Mizuho Americas Announces Five-Year Renewal Agreement With the LPGA Tour as Title Sponsor of the Mizuho Americas Open, Reinforcing Its Commitment to Women’s Sports
Michelle Wie West to Continue as Mizuho Brand Ambassador and Tournament Host
Liberty National Golf Club to Host Event in 2028-2030; Mountain Ridge Country Club Added for 2026-2027
NEW YORK, May 01, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mizuho Americas, the New York-headquartered arm of Mizuho Financial Group (NYSE: MFG), announced today that it has renewed its title sponsor agreement for the Mizuho Americas Open through 2030 and will raise the 2026 purse to $3.25 million, one of the largest outside of the Major championships. The tournament will maintain its successful format where the American Junior Golf Association’s future stars compete alongside the best women golfers in the world.
The new five-year agreement will allow the marquee tournament to remain in the New York City Metro area, providing unmatched benefits to the LPGA players, AJGA junior golfers, and the local community. After three years at the prestigious Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, NJ, the Mizuho Americas Open will travel just a few miles west to Mountain Ridge Country Club in West Caldwell, NJ, for 2026 and 2027, and then back to its long-term home at Liberty National for the remaining years through 2030. Additionally, LPGA Tour Icon and Mizuho Americas Brand Ambassador Michelle Wie West will continue to serve as Tournament Host.
“We first partnered with the LPGA, AJGA, and Liberty National in 2023 to create a one-of-a-kind tournament that stands apart from the others,” said Jerry Rizzieri, President & CEO of Mizuho Securities USA and Head of Americas Corporate and Investment Bank. “We share this tournament – not only with the players – but also with our employees and clients. We remain deeply committed to our investment in women’s sports as we aim to help advance the next generation of talent and level the playing field for women, both on and off the golf course.”
During the five-year partnership, the prize purse will continue to escalate, ensuring that the Mizuho Americas Open remains one of the largest non-Major championship purses on the LPGA Tour. Mizuho raised the bar for player experience and will continue to provide complimentary first-class accommodations and transportation for all LPGA players participating in the event through 2030.
Mizuho’s continued support of the LPGA and its players speaks volumes about the company’s culture and its commitment to empowering women and fueling their aspirations,” said Liz Moore, Interim LPGA Commissioner. “Through our partnership with Mizuho, we’re able to showcase the world’s best golfers on a global stage, right outside one of the world’s most iconic cities, while uniquely providing rising AJGA stars the opportunity to compete alongside them — creating an unparalleled platform to inspire the next generation and furthering our core mission of using the game of golf to transform and enrich the lives of girls and women
In a few short years, the Mizuho Americas Open has cemented itself as a premier LPGA Tour stop. Played on one of the best golf courses in the country, its groundbreaking format offers an opportunity for top-ranked AJGA junior golfers to compete side-by-side with the best LPGA players in the world, creating an unprecedented week of education and access to help ignite the passion of young women to become the next generation of LPGA Tour superstars.
“We’re thrilled to strengthen this tremendous partnership with Mizuho, LPGA Tour and AJGA to host the world’s best professional and junior players through the end of the decade,” said Dan Fireman, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Liberty National Golf Club. “This event is truly unique and embodies our ethos and deep commitment to growing the game through the Liberty National Foundation’s Torch Lighters Club, which supports a number of charitable organizations, including the AJGA and others that benefit youth and our broader community.”
Philanthropy will remain at the heart of the Mizuho Americas Open. Mizuho will continue to host its DrivHER Summit, a leadership forum developed in conjunction with Girls Inc., to help young women explore, aspire, and achieve. The comprehensive program features a golf clinic and workshops on self-confidence, career planning, and networking, reflecting the values championed by Girls Inc. of access, inclusivity, and opportunity.
“Thanks in large part to the unwavering support of Mizuho, this tournament has grown into a crown jewel on the LPGA Tour,” said Michelle Wie West. “Mizuho is different than most sponsors in that they’re involved every step of the way, ensuring a premium is placed on the player experience and community impact. As tournament host, I feel inspired by how they’ve supercharged this event through innovative philanthropic and marketing efforts that put women’s golf front and center in the world’s largest media market.”
The Mizuho Americas Open is operated by Excel Sports Management, a leading sports agency representing marquee brands, properties, and premier professional athletes – including many of the players and stars of today’s LPGA Tour.
“We couldn't be more excited to extend our partnership with Mizuho for another five years. What began as an ambitious vision has quickly become a cornerstone event on the LPGA Tour,” said Kevin Hopkins, Senior Vice President at Excel Sports Management. “As we look ahead, we're energized by the opportunity to further elevate this championship experience for the players, our partners, and the dedicated golf fans across the New York metropolitan area who have embraced this event from day one”
Information on ticket sales, corporate hospitality and volunteer opportunities are available at www.mizuhoamericasopen.com. Follow @MizuhoLPGA on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for the latest news on the event.
