Fifth annual tournament will take place at Blackthorn Golf Club in South Bend

SOUTH BEND, Ind. – February 9, 2016 – The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians and its Four Winds® Casinos are pleased to announce that the 2016 Four Winds Invitational will be held from Friday, June 17 through Sunday, June 19 at Blackthorn Golf Club, located at 6100 Nimtz Parkway, South Bend. The fifth annual tournament will feature a field of professional women golfers from around the world competing on the Epson® Tour – Road to the LPGA®. The 2016 tournament will include 144 golfers who will be playing for a $150,000 purse.

“We are proud to bring back the Four Winds Invitational to South Bend for a fifth straight year. The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians has lived in this region for hundreds of years and this is just one of many ways in which we continually reinvest in the community we call home,” said John P. Warren, Chairman of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. “We have a great partnership with the Epson Tour and thank all the volunteers in the community who have made the tournament such a success.”

Over the first four years of the Four Winds Invitational, more than $600,000 in prize money has been awarded to athletes playing in the tournament and 40 golfers, including 2013 tournament winner Cydney Clanton, have graduated from the Epson Tour and moved on to the LPGA Tour. Additionally, $267,000 has been donated to Memorial Children’s Hospital, which is from proceeds of the tournament.

“I want to thank the Pokagon Band and its Four Winds Casinos along with all of our sponsors and volunteers who have worked tirelessly over the past four years to ensure that the Four Winds Invitational continues to be among the best tournaments on the Epson Tour,” said Tim Firestone, Owner and General Manager, Blackthorn Golf Club. “We’ll be releasing additional details on the 2016 tournament in the coming months.”

The Four Winds Invitational is one of four Epson Tour events that is part of the third annual Potawatomi Cup, which has a total prize pool of $40,000. It awards Epson Tour players a bonus based on performance at events sponsored by four Potawatomi nations’ casinos.

The 2015 Four Winds Invitational was held from June 19 – 21, 2015 at Blackthorn Golf Club. 17 year-old Brooke Henderson won the Four Winds Invitational after receiving a Sponsor’s Exemption to play in the tournament. Henderson was also granted LPGA membership after winning the Cambia Portland Classic on the LPGA Tour. More information is available at www.fourwindsinvitational.com.

2016 Four Winds Invitational to be held June 17-19

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