The Champions Tour makes its way to the Jack Nicklaus-designed TPC at Snoqualmie Ridge outside of Seattle, with this week’s eighth annual Boeing Classic. A full field of 81 tees off Friday, highlighted by defending champion Mark Calcavecchia, who last year birdied the first playoff hole to defeat Russ Cochran for his first win on the Champions Tour. Other stars vying for the $2 million purse, include Michael Allen, Fred Couples, and Bernhard Langer.
The winner must master a 7,264-yard, par-72 layout that has generous, receptive fairways, but a design that puts a premium on the approach shot on each hole—all in a spectacular Pacific Northwest mountain setting.
“I believe whenever possible, golf should be played at a pretty place,” said Nicklaus. “If I can design a course to accomplish that and still create some great holes, so much the better. Here we took the aesthetics and the view lines and tied them together very well.”
“(The Boeing Classic) offers just such a tremendous opportunity for exciting golf from the players’ perspective but also from the spectators’ perspective,” said Champions Tour President Mike Stevens. “The tournament staff has done a marvelous job of capturing those unique opportunities around the golf course that give the spectators a great vantage point of some exciting golf. The Boeing Classic is truly one of our best.”
Snoqualmie Ridge is one of six Jack Nicklaus-designed layouts featured on the 2012 Champions Tour schedule. Close to 25 percent of the Champions Tour events this year, including two of the senior major championships, are played on Nicklaus courses.
Snoqualmie Ridge is no stranger to recognition. One year after the course opened for play (1999), it was voted the best course in the Washington State Golf Course Rankings, and the 14th hole was ranked the best par 4 in Washington and the second-best golf hole in the state overall.
Vying for a $300,000 first-place prize and 300 Charles Schwab Cup points, the full field includes:
Michael Allen
Tommy Armour III
Ben Bates
Andy Bean
Chip Beck
Jay Don Blake
Mark Brooks
Olin Browne
Terry Burke
Tom Byrum
Mark Calcavecchia
Bobby Clampett
John Cook
Fred Couples
Ben Crenshaw
Joe Daley
R.W. Eaks
Joel Edwards
David Eger
Brad Faxon
Bruce Fleisher
Dan Forsman
Jeff Freeman
Robin Freeman
David Frost
Fred Funk
Jim Gallagher, Jr.
Bob Gilder
Bill Glasson
Mike Goodes
Gary Hallberg
Jeff Hart
Morris Hatalsky
P.H. Horgan III
John Huston
Hale Irwin
Tom Jenkins
Steve Jones
Tom Kite
Bernhard Langer
Yong Lee
Steve Lowery
Chien Soon Lu
Sandy Lyle
Andrew Magee
Dick Mast
Blaine McCallister
Mike McCullough
Mark McNulty
Larry Mize
Gil Morgan
Bob Niger
Mark O’Meara
Steve Pate
Corey Pavin
David Peoples
Tom Pernice Jr.
Kenny Perry
Tom Purtzer
Mike Reid
Loren Roberts
Eduardo Romero
Jim Rutledge
Gene Sauers
Ted Schulz
Peter Senior
Scott Simpson
Joey Sindelar
Jeff Sluman
Rod Spittle
Craig Stadler
Lance Ten Broeck
Robert Thompson
Jim Thorpe
Kirk Triplett
Bob Tway
Bruce Vaughan
Bobby Wadkins
Duffy Waldorf
Mark Wiebe
Willie Wood
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