SANDWICH, Massachusetts – The stage is set for the 8th annual BJ’s Charity Championship presented by Kimberly-Clark, a team event featuring 24 Legends of the LPGA to be held Friday, September 5 at The Ridge Club in Sandwich, Mass.
Defending champions Angela Stanford and Wendy Ward combined for a final score of 11 under par last year to capture the 2024 title over a star-studded field of LPGA Legends.
“I’m excited to get back to the BJ’s tournament,” says Stanford, a 7-time LPGA Tour winner with one major championship title who also captured consecutive Senior LPGA Championship titles in 2023 and 2024. “I truly enjoyed the event — and the golf course — and I can’t wait to play it again with the good vibes from last year.”
The BJ’s Charity Championship features a mix of LPGA & World Golf Hall of Famers and former LPGA Tour stars age 45 and over pairing up and squaring off to play as partners in a unique team event. The format for the single-day, 18-hole tournament is a two-person scramble.
Stanford, the current Solheim Cup Captain for Team USA, looks forward to teeing it up once again with Ward, a 4-time LPGA Tour champion. The pair met years ago while playing in the Solheim Cup and subsequently served as Assistant Captains. Recently, they’ve started competing as partners in team events on the Legends circuit.
“I think we are pretty similar in personality,” notes Stanford. “Wendy and I enjoy being around each other and have the same level of intensity when we are on the course.”
Ward agrees. “We are pretty competitive on the inside,” smiles Ward.
Joining Stanford and Ward in the field this year are six LPGA and World Golf Hall of Fame members, including Pat Bradley, Jan Stephenson, Amy Alcott, Hollis Stacy, Juli Inkster and Laura Davies. Bradley won the BJ’s Charity Championship in 2022 with playing partner Jamie Fischer while Stephenson teamed up with Laura Diaz to win it in 2021.
With so much talent in the field and one of the most thrilling finishing holes the Legends face all season in The Ridge’s par 5 18th, it’s typically “anybody’s ballgame” at the BJ’s Charity Championship.
“It’s always fun to return and defend on a course where you’ve had success,” says Ward, who picked up her first Legends title with last year’s win on the Cape. “It’s a very competitive field, and the Ridge is an awesome stage to showcase some great shot making, especially down the stretch in the final holes.”
With a repeat visit to the winner’s circle, Stanford and Ward would be the first team to successfully defend at the BJ’s Charity Championship. Michele Redman, a two-time winner on the LPGA with four Legends titles, is the only player to have won the BJ’s Charity Championship twice, and she did so with two different playing partners: Patty Rizzo in 2017 and Rosie Jones in 2019. Redman and Jones are set to partner up once again in this year’s field.
“Last year, we both hit quality shots when we needed to,” says Stanford, who made her debut appearance at the event in 2024 while Ward had played the course several times in previous years. “Wendy did an amazing job guiding us around the course. Now that I know the course a little better, she won’t have to use her energy in that respect this time around.”
Adds Ward, “I Iove playing this game, and competing with a partner definitely takes the fun to a whole new level. I think our games complement each other. It’s a bonus anytime Angela and I get to tee it up together.”
Proceeds from the BJ’s Charity Championship benefit the BJ’s Charitable Foundation, which is dedicated to taking care of families by providing access to essential needs.
“As host of the 8th annual BJ’s Charity Championship at The Ridge Club, BJ’s Wholesale Club welcomes this incredible line-up of LPGA Legends,” said Kirk Saville, Chief Communications Officer, BJ’s Wholesale Club. “Thanks to our sponsors who have generously supported this tournament, BJ’s Charitable Foundation is able to help families who face challenges with food insecurity, education and health and wellness.”
Admission is free. Gates open at 9:00 a.m.
