Hall of Fame golfer joins the lineup for Kentucky PGA Tour event

The first regular-season PGA Tour event to be played in Kentucky in nearly 60 years got a commitment Monday evening from a World Golf Hall of Famer with a major title on his resume.

Davis Love III, winner of 21 PGA tournaments including the 1997 PGA Championship, will play in next month's $3.5 million Barbasol Championship, event organizers announced Monday.

The tournament will be held July 19-22 at Champions at Keene Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville. Joining Love will be his son, Dru Love, a former standout at Alabama who received a sponsor's exemption into the field. Dru Love qualified for his first U.S. Open last year and his father was his caddie for the tournament.

In addition to his PGA Championship victory, Love finished runner-up in three other majors: The Masters (1995, 1999) and the U.S. Open (1996). He was the captain of the United States' Ryder Cup-winning team in 2016 and his last PGA Tour victory was at the Wyndham Championship in 2015.

Barbasol Championship Executive Director Brooks Downing said Davis' participation is a major boon.

“Our tournament will be dominated by some of the world’s best young golf talent, but to have one of the greatest golfers in Davis Love in the event brings tremendous excitement to our first event,” Downing said in a press release.

Davis' inclusion adds another potentially exciting storyline to the Barbasol Championship. Already entered in the field are two-time LPGA major champion Brittany Lincicome, who will become the first woman to compete in a PGA event since Michelle Wie in 2008, and former University of Kentucky golfers Chip McDaniel and Cooper Musselman. Also committed to play is Lexington native Josh Teater, graduate of Henry Clay and Morehead State, who's won more than $5 million as a pro and currently competes on the Web.com Tour.

This story was originally published June 25, 2018 at 8:04 PM with the headline "Hall of Fame golfer joins the lineup for Kentucky PGA Tour event."