About Mizuho Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. is one of the largest financial institutions in the world as measured by total assets of ~$2 trillion, according to S&P Global 2024. Mizuho’s 65,000 employees worldwide offer comprehensive financial services to clients in 36 countries and 850 offices throughout the Americas, EMEA, and Asia.
Mizuho Americas is a leading Corporate and Investment Bank (CIB) that provides a full spectrum of client-driven solutions across strategic advisory, capital markets, corporate banking, and fixed income and equities sales & trading to corporate, government, and institutional clients in the US, Canada, and Latin America. Through its acquisition of Greenhill, Mizuho enhanced its M&A, restructuring, and private capital advisory capabilities across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. Mizuho Americas employs approximately 4,000 professionals. For more information, visit www.mizuhoamericas.com.
About the Mizuho Americas Open The Mizuho Americas Open is a purpose-driven tournament on the LPGA Tour. As title sponsor, Mizuho Americas created and drove the vision for a distinctive and premium event that celebrates women and advances the next generation, with a charitable focus on providing leadership and life skills to young girls from underserved communities. Played at the prestigious Liberty National Golf Club, with LPGA icon Michelle Wie West as celebrity host, the tournament features an elevated purse and a unique junior component where the AJGA’s stars of tomorrow compete alongside the best women golfers in the world. The tournament is also home to the Mizuho Americas DrivHER Summit, an inspirational day of learning and activities for Girls Inc., the official charitable partner of the Mizuho Americas Open. The Summit leverages the game of golf and the LPGA to inspire the members of Girls Inc. to discover the confidence they need to become leaders in their communities.
About the LPGA The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is the world’s premier women’s professional golf organization. Created in 1950 by 13 pioneering female Founders, the LPGA, whose Members now represent nearly 40 countries, is the longest-standing professional women’s sports organization. Through the LPGA Tour, the Epson Tour, the LPGA Professionals, and a joint venture with the Ladies European Tour, the LPGA provides female professionals the opportunity to pursue their dreams in the game of golf at the highest level. In addition to its professional tours and teaching accreditation programs, the LPGA features a fully integrated Foundation, which provides best-in-class programming for female golfers through its junior golf programming, and its LPGA Amateurs division, which offers its members playing and learning opportunities around the world. The LPGA aims to use its unique platform to inspire, transform and advance opportunities for girls and women, on and off the golf course.
About the LPGA Tour The LPGA Tour is the world’s leading competitive destination for the best female professional golfers in the world. The Tour hosts more than 32 annual events across 12 countries for over 200 athletes, awarding total prize funds exceeding $129 million and reaching television audiences in more than 220 countries. Follow the LPGA Tour on its U.S. television home, Golf Channel.
About the AJGA The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls, ages 12-19) of more than 9,000 members from 50 states and 51 foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Liberty National ACE Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the AJGA fosters the growth of golf’s next generation.
TaylorMade and adidas are the AJGA’s Global Sponsors, supporting the AJGA for more than 25 years. TaylorMade has served as the Official Ball of the AJGA since 2016. adidas has been the Official Apparel and Footwear of the AJGA since 2017. Rolex, in its fourth decade of AJGA sponsorship, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 1,000 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Patrick Cantlay, Billy Horschel, Collin Morikawa, Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods, Paula Creamer, Jessica Korda, Nelly Korda, Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Inbee Park, Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang.
About Liberty National Golf Club One of the world’s most iconic golf locales, Liberty National Golf Club is located along the Hudson River in Jersey City, NJ, with striking views of the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and Manhattan skyline. Liberty National fittingly opened on July 4, 2006, and is guided by the vision and leadership of former Reebok Founder, Chairman & CEO Paul Fireman and his son Dan Fireman, managing partner of Fireman Capital Partners. Designed by US Open Champion Tom Kite and esteemed golf course mastermind Bob Cupp, Liberty National is kept in tournament ready playing condition. Liberty National hosted The Presidents Cup in 2017 as well as multiple PGA TOUR FedExCup Playoff events, and is currently the home of the LPGA Mizuho Americas Open. For more information about Liberty National Golf Club, visit www.libertynationalgc.com.
About Mountain Ridge Country Club Founded in 1912, Mountain Ridge Country Club has long been considered a historic venue. Originally established in West Orange, NJ, the Club moved to its current site in West Caldwell, located just 20 miles from New York City, in 1929 when it commissioned famed golf course architect Donald Ross to design a championship 18-hole course across 282 rolling acres. Often described as one of the NY City Metropolitan Area’s “hidden gems”, the course has always been viewed as a classic Donald Ross design. The course was considered a difficult test when it opened in 1931, and little has changed in the 90+ years since. The course is known for its distinctly Ross features, especially its challenging greens. Ross designed each nine-hole loop to wind down to the lower part of the property and conclude with a long assent back to the iconic fieldstone clubhouse, designed by renowned architect Clifford C. Wendehack. The venue has hosted many championships including the 2012 USGA Senior Amateur Championship and the 2021 LPGA Cognizant Founder's Cup. Over its century-long history, Mountain Ridge has been home to many prominent members and continues its commitment to excellence, community, philanthropy, and the game of golf.
