The Four Winds Invitational teed off Friday morning at Blackthorn Golf Club with a field of 144 players from around the United States and the world.

The LPGA-Symetra Tour is in the midst of a six-week stretch of tournaments.

The Four Winds Invitational runs through Sunday and with its purse of $150,000, has drawn the top players on tour to South Bend.

The winner will take home $22,500 and earn them valuable points toward the Volvik Race for the Card money and a coveted LPGA Tour card.

Since its inception in 2012, the Four Winds Invitational has had an impressive list of champions including Cydney Clanton (2013), Brooke Henderson (2015) and last year’s champion, Jackie Stoelting.

All three players are full-time competitors on the LPGA Tour.

Nine of the top 10 money list leaders are in South Bend for the tournament. The lone exception is Daniela Lacobelli, who is currently ninth on the list. She is playing in the LGPA Manulife LPGA Classic this weekend.

A pair of former Notre Dame golfers are also in the field as Becca Huffer and Lindsey Weaver take to the links Friday looking for success on familiar ground.

Not everyone is a top money winner on the tour or a former Irish player, but there are still plenty of players in the field that would like to take home the top prize Sunday.

That includes former Ohio State golfer Rachel Rohanna, who visited South Bend for the annual Four Winds Invitational media day in May.

“After my third tournament I decided I wanted to turn pro,” said Rohanna, who has been playing golf since the age of 8. “And if you want to do something, you have to stick your mind to it and get it done. I’ve never really had a backup plan.”

The Morgantown, West Virginia native who earned All-Big Ten honors in 2010 and 2012 for the Buckeyes, says the biggest difference between the Symetra Tour and the LPGA Tour is the strength of the field.

“The biggest difference between the Tours is maybe 100 of the 144 have a real chance to win each week on the Symetra Tour,” Rohanna said. “On the LPGA every girl can pull out a win. It’s not that there’s better competition on the LPGA. There was just more competitors. And obviously the purses are better. But it’s tough on both tours. Everyone is digging and scratching to get up to the top. You have to be on your game on both Tours.”

The Four Winds Invitational is once again free to the public thanks to the sponsorship of Martin’s Supermarkets.

Two events around the tournament are the Four Winds Invitational 5K Run & Fun Walk at 7:30 a.m. Sunday and the Family Fun Day, which runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.