- Memorial Tournament
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Memorial Tournament 
Tournament information Location Dublin, Ohio Established 1976 Course(s) Muirfield Village Golf Club Par 72 Length 7,366 yards Tour(s) PGA Tour Format Stroke play Prize fund $6,200,000 Month played June Tournament record score Aggregate 268 Tom Lehman (1994) To par -20 Tom Lehman (1994) Current champion 
Steve StrickerThe Memorial Tournament is a PGA Tour golf tournament founded by Jack Nicklaus. It is played on a Nicklaus-designed course at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, a suburb of Nicklaus' home town of Columbus. The golf course passes through a large neighborhood called Muirfield Village. There is a statue of Jack Nicklaus teaching a young child how to golf along Muirfield Drive.
As a restricted field event on the PGA Tour, only the first 75 players on the previous year's money-list are guaranteed invites.[1]
One of the main features of the tournament is a yearly induction ceremony honoring past golfers. A plaque for each honoree is installed near the clubhouse at Muirfield. Jack Nicklaus himself was the honoree in 2000.
Columbus is where Nicklaus was born and raised, where he started his own family, and where he learned the game of golf. It was Nicklaus's vision to create a golf club that embodied his personal and professional life and to create a golf tournament that would long represent his passion for tournament golf, and would give back to a community that has embraced him and the game. This vision was fulfilled in May 1976, with the first playing of the Memorial Tournament. This came two years to the day after the doors were opened and the first shots played at Muirfield Village.
Nicklaus signalled his intent to host his own tournament during Masters Week in 1966, when he spoke of his desire to create a tournament that, like The Masters, had a global interest, and was inspired by the history and traditions of the game of golf. He also wanted the tournament to give back in the form of charitable contributions to organizations benefiting needy adults and children throughout Columbus and Ohio. The primary charitable beneficiary of the tournament is Nationwide Children's Hospital.
The Memorial reached the height of its popularity in the 1990s having reached "Sold-Out" status, a first on the PGA Tour other than the major championships. For a variety of reasons the event has started seeing ticket sales decrease during the last five years.
Tiger Woods has the most victories in the event with four (1999, 2000, 2001, and 2009).
Contents
Invitational status
The Memorial Tournament is one of only five tournaments given "invitational" status by the PGA Tour, and consequently it has a reduced field of only 120 players (as opposed to most full-field open tournaments with a field of 156 players). The other four tournaments with invitational status are the Arnold Palmer Invitational, The Heritage, the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, and the AT&T National. Invitational tournaments have smaller fields (between 120 and 132 players), and have more freedom than full-field open tournaments in determining which players are eligible to participate in their event, as invitational tournaments are not required to fill their fields using the PGA Tour Priority Ranking System. Furthermore, unlike full-field open tournaments, invitational tournaments do not offer open qualifying (aka Monday qualifying).
Tournament highlights
- 1976: Roger Maltbie wins the inaugural Memorial tournament by defeating Hale Irwin on the fourth hole of a sudden death playoff. On the playoff's third hole, an errant shot by Maltbie seemed headed for the gallery when it hit a stake causing the ball to bounce on the green instead.[2]
- 1977: Poor weather results in a Monday finish for the tournament. Host Jack Nicklaus wins by two shots over Hubert Green.[3]
- 1980: Tom Watson's bid to become the first Memorial champion to defend his title is foiled when David Graham birdies the 72nd hole to edge Watson by one shot.[4]
- 1984: Jack Nicklaus defeats Andy Bean in a sudden death playoff to become the first two-time Memorial winner.[5]
- 1988: On his way to winning PGA Player of the Year, Curtis Strange wins Memorial by two shots over David Frost and Hale Irwin.[6]
- 1991: Kenny Perry wins for the first time ever on the PGA Tour. He defeats Hale Irwin on the first hole of a sudden death playoff.[7]
- 1993: Paul Azinger birdies the 72nd hole by holing out from a sand trap. He finishes one shot ahead of Corey Pavin.[8]
- 1994: Tom Lehman shoots a tournament record 268 for 72 holes on his way to a five-shot victory over Greg Norman.[9]
- 2000: Tiger Woods becomes the first Memorial winner to successfully defend his title. He finishes five shots ahead of Ernie Els.[10]
- 2001: Tiger Woods wins Memorial for a third consecutive year. He beats Paul Azinger and Sergio García by seven shots.[11]
- 2005: Bart Bryant saves par from a hazard on the 72nd hole to win by one shot over Fred Couples.[12]
- 2007: K. J. Choi shoots a final round 65 to win by one shot over Ryan Moore.[13]
Winners and Honorees
* rain-shortened to 54 holes
Note: Green highlight indicates scoring records.
Sources[14][15]Multiple winners
Six men have won the Memorial Tournament more than once through 2011.
- 4 wins
- Tiger Woods: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2009
- 3 wins
- Kenny Perry: 1991, 2003, 2008
- 2 wins
- Jack Nicklaus: 1977, 1984
- Hale Irwin: 1983, 1985
- Greg Norman: 1990, 1995
- Tom Watson: 1979, 1996
References
- ^ What's at stake for 2008, pgatour.com, November 1, 2007
- ^ Roger Maltbie wins Memorial
- ^ Nicklaus wins Memorial Golf
- ^ Graham outlasts Watson!
- ^ Nicklaus wins in playoff
- ^ Strange rallies with 67 to claim Memorial title
- ^ Perry defeats Irwin in Memorial
- ^ GOLF; Azinger's 'Miracle' Shot From Bunker Wins by 1
- ^ Lehman devours Memorial
- ^ Another first for Woods
- ^ "Golf: Woods crushes Memorial field". The New Zealand Herald. June 5, 2001. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/international-golf/news/article.cfm?c_id=503&objectid=193188. Retrieved October 23, 2011.
- ^ Bryant earns second career tour victory
- ^ K.J. Choi wins the Memorial
- ^ Memorial Tournament – Winners – at www.pgatour.com
- ^ Memorial Tournament – Winners – at golfobserver.com
External links
- Official website of the Memorial Tournament
- PGATOUR.com tournament website
- Official website of the Jack Nicklaus Museum
- Official website of Jack Nicklaus
Categories:- PGA Tour events
- Golf in Ohio
- Sports in Columbus, Ohio
- Visitor attractions in Franklin County, Ohio
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