WGC Invitational
 | |
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Established | 1999 |
| Course(s) | TPC Southwind (2019–present) |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 7,244 yards (6,624 m) |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour European Tour (1999–2015, 2017–) |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | $10,500,000 €8,210,000 (est.) |
| Month played | August in 2020 |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 259 Tiger Woods (2000) |
| To par | −21 Tiger Woods (2000) |
| Current champion | |
 Justin Thomas | |
 2020 WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational | |
The WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational is a professional golf tournament hosted at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee, and is one of the four annual World Golf Championships.
It was previously known as the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational (2006–2018), and the WGC-NEC Invitational (1999–2005) when it was hosted at Firestone Country Club in Ohio (except for 2002 when it was hosted at Sahalee Country Club in Washington). It is sanctioned and organized by the International Federation of PGA Tours and the prize money is official money on both the PGA Tour and the European Tour. Tiger Woods has the record number of wins with eight.[1][2] The winner receives a Wedgwood trophy called The Gary Player Cup.[3]
The event was established in 1999 as a successor to the World Series of Golf.
Sponsorship
From 1999 through 2005, the WGC Invitational was sponsored by NEC. NEC had also sponsored the World Series of Golf from 1984 to 1998. The tournament changed sponsorship in 2006, with Bridgestone taking over as title sponsor. As a part of the sponsorship agreement, the event continued to be held at the South Course of Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio. In August 2013, the Bridgestone sponsorship was extended through 2018.[4]
The 2018 event was the last held in Akron. In 2019, FedEx became the title sponsor and relocated the tournament to Memphis, Tennessee. The 2019 event is scheduled to be held at TPC Southwind.[5][6]
Venues
Prior to 2019 the event was hosted at the South Course of Firestone Country Club, with one exception. The 2002 event was played at Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish, Washington. Beginning in 2019, the WGC Invitational will be held at TPC Southwind.
Qualifying criteria
The current event has a field of about 75 players, roughly half the number for a standard professional golf event. Invitations are issued to the following:
- Playing members of the last named Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup teams (whichever was played last).
- Players ranked among the top 50 on the Official World Golf Ranking (one week and two weeks prior to event).
- Tournament winners of worldwide events since the prior year's tournament with an Official World Golf Ranking Strength of Field Rating of 115 points or more.
- The winner of one selected tournament from each of the PGA Tour of Australasia, Sunshine Tour and Asian Tour and two selected tournaments from the Japan Golf Tour.
From 1999 to 2001, only the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup teams were eligible and the field was about 40 players. Prior to 2011, both Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup teams were eligible.
World Series of Golf
From 1976 through 1998, the PGA Tour event at Firestone Country Club was the "World Series of Golf," and was sponsored by NEC beginning in 1984. It was founded as a four-man invitational event in 1962, comprising the winners of the four major championships in a 36-hole event.[7] the competitors played in one group for $75,000 in unofficial prize money, televised by NBC.
In 1976, it became a 72-hole, $300,000 PGA Tour event and its field was initially expanded to twenty;[8] the victory and $100,000 winner's share went to Nicklaus.[9] The largest first prize at a major in 1976 was $45,000 at the PGA Championship.
The World Series of Golf quickly became a leading event on the tour. For many years a victory in it gave a 10-year exemption on the PGA Tour, the same as was granted for a victory in a major championship at that time, and twice as long as is given even for winning a major now. The field consisted of the winners of all the high status men's professional golf tournaments around the world in the previous twelve months. This was quite different from the criteria for the WGC Invitational listed above, but produced much the same sort of global field.
