When Stacy Lewis learned that the LPGA Tour wasn’t going to have an event in Sylvania, Ohio, during the 2025 season, she went to work.

Having been born in the area and played in virtually every edition of what was most famously known as the Marathon Classic over the last nearly two decades, Lewis knew the locals and the charities the annual LPGA event benefited would greatly miss the Tour’s presence this year.

So, when the idea was floated for an Epson Tour event, one that would also feature several members of the Legends of the LPGA competing alongside the stars of tomorrow, Lewis jumped at the opportunity to get involved.

“I have a lot of ties to this area, and I really wanted to find a way to keep women's golf in Toledo, Ohio, and make sure the community and the charities and everything that benefits from this tournament continued,” Lewis said. “I know people are disappointed it's not an LPGA event, but I think this is a great alternative, and I hope everybody enjoys the format.”

The Greater Toledo Classic hosted by Stacy Lewis is being contested this week at Highland Meadows Golf Club, a venue that has been a mainstay on the LPGA Tour since the mid-1980s. There are 102 Epson Tour athletes and 42 Legends of the LPGA members in the field playing in their own separate tournaments, but after the cut is made following 36 holes of play, they will tee it up alongside one another for the final round, with each circuit crowning its respective champion.

While both Tours are certainly enjoying this latest competitive opportunity, with many of the Legends reliving their glory days at one of the LPGA’s most utilized courses and the Epson Tour athletes getting the chance to play a venue at which they likely watched their favorite players win, the goal of this tournament was much bigger in host Lewis’ mind.

She wanted the Epson Tour athletes to use the opportunity to interact with some of the greatest in the women’s game and create relationships on which they could lean as their professional journeys develop, knowing firsthand how valuable mentorship can be.

“When I first came on Tour, I had a lot of players that took me under their wing, and people I was able to ask questions to and play practice rounds with,” Lewis said. “They really helped me a lot along the way and taught me that I should care what happens to the Tour, and I should care about the next generation and making sure they have better opportunities than I've ever had. I guess that's what is ingrained in me.

“As I've gotten older, I've seen the struggles with the Legends players, that they don't always feel like they're being used correctly, and they want to help, but they don't really have a platform to do it. So, I just thought this would be a great opportunity to get the two tours together, get these players that are on Epson before they go to the LPGA, and can kind of learn the ropes and have the resources.”

Lewis’ idea to treat the event as a mentorship opportunity has been more than a resounding success at the Greater Toledo Classic. Cool moments have been shared between the Epson Tour and Legends of the LPGA athletes throughout the week, from Hailee Cooper getting to play a few holes with seven-time major winner Karrie Webb, to Christine Wang making a TikTok with 2026 U.S. Solheim Cup Captain Angela Stanford.

Meaningful discussions have taken place on the golf course during practice rounds and were had at the Wednesday night player meeting. Players from both tours are chatting with one another on the driving range and practice putting green, trying to soak up every second of this shared moment, one that everyone in the 144-player field realizes is a special one.

And it’s a type of tournament that Lewis hopes to see continue happening in the future – whether that be here at Highland Meadows Golf Club or elsewhere – because of the impact the Greater Toledo Classic is already making on the lives of the women of the Epson and Legends of the LPGA Tours.

“I hope we can continue this format somewhere, whether it is here in Toledo,” said Lewis. “I'd love for an LPGA event to come back to Toledo, but if it does, let's go take this somewhere else. Think of a Rochester, N.Y., or a Corning, where the LPGA was so successful for a long time. I think a format like this could do really well there. So, hopefully, we can keep it going and continue to affect this next generation.”

Stacy Lewis Hosting Legends of LPGA, Epson Tour Event in Toledo

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