PGA Championship
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| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Louisville, Kentucky in 2014 |
| Established | 1916, 98 years ago |
| Course(s) | Valhalla Golf Club in 2014 |
| Par | 72 in 2014 |
| Length | 7,297 yd (6,672 m) in 2014 |
| Organized by | PGA of America |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour European Tour Japan Golf Tour |
| Format | Stroke play (1958–present) Match play (1916–1957) |
| Prize fund | $10.0 million €7.3 million (est.) |
| Month played | August |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 265* David Toms (2001) *record for all majors |
| To par | −18 Bob May (2000) −18 Tiger Woods (2000, 2006) |
| Current champion | |
 Jason Dufner |
|
 2014 PGA Championship |
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The PGA Championship (sometimes, especially outside of the United States, referred to as the U.S. PGA Championship or U.S. PGA) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers Association of America. It is one of the four major championships in professional golf, and it is the golf season's final major, played in mid-August on the 3rd weekend prior to Labor Day weekend. It is an official money event on the PGA Tour, the European Tour, and the Japan Golf Tour, with a purse of $10 million for the 96th edition in 2014 (making it the most lucrative of the four majors[1]).
In line with the other majors, winning "the PGA" gives a golfer several privileges which make his career much more secure, if he is not already one of the elite players of the sport. PGA champions are automatically invited to play in the other three majors (Masters Tournament, U.S. Open, and the Open Championship) for the next five years, and are exempt from qualifying for the PGA Championship for life. They also receive membership on the PGA and European Tours for the following five seasons and invitations to The Players Championship for five years. The PGA Championship has been held at a large number of venues, some of the early ones now quite obscure, but currently it is usually staged by one of a small group of celebrated courses, each of which has also hosted several other leading events.
History
In 1894, with 41 golf courses operating in the United States, two unofficial national championships for amateur golfers were organized. One was held at Newport Country Club in Rhode Island, and the other at St. Andrew's Golf Club in New York State. In addition, St. Andrew's conducted an Open championship for professional golfers at the same time as the amateur event. None of these championships was officially sanctioned by any governing body for American golf, and this caused considerable controversy among players and organizers. The controversy led to the formation of the United States Golf Association later in 1894; the USGA became the first formal golf organization in the country. After this, golf quickly became a sport of national popularity and importance.
In February 1916 the Professional Golfers Association of America was established in New York City. One month earlier, the wealthy department store owner Rodman Wanamaker hosted a luncheon at the Wykagyl Country Club in nearby New Rochelle. This gathering of Wanamaker with the leading golf professionals of the day prepared the agenda for the formal organization of the PGA.[2] The new organization's first president was Robert White, one of Wykagyl's best-known golf professionals of the time. Golf historians have dubbed Wykagyl "The Cradle of the PGA".[3]
The first PGA Championship was held in October 1916 at Siwanoy Country Club in Bronxville, New York. [4] The winner, Jim Barnes, received $500 and a diamond-studded gold medal donated by Rodman Wanamaker. The 2012 winner, Rory McIlroy, earned $1.445 million. The champion is also awarded a replica of the Wanamaker Trophy, which was also donated by Wanamaker, to keep for one year, and a smaller-sized keeper replica Wanamaker Trophy.
Initially a match play event, the PGA Championship was originally played in early fall but varied from May to December. Following World War II, the championship was mostly played in late May or late June, then moved to early July in 1953 and a few weeks later in 1954, with the finals played on Tuesday. As a match play event (with a stroke play qualifier), it was not uncommon for the finalists to play over 200 holes in seven days. The 1957 event lost money,[5] and at the PGA meetings in November it was changed to stroke play, starting in 1958, with the standard 72-hole format of 18 holes per day for four days, Thursday to Sunday. Network television broadcasters, preferring a large group of well-known contenders on the final day, pressured the PGA of America to make the format change.[6] During the 1960s, the PGA Championship was played the week following The Open Championship five times, making it virtually impossible for players to compete in both majors. In 1965, the PGA was contested for the first time in August, and that move was made permanent in 1969, save for a one-year move to late February in 1971, played in Florida.
The PGA Championship is primarily played in the eastern half of the United States, only ten times has it ventured west. The last championship played in the Mountain time zone was 29 years ago in 1985 at Cherry Hills south of Denver and the last in the Pacific time zone was 16 years ago in 1998 at Sahalee east of Seattle; the 2020 PGA Championship will be held at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco, California.
