It’s been a year since the 2013 Masters Champion Adam Scott finished early on Sunday night with a bogey-free round of 66 to win The Barclays. Scott moved to a career-best number 2 in the world that day (at that time in his career), finishing at 11-under 273, beating out Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Justin Rose in a heated race.
This month, The Barclays comes to the Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, NJ, one of the oldest country clubs in America. The 27-hole golf course, designed by A. W. Tillinghast in 1929, has been restored and improved in recent years. The $8 million dollar project saw the construction of 26 new tees, an expansion of the pond on hole #1 on the Center nine, a new irrigation system, and the restoration of the bunkers all back to their original A. W. Tillinghast design. The Championship Course was developed for The Barclays tournaments and is a composite of the more difficult holes from the three original nine hole courses of the club known as: East, Center and West.
Tournament History
Originally named after the course where it was played for forty years, The Barclays has changed names and sponsorship six times since Jack Nicklaus won the inaugural tournament in 1967 with a 16-under 272.
- From 1967 – 1975 it was known as The Westchester Classic
- From 1976 – 1978 it was known as The American Express Weschester Classic
- From 1979 – 1989 it was known as The Manufacturers Hanover Weschester Classic
- From 1990 – 2004 it was known as The Buick Classic
- From 2005 – 2006 it was known as Barclays Classic
- From 2007 forward, it’s been known simply as The Barclays
The tournament was played in June each year through 2007 when it was moved to late August to lead off the PGA Tour’s playoff system for the FedExCup. The Purse: $8,000,000, Winning Share: $1,440,000, FedExCup Points: 2,500.
Fun Facts and Trivia:
- Since 2007, The Barclays has been hosted by Ridgewood Country Club twice before, with 2014 making number three. Liberty National Golf Club has hosted The Barclays twice while Plainfield Country Club and Bethpage State Park’s Black Course have both hosted once.
- One golfer holds the distinction of having won four times in 1993, 1995, 2006 and again in 2008 – Vijay Singh.
- Four golfers are tied for two wins each: Jack Nicklaus 1967, 1972, Seve Ballesteros 1983, 1988, Ernie Els 1996, 1997 and Sergio Garcia 2001, 2004.
- Bob Gilder holds a scoring record for his 1982 win. 19-under 261, though this might be overshadowed by his double eagle on the 18th at Westchester. A plaque on the fairway commemorates the feat.
- The Championship Course at the Ridgewood Country Club is 7,319 yards and has 11 par 4’s, 4 par 3’s and 3 par 5’s for a course par value of 71.
After an exciting first two days at the Tournament, who do you think will win the first leg of the FedExCup Playoffs this weekend? Tell us below in the comments.
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