NATCHEZ — One of the most prestigious golf tournaments in the region will today and Saturday as Beau Pré Country Club hosts the 2008 Governor’s Cup.

The Governor’s Cup, like the annual Beau Pré Cup, will be a Ryder Cup-type format. Tee times for the four-ball matches will start today at 8 a.m. After that will be the foursome matches with tee times starting at 1 p.m.

The 54-hole event will conclude with the singles matches on Saturday with tee times starting at 8 a.m. But just what exactly is the Governor’s Cup?

“It is the top amateur players from Mississippi taking on the top amateur players from Arkansas,” Beau Pré golf pro Dwayne David said. “Each team consists of 16 players. Ten will be in the regular division and six will be in the senior division.”

Team Mississippi, captained by Gerald Chatham Sr., will be seeking to regain the Governor’s Cup after being dominated by Team Arkansas 65 1/5 points to 30 1/2 points last year at Texarkana Country Club in Texarkana, Ark. Team Arkansas will be captained by Jay Fox.

“The team is selected from the Player of the Year points from the previous year,” David said. “These are not college players. The top nine non-collegiate players and the captain’s pick make up the 10 regular players. The top five senior players and the captain’s pick make up the six senior players.”

Nine of the 16 players on Team Mississippi are from the Jackson metropolitan area (three from Madison, two from Brandon and one each from Jackson, Canton, Ridgeland and Clinton) while the other seven are from Grenada, Greenville, Gulfport, Hattiesburg, Ocean Springs, Greenwood and Purvis. Three of the players on Team Arkansas are from Little Rock, two are from Hot Springs Village and two are from Pine Bluff.

This is the first time that Beau Pré Country Club has played host to the Governor’s Cup. But how did that happen?

“It helped that we hosted the State Four-Ball last year,” David said. “The committee was impressed with the reception they got from the city. Natchez is a beautiful city.”

The Governor’s Cup is just the latest big-time amateur golf tournament that Beau Pré has hosted. It also hosted the Farm Bureau Invitational, the 2000 Mississippi Cup Matches, the Mid-South Four Ball and the Mid-South Mid Amateur.