It has been eight years since the Profesional Golfers’ Association (PGA) held a tournament in Grand Blanc, MI. The Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club last hosted the Buick Open in 2009. Due, in part, to General Motors’ court-supervised restructuring. The tournament GM had sponsored folded, the Grand Blanc and Flint area lost their date on the PGA Tour.
With an announcement this week, PGA Tour Champions representatives announced an agreement to hold the Ally Challenge on the weekend of Sept. 14-16, 2018. With sponsorship from Ally Financial, the tournament will offer a purse of $2 million. Ally Financial chief marketing officer Andrea Riley said “We are very proud to be bringing The Ally Challenge to Warwick Hills next fall, and to be part of the spirit and legacy of PGA TOUR Champions,”
PGA Tour Champions
The PGA Tour Champions, formerly the Seniors Tour, features professional golfers 50 years of age and older. Some of the popular players seen regularly on the Tour include:
Bernhard Langer
Billy Andrade
Brandt Jobe
Colin Montgomerie
Corey Pavin
David Toms
Fred Couples
Fred Funk
Gene Sauers
Hale Irwin
Jay Haas
Jeff Sluman
John Daly
Kenny Perry
Lee Janzen
Miguel Angel Jimenez
Scott Verplank
Stephen Ames
Steve Stricker
Tom Lehman
Tommy Armour III
Vijay Singh
Woody Austin
Tommy Armour III
Vijay Singh
Woody Austin
Couples, Irwin, Perry and Singh, are former winners at Warwick Hills as PGA Tour pros.
“Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club is honored to build on its rich tournament tradition by hosting the Ally Challenge. We are looking forward to working with the PGA TOUR again and providing an unparalleled experience that participants and fans will cherish and that Warwick Hills, the City of Grand Blanc and the greater Flint community will treasure as a part of golf history in our community.” Said Tournament President Trent Marshall.
