Battle of the sexes: Major champions Henrik Stenson and Annika Sorenstam to host innovative 'mixed' golf tournament

Swedish golf stars Henrik Stenson and Annika Sorenstam have unveiled plans for a new tournament called the 'Scandinavian Mixed' in which men and women will compete against one another to claim a prize of $1.6 million.

The tournament, which is sanctioned by both the men's and women's European tours and is due to start on June 11 next year, will feature 156 competitors split evenly down the middle by gender and will impact world rankings in both the men's and women's games.

In addition to counting towards world rankings, points will also be allocated towards the Race to Dubai and Ryder Cup for the men, while the women's scores will impact their Order of Merit standings.

Previous mixed tournaments have placed men in competition with women in an abridged format, or had a women's tournament running concurrently to a men's one but this is the first time that both sexes will compete directly against one another in a full-field format.

"I'm delighted to host the Scandinavian Mixed alongside Henrik in Sweden for the next three years," said the 49-year-old Sorenstam, who retired from active competition more than a decade ago.

"Bringing women and men together in a combined tournament is exciting for fans in Sweden and for the global game as we continue to showcase golf is a game for everyone."

Stenson, the former Open champion and five-time Ryder Cup team member, has committed to playing in the first three years of the tournament while Sorenstam will compete in the pro-ams.

"I'm extremely excited to host the Scandinavian Mixed alongside Annika, one of the best golfers the world has seen, and to have men and women competing alongside one another showcases what is great about our game," said Stenson.