Vincent Publishing - Index

Vincent Publishing - 2008 Wachovia Championship - Index

TOURNAMENT HISTORY
82
As a result of putting all the pieces together, the Wachovia Championship has quickly risen to the
top echelon of events on the PGA TOUR and one of the barometers is the caliber of player that
competes at Quail Hollow. Of the five winners, four are major champions, including Tiger Woods.
He has added the Wachovia to his schedule, and not just for the money.
The final piece belongs to the people – volunteers
and patrons. Without either or both, the tournament
simply can’t happen. The volunteer base is
broad, deep and dedicated and the community
has supported the championship to the tune of
sellout crowds each of the five years.
Charlotte has a deep history with professional golf. In
1944, the Charlotte Open was played on Tour
and hosted by Myers Park
Country Club for five years. In
1945, Byron Nelson and Sam
Snead battled it out and Snead
three-putted the 72nd hole to tie
Nelson and necessitate an 18-hole
playoff the next day. Both players
shot 69 and needed a second day to
determine the winner.
Nelson finally prevailed and that’s
how close it came to one of golf’s
most unachievable records never happening
at all. Nelson won the week
previous to the Charlotte Open and went on to win
nine more in a row.
Twenty-one years later, the PGA TOUR returned to
Charlotte at the urging of Arnold Palmer and Jack
Nicklaus. George Cobb, the original designer, finished
his task in 1961 and the Quail Hollow Club was born.
Palmer was a close friend of insurance executive
James J. Harris, on whose land the club was built.
“You build the right golf course and I’ll make sure it
gets a tournament,” said Palmer, who was in his
playing prime at the time.
The Kemper Open debuted at Quail Hollow in 1969
with Dale Douglass as its first winner. Over the next
10 years Tom Weiskopf won three times, including
his victory in 1971 in a playoff over Douglass, Lee
Trevino and Gary Player.
The tournament’s fairy tale belonged to unknown
Bob Menne, who in 1974 was just about broke and
ready to quit the TOUR. In fact, he was pinching
pennies by cooking hamburgers in his hotel room.
2008 Wachovia Championship Official Event Program