Charley Hull opts for Kraft Nabisco over Curtis Cup
05 Mar 2012
by Golfweek
see also: Charley Hull Rankings
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Charley Hull
Charley Hull withdrew from a professional tournament to participate in the upcoming Great Britain & Ireland Curtis Cup training session at Nairn, Scotland, but the English teen decided to opt out of the trial when she was offered a place in the Kraft Nabisco Championship.
Hull, 15, has lost her chance to play in this year’s Curtis Cup because she will not take part in the session.
“I’d love to play in the Curtis Cup, and I had planned to take part in the training session at Nairn,” Hull said. “I pulled out of a professional tournament in Florida (Florida’s Natural Charity Classic on the Symetra Tour) so I could participate in the training session. Then I was offered a spot in the Kraft Nabisco, and I couldn’t turn it down. It’s a dream come true.”
A family friend contacted Tegwen Matthews, the Great Britain & Ireland Curtis Cup captain, on Feb. 25 to inform her of Hull’s decision. The Ladies' Golf Union released a statement Feb. 27 announcing that Hull would not be selected for the Curtis Cup because of her decision to play in her first major championship.
“We made it plain to the players that if they didn’t play in the training session, they wouldn’t play in the match,” said Susan Simpson, the LGU’s head of golf operations. “They signed an agreement.”
The LGU since has softened its position, agreeing to allow Hull the chance to leave the training session early to travel to California.
In a statement released late yesterday, Simpson said, “The LGU has again invited Charley to rethink her decision to withdraw and has indeed tried to reach a further accommodation with her, offering that she flies out to the USA on the Sunday of the team trial, which would give her sufficient time to travel to the Kraft Nabisco, which starts the following Thursday. To date, there has been no reply to this suggestion from either the player or her representatives.”