Qualification
The PGA Championship was established for the purpose of providing a high-profile tournament specifically for professional golfers at a time when they were generally not held in high esteem in a sport that was largely run by wealthy amateurs. This origin is still reflected in the entry system for the Championship. It is the only major which does not explicitly invite leading amateurs to compete (it is possible for amateurs to get into the field, although the only viable way is by winning one of the other major championships), and the only one which reserves a large number of places, 20 of 156, for club professionals. These slots are determined by the top finishers in the club pro championship, which is held in June.
Since December 1968, the PGA Tour has been independent of the PGA of America.[7][8][9] The PGA Tour is an elite organization of tournament professionals, but the PGA Championship is still run by the PGA of America, which is mainly a body for club and teaching professionals. The PGA Championship is the only major that does not explicitly grant entry to the top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking, although it invariably invites all of the top 100 (not just top 50) players who are not already qualified.
List of qualification criteria as of 2010:
- All former PGA Champions.
- Winners of the last five U.S. Opens.
- Winners of the last five Masters.
- Winners of the last five Open Championships.
- The last Senior PGA Champion.
- The low 15 scorers and ties in the previous PGA Championship.
- The 20 low scorers in the last PGA Professional National Championship.
- The 70 leaders in official money standings on the PGA Tour (starting one week prior to the previous year's PGA Championship and ending two weeks prior to the current year's PGA Championship).
- Members of the most recent United States and European Ryder Cup Teams, provided they are in the top 100 of the Official World Golf Ranking as of one week before the start of the tournament.
- Winners of tournaments co-sponsored or approved by the PGA Tour since the previous PGA Championship (does not include pro-am and team competitions, but does include alternate events).
- The PGA of America reserves the right to invite additional players not included in the categories listed above.
- The total field is a maximum of 156 players. Vacancies are filled by the first available player from the list of alternates (those below 70th place in official money standings).
Winners
Stroke play era winners
Match play era winners
^ These players were British born, but they were based in the United States when they won the PGA Championship, and they became U.S. citizens:
- Tommy Armour - Born in Scotland but moved to the U.S. in the early 1920s and became a U.S. citizen at that time.
- Jock Hutchison - Born in Scotland. He became a U.S. citizen in 1920.
Match play era details
The table below lists the field sizes and qualification methods for the match play era. All rounds were played over 36 holes except as noted in the table.[24]
| Years | Field size | Qualification | 18 hole rounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1916–21 | 32 | sectional* | |
| 1922 | 64 | sectional | 1st two rounds |
| 1923 | 64 | sectional | |
| 1924–34 | 32 | 36 hole qualifier | |
| 1935–41 | 64 | 36 hole qualifier | 1st two rounds |
| 1942–45 | 32 | 36 hole qualifier | |
| 1946–55 | 64 | 36 hole qualifier | 1st two rounds |
| 1956 | 128 | sectional | 1st four rounds |
| 1957 | 128 | sectional | 1st four rounds, consolation matches (3rd-8th place) |
* In 1921, the field consisted of the defending champion and the top 31 qualifiers from the 1921 U.S. Open.
Summary by course, state and region
| Course/State/Region | Number | State No. | Region No. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Hill Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Massachusetts | 1 | ||
| Wannamoisett Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Rhode Island | 1 | ||
| Total New England | 2 | ||
| Baltusrol Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Seaview Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total New Jersey | 2 | ||
| Engineers Country Club | 1 | ||
| Fresh Meadow Country Club | 1 | ||
| Inwood Country Club | 1 | ||
| Oak Hill Country Club | 3 | ||
| Pelham Country Club | 1 | ||
| Pomonok Country Club | 1 | ||
| Salisbury Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Siwanoy Country Club | 1 | ||
| The Park Country Club | 1 | ||
| Winged Foot Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Total New York | 12 | ||
| Aronimink Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Hershey Country Club | 1 | ||
