The Associated Press reports that the inaugural Latin America Amateur Championship will take place in Argentina next January. The LAAC was created thanks to a joint venture between the sport's top three governing bodies: the Augusta National Gold Club, the Royal & Ancient Golf Club, U.S. Golf Association.

The reasoning behind creating this new event is to introduce the sport to millions of South Americans perhaps unaware of golf's existence. A similar event called the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship was created four year ago to grow Golf. 

"We believe this event will be motivating to current and future generations of golfers, and one day create heroes that will inspire others to give the game a try," Augusta National chairman Billy Payne said Wednesday. "This belief has guided us well through the early successes of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, and with the collective expertise in guiding the game of golf provided by the R&A and the USGA, we are hopeful in achieving equally exciting results."

Payne isn't just magnifying the actual success of the Asian Championship. 21-year-old Japanese golfer Hideki Matsuyama won the event twice and is not a professional ranked in the top 25 worldwide! And even more exciting is Chinese player Guan Tianlang's win. At the tender of 14 years old, he was by far the youngest competitor at last April's Masters. He didn't win, but get this: the average age of a full-fledged PGA tour member is 35 years old!

So what will the future winners of the LAAC be getting? The winner of the LAAC will receive the opportunity of a lifetime: the chance to compete in the 2015 Masters tournament in Augusta, Georgia as well as the ability to more easily qualify for the British Open and U.S. Open.

"Supporting the game's continuous growth has been a responsibility taken very seriously throughout the 260-year history of the R&A," chief executive Peter Dawson remarked. "Having been involved in this region of the world for many years, we understand the potential impact a championship of this stature can have on golfers with dreams of competing at the highest level."

Are you a golfer? If so, who is your favorite Latin America golfer? Let us know in the comments section below.