Quail Hollow making changes on, off course for 2017 PGA Championship
The 2017 PGA Championship is more than a year away, but now’s the time to get in line to purchase tickets for one of golf’s major championships, set for next August at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte.
The PGA of America is again using pre-purchase registration that provides the opportunity to secure tickets. The deadline to get on the list is next Sunday, at the close of the 2016 PGA.
“The demand in registration has been extraordinary,” championship director Jason Mengel said. “We have people on the list from all 50 states and more than 50 foreign countries. That tells me the most popular tickets will sell out quickly.”
Registration at www.pgachampionship.com is free with no obligation to purchase tickets, which will go on sale at a date to be announced in August. Among options are the Wanamaker Club package ($600), weekly grounds package ($295), daily championship ground tickets ($95) and daily practice round tickets ($30).
An added perk: each ticketed adult can bring four juniors 17 and younger onto the grounds each day at no charge.
Fans who are familiar with Quail Hollow from the annual Wells Fargo Championship, a PGA Tour stop each May, will find a different configuration both on and off the golf course. Holes 1-5 will feature a new look, greens have been upgraded, the entrance will be revamped and hospitality tents will be added along the lake on the 14th fairway across from the 16th and 17th greens.
“Fans coming in will experience an ‘a-ha!’ moment,” Mengel predicted.
He expects crowds in the 40,000-50,000 range each day and noted the course’s layout is fan friendly.
“It’s easy to negotiate, moving from the front nine to the back nine,” he said.
Work on the remodeling the first few holes began immediately after the Wells Fargo Championship, and the course will be re-opened for members around the end of August. The first hole will be lengthened and converted into a dogleg right. The par-3 second has been eliminated to allow for the new No. 1 green. The par-5 fifth will be replaced with a par-3 and a par-4. In addition, No. 11 will be longer with a fairway bunker in play.
The changes are part of the club’s plans that began with the reworking of No. 16 in 2013.
Although fans will still ride shuttles to the course, parking arrangements will be different, too. The Carowinds lots, generally available for the Wells Fargo, cannot be used because of the theme park’s busy summer. “But schools won’t be in sessions, so we will have those lots available,” Mengel said.
This will be the PGA Championship’s second visit to the Carolinas in six years and another is set for 2021. Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course staged the 2012 tourney, won by Rory McIlroy, and will be the ’21 host.
“We’ll be set for a great championship,” Mengel said. “We can’t guarantee we’ll have a finish like Jason Day and Jordan Spieth last year at Whistling Straits or Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson (in the British Open) at Royal Troon. But all the possibilities are there, and that’s what makes golf so exciting.”
Chip shots
Jack Parrott (Columbia) and Andrew Orischak (Hilton Head Island) earned spots in match-play in the U.S. Junior Championship, then suffered first-round losses. Parrott fell 1-up and Orischak in 19 holes. Other state players – Colby Patton (Fountain Inn) and Travis Mancill (Hilton Head Island) in the boys tournament, and Gracyn Burgess (Lexington) and Emily Cox (Lancaster) in the U.S. Junior Girls – failed to qualify for match play. … In the CGA’s South Carolina Junior Match-Play at Greenville’s Green Valley CC, Brady Hinkle (Lancaster) won the boys title and Alyssa Campbell (Lake Wylie) earned the girls championship. … Jeremy Grab (Daniel Island/Wofford) advanced to the U.S. Amateur in qualifying in Monroe, N.C. … Lauren Stephenson (Lexington), who recently played in the U.S. Women’s Open, earned a spot in the U.S. Women’s Amateur in qualifying in Lexington, N.C. Jacqueline Twitty (Chapin) and Jaelyn Tindal (Rock Hill) lost in a playoff for the final qualifying berth. … Christian Sease (Mt. Pleasant/Winthrop) edged Carson Young (Pendleton/Clemson) on the fourth-playoff hole to win the Carolinas Amateur at the CC of Charleston. … Playing positions and sponsorships are available for the Military Order of the Purple Heart tournament, set for Aug. 26 at Fort Jackson GC. Contact Charles Cook at 803-319-7144 or charles.s.cook@me.com.