| Laurel Valley Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Llanerch Country Club | 1 | ||
| Oakmont Country Club | 3 | ||
| Pittsburgh Field Club | 1 | ||
| The Shawnee Inn & Golf Resort | 1 | ||
| Total Pennsylvania | 9 | ||
| Total Mid-Atlantic | 23 | ||
| PGA National Golf Club | 1 | ||
| PGA National Resort & Spa | 1 | ||
| Total Florida | 2 | ||
| Atlanta Athletic Club | 3 | ||
| Total Georgia | 3 | ||
| Baltimore Country Club | 1 | ||
| Congressional Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Maryland | 2 | ||
| Pinehurst Resort | 1 | ||
| Tanglewood Park | 1 | ||
| Total North Carolina | 2 | ||
| Kiawah Island Golf Resort | 1 | ||
| Total South Carolina | 1 | ||
| Hermitage Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Virginia | 1 | ||
| Total South Atlantic | 11 | ||
| Shoal Creek Golf and Country Club | 2 | ||
| Total Alabama | 2 | ||
| Big Spring Country Club | 1 | ||
| Valhalla Golf Club | 2 | ||
| Total Kentucky | 3 | ||
| Total East South Central | 5 | ||
| Oak Tree Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Southern Hills Country Club | 4 | ||
| Twin Hills Golf & Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Oklahoma | 6 | ||
| Cedar Crest Country Club | 1 | ||
| Dallas Athletic Club | 1 | ||
| Pecan Valley Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Total Texas | 3 | ||
| Total West South Central | 9 | ||
| Flossmoor Country Club | 1 | ||
| Kemper Lakes Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Medinah Country Club | 2 | ||
| Olympia Fields Country Club | 2 | ||
| Total Illinois | 6 | ||
| Crooked Stick Golf Club | 1 | ||
| French Lick Springs Resort | 1 | ||
| Total Indiana | 2 | ||
| Birmingham Country Club | 1 | ||
| Meadowbrook Country Club | 1 | ||
| Oakland Hills Country Club | 3 | ||
| Plum Hollow Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Michigan | 6 | ||
| Canterbury Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Columbus Country Club | 1 | ||
| Firestone Country Club | 3 | ||
| Inverness Club | 2 | ||
| Miami Valley Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Moraine Country Club | 1 | ||
| NCR Country Club | 1 | ||
| Scioto Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Ohio | 11 | ||
| Blue Mound Golf & Country Club | 1 | ||
| Whistling Straits | 2 | ||
| Total Wisconsin | 3 | ||
| Total East North Central | 28 | ||
| Hazeltine National Golf Club | 2 | ||
| Keller Golf Course | 2 | ||
| Minneapolis Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Total Minnesota | 5 | ||
| Bellerive Country Club | 1 | ||
| Norwood Hills Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Missouri | 2 | ||
| Total West North Central | 7 | ||
| Cherry Hills Country Club | 2 | ||
| Columbine Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Colorado | 3 | ||
| Total Mountain | 3 | ||
| Hillcrest Country Club | 1 | ||
| Pebble Beach Golf Links | 1 | ||
| Riviera Country Club | 2 | ||
| Total California | 4 | ||
| Portland Golf Club | 1 | ||
| Total Oregon | 1 | ||
| Manito Golf and Country Club | 1 | ||
| Sahalee Country Club | 1 | ||
| Total Washington | 2 | ||
| Total Pacific | 7 |
Records
- Oldest winner: Julius Boros in 1968 (48 years, 142 days)
- Youngest winner: Gene Sarazen in 1922 (20 years, 174 days)
- Greatest winning margin in the match play era: Paul Runyan beat Sam Snead 8 & 7 in 1938
- Greatest winning margin in the stroke play era: 8 strokes, Rory McIlroy in 2012
- Lowest absolute 72-hole score: 265, David Toms (66-65-65-69), 2001
- This is the lowest 72-hole score ever recorded in any major championship.
- Lowest 72-hole score in relation to par: −18, Tiger Woods (66-67-70-67, 270) and Bob May (72-66-66-66, 270), 2000; Tiger Woods (69-68-65-68, 270), 2006
- Toms' 2001 score was −15. The 2001 site, the Highlands Course at Atlanta Athletic Club, played to par 70, while the 2000 site, Valhalla Golf Club, and the 2006 site, Medinah Country Club, both played to par 72.
- Lowest 18-hole score: 63 – Bruce Crampton, 2nd round, 1975; Raymond Floyd, 1st, 1982; Gary Player, 2nd, 1984; Vijay Singh, 2nd, 1993; Michael Bradley, 1st, 1995; Brad Faxon, 4th, 1995; José María Olazábal, 3rd, 2000; Mark O'Meara, 2nd, 2001; Thomas Bjørn, 3rd, 2005; Tiger Woods, 2nd, 2007; Steve Stricker, 1st, 2011; Jason Dufner, 2nd, 2013
- Most frequent venues:
- 4 PGA Championships: Southern Hills Country Club – 1970, 1982, 1994, 2007.
- 3 PGA Championships: Atlanta Athletic Club – 1981, 2001, 2011.
- 3 PGA Championships: Firestone Country Club – 1960, 1966, 1975.
- 3 PGA Championships: Oakland Hills Country Club – 1972, 1979, 2008.
- 3 PGA Championships: Oakmont Country Club – 1922, 1951, 1978.
