The Most Prestigious Golf Tournaments of the Year

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bruced
May 17, 2017

There are many golf tournaments around the world every year, a lot of which have some of the top players in the world. However, with the division of the world’s best golfers between the PGA Tour and the European tours, it is difficult to get all of the best competition together at the same time. The few times a year when all of the best from around the world get together usually makes those events the most prestigious of the year.

In Europe, something more prestigious than even Germany’s Echtgeld casino, is The Open Championship. This championship usually rotates between about 10 venues in Scotland and England. The year’s third major championship of the year will be held at Royal Birkdale in July of 2017. Last year we witnessed an incredible battle in this tournament from future Hall of Famer Phil Mickelson and eventual champion Henrik Stenson. Stenson shot an incredible 63 on the final day to beat Phil by 3 strokes and claim his first major win. What made this battle so exciting was the fact that they were the only two players close to the lead and they were both playing such incredible golf. The third place finisher ended up 11 strokes behind Mickelson; this illustrates the type of golf the leaders were playing. Expect another great tournament when the best of the best tee off in England this July.

The other three major tournaments of the year take place in the United States. The first being The Masters, which is held on the second weekend of April every year. This is the tournament that I believe is the most prestigious of any golf tournament all year. In a survey done by Sports Illustrated, 50% of players said that The Masters is the major they would like to win the most. Even though it hasn’t been around as long as any of the other majors, it just has this incredible tradition of greatness that everyone wants to be a part of. I have personally been to Augusta National and witnessed the weekend of The Masters in 2009 and it was an incredible experience. Sergio Garcia broke through this year to win his first ever major and it was a great tournament to watch. The beauty of the course and the exclusivity of the tournament (only about 95 or so of the world’s best), are what make this tournament truly unlike any other.

The U.S Open is probably the second most prestigious tournament of the year and it has a tendency to be the most grueling test of a golfer’s skills. In many cases, the USGA tries to make the golf course as difficult is it can possibly play in order to keep the winning score around even par. Since the tournament takes place in the heat of June, this tournament can often feel more like a marathon through the desert than a golf tournament. Last summer we saw Dustin Johnson breakthrough to win his first major. He went on to win many more events towards the end of the 2016 season and into the beginning of this season and has recently claimed the #1 spot in the world rankings.

The PGA Championship is the fourth major of the year and takes place each July. It is not considered nearly as prestigious as the other three majors that I have already mentioned, but make no mistake, every golfer would love to have the PGA Championship on their career resume. Jimmy Walker took home the Wanamaker Trophy in 2016 and it was his first major win as well.

Another event that deserves some recognition is the Ryder Cup. The Ryder Cup is a team tournament between the United States and Europe that is based on a point system. It is held every other year and even though it is not one of golf’s major championships, every US and European golfer would like to earn a spot on their respective team.

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