Nationwide Tour & the PGA Tour
As an extension of the PGA TOUR, the Nationwide Tour identifies and transitions those select golfers who are ready to compete and win on golf's greatest stage. In 2007, Nationwide Tour alumni reached the 200th PGA TOUR win milestone, which includes a grand slam of the major championships. Twenty-five PGA TOUR cards will be at stake over the course of 32 Nationwide Tour tournaments this season, with a record $18 million in prize money available. Recognizing this growing stature and the PGA TOUR's commitment to charity, Nationwide, one of the largest diversified insurance and financial services organizations in the world, renewed its umbrella sponsorship of the Nationwide Tour through 2012. The PGA TOUR, through the efforts of its three tours and their tournaments, sponsors, players and volunteers, supports over 2,000 local charities and has surpassed $1 billion in charitable giving.
Every year, the impact of the Nationwide Tour on the PGA TOUR grows. Since 1990, 212 PGA TOUR tournaments have been won by players with Nationwide Tour roots, including all four major championships.....of the 47 official events on the 2007 PGA TOUR schedule, they have won all but two of them….65 percent of this year's PGA TOUR members, seven of this year's U.S. Presidents Cup team and nine of last year's U.S. Ryder Cup team members, plus captain Tom Lehman, are former Nationwide Tour members....In recognition of the Tour's growing stature and competitive impact, the PGA TOUR Policy Board increased the number of PGA TOUR cards available this year to 25.
Nationwide Tour Facts
- Alumni of the Nationwide Tour have 212 PGA TOUR wins halfway through the 2007 season.
- The Nationwide Tour has produced 28 Ryder Cup and 32 Presidents Cup participants since the circuit debuted in 1990. The 2006 U.S. Ryder Cup team featured nine former Nationwide Tour players including captain Tom Lehman.
- Zach Johnson's victory at the Masters was the 11th win in a Major Championship by a former Nationwide Tour player.
- With his win at the Wyndham Championship, Brandt Snedeker became the 15th player to win on the PGA TOUR the year after graduating from the Nationwide Tour. The last to do it was Boo Weekley at the 2007 Verizon Heritage.
- For the 2007 season, the Nationwide Tour will feature 54 international players from 21 different countries outside the U.S.
- An all-time high 65 percent of the PGA TOUR is made up of former Nationwide Tour players.
- Omar Uresti's final-round 76 at the Livermore Valley Wine Country Championship equaled the second highest final-round score by a winner in Tour history.
Why the high score?
The Course at Wente Vineyards played extremely difficult. In fact, it played to a stroke average of 3.235 over par for the week, making it the ninth-most difficult course in Tour history. Through the first 22 events of the year, the course contributed two of the three most difficult holes on Tour. The Course is well on its way to finishing as the Tour's toughest for the second year in a row.
PGA TOUR, Champions Tour and Nationwide Tour events have donated more than $1 billion to help more than 2,000 charities and countless individuals around the world.