- 3 PGA Championships: Oak Hill Country Club – 1980, 2003, 2013.
- 3 PGA Championships: Valhalla Golf Club – 1996, 2000, 2014.
Future sites
| Year | Edition | Course | Location | Dates | Times hosted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 97th | Whistling Straits, Straits Course | Kohler, Wisconsin | August 13–16 | 2004, 2010 |
| 2016 | 98th | Baltusrol Golf Club, Lower Course | Springfield Township, New Jersey | July 28–31* | 2005 |
| 2017 | 99th | Quail Hollow Club | Charlotte, North Carolina | August TBA | Never |
| 2018 | 100th | Bellerive Country Club | Town and Country, Missouri | August TBA | 1992 |
| 2019 | 101st | Bethpage Black Course | Farmingdale, New York | August TBA | Never |
| 2020 | 102nd | TPC Harding Park[25] | San Francisco, California | TBD | Never |
| 2021 | 103rd | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| 2022 | 104th | Trump National Golf Club | Bedminster, New Jersey | TBD | Never |
* The tournament will be held earlier than usual to avoid clashing with the 2016 Olympic golf tournament.
Notes
- ^ Jump up to: a b c The club has a Rochester postal address, but is located in the adjacent town of Pittsford.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c The club is in a portion of the postal area of Duluth that became part of the newly incorporated city of Johns Creek in 2006. Although the club continues to be served by the Duluth post office, it now states its postal address as Johns Creek.
- ^ Jump up to: a b The course has a Kohler postal address, but is located in the unincorporated community of Haven.
- ^ Jump up to: a b At that time, the club had a Louisville postal address, but was located in unincorporated Jefferson County. In 2003, the governments of Louisville and Jefferson County merged, putting the club within the political boundaries of Louisville.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Pacific Palisades is a neighborhood in Los Angeles with its own postal identity.
- Jump up ^ The club has a St. Louis postal address, but is located in the suburb of Town and Country.
References
- Jump up ^ Gray, Will (November 6, 2013). "PGA, Players Champ. purses upped to $10 million". Golf Channel.
- Jump up ^ Wykagyl, 1898-1998; by Desmond Tollhurst and John Barban; pages 28-30
- Jump up ^ Wykagyl, 1898-1998 by Desmond Tollhurst and John Barban; pages 1-2
- Jump up ^ "History of the PGA Championship". PGA of America. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
- Jump up ^ "Medal play in pro golf slated". Time-News (Hendersonville, North Carolina). United Press. November 15, 1957. p. 8.
- Jump up ^ Barkow, Al (1974). Golf's Golden Grind: A History of the PGA Tour. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. ISBN 978-0151908851.
- Jump up ^ "Tour golfers, PGA settle fuss over tourney control". Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. December 14, 1968. p. 15.
- Jump up ^ "Pro golf struggle is settled; PGA forms tourney group". Milwaukee Journal. December 14, 1968. p. 18.
- Jump up ^ "Dispute in U.S. settled". Glasgow Herald. December 16, 1968. p. 5.
- Jump up ^ "PGA of America - PGA Championships - history - total purses and first prize money". Retrieved August 2, 2011.
- Jump up ^ 2011 - Jason Dufner (United States)
- Jump up ^ 2010 - Bubba Watson (United States)
- Jump up ^ 2004 - Chris DiMarco and Justin Leonard (both United States)
- Jump up ^ 2000 - Bob May (United States)
- Jump up ^ 1996 - Kenny Perry (United States)
- Jump up ^ 1995 - Colin Montgomerie (Scotland)
- Jump up ^ 1993 - Greg Norman (Australia)
- Jump up ^ 1987 - Lanny Wadkins (United States)
- Jump up ^ 1979 - Ben Crenshaw (United States)
- Jump up ^ 1978 - Tom Watson and Jerry Pate (both United States)
- Jump up ^ 1977 - Gene Littler (United States)
- Jump up ^ 1967 - Don Massengale (United States) - 18 holes
- Jump up ^ 1961 - Don January (United States) - 18 holes
- Jump up ^ PGA Media Guide
- Jump up ^ "TPC Harding Park to host three big events". PGA Tour. July 2, 2014.
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External links
- PGA Media Guide
- PGA Championship Media Guide 2012
- Official site-2015
- Official site-2014
- Official site-2013
- Official site-2012
- Official site-2011
- Official site-2010
- Official site-2009
- Official site-2008
- Official site-2007
- Official site-2006
- Official site-2005
- Official site-2004
- Official site-2003
- PGA History Exhibit