PGA Championship

The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament, conducted by the Professional Golfers Association of America as part of the PGA TOUR. The PGA Championship is one of the four Major Championships in men's golf, and it is the golf season's final major, being played in August. It is an official money event on both the PGA TOUR and the European Tour.

This Championship is sometimes called "The Season's Final Major: Glory's Last Shot!" by the media.

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 of the sport. PGA champions are automatically invited to play in the other three majors (The Masters, US Open and British Open) for the next five years, and are exempt from qualifying for the PGA Championship for life. They also receive membership on the PGA TOUR for the following five seasons and invitations to THE PLAYERS Championship for five years.

The Championship has been held at a large number of venues, some of the early ones now quite obscure, but nowadays it is usually staged by one of a small group of celebrated courses, each of which has also hosted several other leading events.

[edit] History

The first PGA Championship was in 1916 at Siwanoy Country Club in Bronxville, New York. The trophy was donated by Rodman Wanamaker, and is known as the Wanamaker Trophy. It was initially a match play event, and it moved to a stroke play format in 1958. It is sometimes said that this was a result of pressure from television, which prefers to see as many famous players as possible in contention on the final day. The first winner, Jim Barnes, received $500 (US) in 1916, while 2005 winner Phil Mickelson received $1.17 million (US).

[edit] 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 invite leading amateurs to compete, and the only one which reserves a large number of places, 25 out of 156, for club professionals. The PGA Tour is now independent of the PGA of America, and it is an elite organisation 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 Rankings, although it invariably invites all top-50 players who are not already qualified.

[edit] List of qualification criteria:

• All former PGA Champions.
• Winners of the last five U.S. Opens.
• Winners of the last five Masters.
• Winners of the last five British Opens.
• The last Senior PGA Champion.
• The low 15 scorers and ties in the previous PGA Championship.
• The 25 low scorers in the last PGA Club Professional Championship.
• The 70 leaders in official money standings.
• Members of the last United States Ryder Cup Team.
• Winners of tournaments co-sponsored or approved by the PGA Tour since the previous PGA Championship (does not include pro-am and team competitions).
• 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).

[edit] Future tournament sites

• 2006 - Medinah Country Club, Course No. 3 (Medinah, Illinois)
• 2007 - Southern Hills Country Club (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
• 2008 - Oakland Hills Country Club, South Course (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan)
• 2009 - Hazeltine National Golf Club (Chaska, Minnesota)
• 2010 - Whistling Straits, Straits Course (Sheboygan, Wisconsin)
• 2011 - Atlanta Athletic Club, Highlands Course (Duluth, Georgia)
• 2012 - Kiawah Island Resort, Ocean Course (Johns Island, South Carolina)
• 2013 - Oak Hill Country Club, East Course (Pittsford, New York)
• 2015 - Whistling Straits, Straits Course (Sheboygan, Wisconsin)