give, as well as an exemption into the Dow Great Lakes BayInvitational, which will take place in July. The winner of the SHIPPEN will choose a partner to play with in the competition. The first SHIPPEN champion to make a cut was chosen by Sadena Parks to play alongside her in the team competition, and they made the cut and finished T-36.
The women's division of the John Shippen National Golf Invitational will be hosted by the Blythefield Country Club this year. The Meijer LPGA Classic is committed to diversity and inclusion and hopes to empower underrepresented groups on the golf course and in our communities. We are happy to give the winner an exemption into the tournament and see her in June.
The men's portion of The John Shippen National Invitation presented by Rocket Mortgage will be held at Detroit Golf Club. The winner of the stroke play competition will be given an exemption into the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
The lack of representation in business and leadership roles in golf and professional sports for people of color is addressed by The John Shippen. 350 high school and college students of color were put together with sports industry leaders for a day of educational programming about the business of sports. The John Shippen Sports Business Summit will be held in Detroit.
To find out more about The John Shippen, please visit www.TheJohnShippen.com and follow us on social media: Facebook andInstagram. If you would like to learn more about sponsorship opportunities or how to get involved, please email us.
About Intersport
Intersport has been an award-winning innovator and leader in the creation of sports, lifestyle, and entertainment based marketing platforms. This Chicago-based Marketing and Media Solutions Company helps their clients to create ideas, content and experiences that attract and engage passionate audiences with their expertise in sponsorship consulting, Experiential Marketing, customer engagement, content marketing, productions and sports properties. Visit www.Intersport.global to learn more about it.
About Woods & Watts Effect
Woods & Watts Effect is an equity and inclusion consulting firm that designs programs that assess a company's strengths and areas for improvement. Woods &Watts Effect is innovative in how they think. They produce viable and actionable solutions for sustainable change through a non-traditional approach. At WoodsWatts.com, you can find more information.
About Rocket Mortgage
Through its obsession with an industry-leading, digital-driven client experience, Detroit-based Rocket Mortgage is able to enable the American Dream of homeownership and financial freedom. The first fully digital mortgage experience was introduced in 2015. In the last 30 years, Rocket Mortgage has closed over a billion dollars of mortgage volume in all 50 states. The first fully digital mortgage experience was introduced in 2015.
The headquarters of Rocket Mortgage moved to Detroit. Loan production takes place in Detroit, Cleveland and Phoenix.
The parent company of Rocket Mortgage has placed in the top third of the list for 19 years in a row.
The company news can be found at RocketCompanies.com/Press Room.
About Meijer
The Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retailer has 258 supercenters and grocery stores in seven states. A privately-owned and family-operated company since 1934, Meijer pioneered the "one-stop shopping" concept and has evolved through the years to include expanded fresh produce and meat departments, pharmacy departments, pet departments, garden centers, toys and electronics. You can find more information on the website www.meijer.com. Become a fan at www. Facebook.com/meijer or follow the company on social media.
About Dow
To achieve profitable growth and deliver a sustainable future, the company combines global breadth, asset integration and scale, focused innovation and materials science expertise, and leading business positions. The company wants to be the most innovative, customer-centered, inclusive and sustainable materials science company in the world. A broad range of differentiated, science-based products and solutions for its customers in high-growth market segments, such as packaging, infrastructure, mobility and consumer applications can be found in the portfolio of plastics,industrial intermediates, coating and silicones businesses. Approximately 35,700 people work for the company that operates 104 manufacturing sites around the world. In the year 2021, the company delivered sales of over fifty billion dollars. The reference is to the company and its subsidiaries. You can find more information at www.dow.com.
About Cognizant
Modern businesses are being Engineering by Cognizant Our clients can stay ahead of the curve in our fast-changing world by modernizing technology. We are making everyday life better. You can see how atcognizant.com.
Contact: Solomon Hughes, 614.315.2446, shughes@intersportnet.com
Greg Ball, 760.271.9183, gregb@bzapr.com