Winners
| World Golf Championship | 1999–2015; 2017 onwards | |
| World Golf Championship without European Tour recognition | 2016 |
| # | Year | Date (Rd4) |
Winner | Country | Venue | Score | To par | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up | Purse ($) |
Winner's share ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational | |||||||||||
| 22nd | 2020 | Aug 2 | Justin Thomas (2) |  United States |
Southwind, Tennessee | 267 | −13 | 3 strokes | Daniel Berger Brooks Koepka Tom Lewis Phil Mickelson |
10,500,000 | 1,785,000 |
| 21st | 2019 | Jul 28 | Brooks Koepka | United States |
Southwind, Tennessee | 264 | −16 | 3 strokes | Webb Simpson |
10,250,000 | 1,745,000 |
| WGC-Bridgestone Invitational | |||||||||||
| 20th | 2018 | Aug 5 | Justin Thomas | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 265 | −15 | 4 strokes | Kyle Stanley |
10,000,000 | 1,700,000 |
| 19th | 2017 | Aug 6 | Hideki Matsuyama |  Japan |
Firestone, Ohio | 264 | −16 | 5 strokes | Zach Johnson |
9,750,000 | 1,660,000 |
| 18th | 2016 | Jul 3 | Dustin Johnson | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 274 | −6 | 1 stroke | Scott Piercy |
9,500,000 | 1,620,000 |
| 17th | 2015 | Aug 9 | Shane Lowry |  Ireland |
Firestone, Ohio | 269 | −11 | 2 strokes | Bubba Watson |
9,250,000 | 1,570,000 |
| 16th | 2014 | Aug 3 | Rory McIlroy |  Northern Ireland |
Firestone, Ohio | 265 | −15 | 2 strokes |  Sergio García |
9,000,000 | 1,500,000 |
| 15th | 2013 | Aug 4 | Tiger Woods (8) | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 265 | −15 | 7 strokes | Keegan Bradley Henrik Stenson |
8,750,000 | 1,500,000 |
| 14th | 2012 | Aug 5 | Keegan Bradley | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 267 | −13 | 1 stroke | Jim Furyk Steve Stricker |
8,500,000 | 1,400,000 |
| 13th | 2011 | Aug 7 | Adam Scott |  Australia |
Firestone, Ohio | 263 | −17 | 4 strokes | Luke Donald Rickie Fowler |
8,500,000 | 1,400,000 |
| 12th | 2010 | Aug 8 | Hunter Mahan | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 268 | −12 | 2 strokes | Ryan Palmer |
8,500,000 | 1,400,000 |
| 11th | 2009 | Aug 9 | Tiger Woods (7) | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 268 | −12 | 4 strokes | Robert Allenby Pádraig Harrington |
8,500,000 | 1,400,000 |
| 10th | 2008 | Aug 3 | Vijay Singh |  Fiji |
Firestone, Ohio | 270 | −10 | 1 stroke | Stuart Appleby Lee Westwood |
8,000,000 | 1,350,000 |
| 9th | 2007 | Aug 5 | Tiger Woods (6) | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 272 | −8 | 8 strokes | Justin Rose Rory Sabbatini |
8,000,000 | 1,350,000 |
| 8th | 2006 | Aug 27 | Tiger Woods (5) | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 270 | −10 | Playoff | Stewart Cink |
7,500,000 | 1,300,000 |
| WGC-NEC Invitational | |||||||||||
| 7th | 2005 | Aug 21 | Tiger Woods (4) | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 274 | −6 | 1 stroke | Chris DiMarco |
7,500,000 | 1,300,000 |
| 6th | 2004 | Aug 22 | Stewart Cink | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 269 | −11 | 4 strokes | Rory Sabbatini Tiger Woods |
7,000,000 | 1,200,000 |
| 5th | 2003 | Aug 24 | Darren Clarke | Northern Ireland |
Firestone, Ohio | 268 | −12 | 4 strokes | Jonathan Kaye |
6,000,000 | 1,050,000 |
| 4th | 2002 | Aug 25 | Craig Parry | Australia |
Sahalee, Washington | 268 | −16 | 4 strokes | Robert Allenby Fred Funk |
5,500,000 | 1,000,000 |
| 3rd | 2001 | Aug 26 | Tiger Woods (3) | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 268 | −12 | Playoff | Jim Furyk |
5,000,000 | 1,000,000 |
| 2nd | 2000 | Aug 27 | Tiger Woods (2) | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 259 | −21 | 11 strokes | Justin Leonard Phillip Price |
5,000,000 | 1,000,000 |
| 1st | 1999 | Aug 29 | Tiger Woods | United States |
Firestone, Ohio | 270 | −10 | 1 stroke | Phil Mickelson |
5,000,000 | 1,000,000 |
References
- ^ "Tournament History". European Tour. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
- ^ "PGA Tour Media Guide". PGA Tour. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
- ^ Heath, Elliott (August 7, 2017). "The Best Trophies In Golf". Golf Monthly. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
- ^ Ridenour, Marla (August 4, 2013). "PGA Tour, Bridgestone extend contract to keep tournament at Firestone C.C. through 2018". Akron Beacon Journal. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
- ^ Wright, Branson (April 12, 2018). "WGC-Bridgestone Invitational will leave Firestone in 2019". cleveland.com.
- ^ "2019 Dates Announced". PGA Tour. July 9, 2018.
- ^ "World Series of Golf back for final time". The Augusta Chronicle. AP. August 27, 1998. Retrieved June 24, 2013.
- ^ "Now golf has a real World Series". Eugene Register-Guard. Associated Press. August 29, 1976. p. 7B.
- ^ "Nicklaus silences his doubters". Palm Beach Post. wire services. September 6, 1976. p. D1.