Wells Fargo Championship
The Wells Fargo Championship is a professional golf tournament in North Carolina on the PGA Tour.[1] Held in early May at the Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, it has attracted some of the top players on the tour. It debuted in 2003 as the Wachovia Championship and was known in 2009 and 2010 as the Quail Hollow Championship. In 2017, the tournament offered a $7.5 million purse with a winner's share of $1.35 million.
 | |
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Potomac, Maryland |
| Established | 2003 |
| Course(s) | TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 7,107 yards (6,499 m) |
| Organized by | Champions for Education |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | US$9,000,000 |
| Month played | May |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 267 Rory McIlroy (2015) |
| To par | −21 as above |
| Current champion | |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Rory McIlroy | |
| Location Map | |
  TPC Potomac Location in the United States  TPC Potomac Location in Maryland | |
From 2004–06 and 2011–13, the tournament ended in a playoff. Additionally, the event has one of the tougher finishes on tour with 16, 17, and 18, commonly known as the "Green Mile," often ranked among the PGA Tour's toughest holes. Organized by Champions for Education, Inc.,[2] the majority of the charitable proceeds from the tournament benefit Teach for America.
In 2017, the tournament was held on the coast in Wilmington at Eagle Point Golf Club, as Quail Hollow hosted the PGA Championship in mid-August.[3] Wilmington hosted the Azalea Open on tour in the 1950s and 1960s at the Donald Ross-designed Cape Fear Country Club; it was a tune-up event for The Masters through 1965,[4] part of the city's Azalea Festival.
In 2022, the tournament will be held near Washington, D.C. at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm in Potomac, Maryland, as Quail Hollow is scheduled to host the Presidents Cup in late September.
Decades earlier, Quail Hollow hosted the PGA Tour's Kemper Open eleven times, from 1969 through 1979.
Sponsorship
The event is sponsored by Wells Fargo, which purchased Wachovia in 2008. In 2009, Wells Fargo dropped the Wachovia name from the tournament for marketing purposes as they intended to stop using the Wachovia name for all purposes. In addition, Wells Fargo was concerned about the image of a bank sponsoring a sporting event that had received Federal funding under the Troubled Assets Relief Program.[5] After two editions as the Quail Hollow Championship, Wells Fargo attached its name to the event inv 2011.
On April 30, 2019, a five-year extension was announced, and Wells Fargo's sponsorship of the tournament currently runs through 2024.
Tournament hosts
| Years | No. | Venue | City | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 1 | TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm | Potomac | Maryland |
| 2003–2016, 2018–2021 | 15 | Quail Hollow Club | Charlotte | North Carolina |
| 2017 | 1 | Eagle Point Golf Club | Wilmington |
Winners
| Year | Winner | Score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up | Purse ($) | Winner's share ($) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wells Fargo Championship | ||||||||
| 2022 |  | | 9,000,000 | 1,620,000 | ||||
| 2021 | Rory McIlroy (3) | 274 | −10 | 1 stroke |  Abraham Ancer | 8,100,000 | 1,458,000 | |
| 2020 | Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[6] | |||||||
| 2019 |  Max Homa | 269 | −15 | 3 strokes | Joel Dahmen | 7,900,000 | 1,422,000 | |
| 2018 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Jason Day | 272 | −12 | 2 strokes | Nick Watney Aaron Wise | 7,700,000 | 1,386,000 | |
| 2017 | Brian Harman | 278 | −10 | 1 stroke | Dustin Johnson Pat Perez | 7,500,000 | 1,350,000 | |
| 2016 | James Hahn | 279 | −9 | Playoff | Roberto Castro | 7,300,000 | 1,314,000 | |
| 2015 | Rory McIlroy (2) | 267 | −21 | 7 strokes | Patrick Rodgers Webb Simpson | 7,100,000 | 1,278,000 | |
| 2014 | J. B. Holmes | 274 | −14 | 1 stroke | Jim Furyk | 6,900,000 | 1,242,000 | |
| 2013 | Derek Ernst | 280 | −8 | Playoff |  David Lynn | 6,700,000 | 1,206,000 | |
| 2012 | Rickie Fowler | 274 | −14 | Playoff | Rory McIlroy D. A. Points | 6,500,000 | 1,170,000 | |
| 2011 | Lucas Glover | 273 | −15 | Playoff | Jonathan Byrd | 6,500,000 | 1,170,000 | |
| Quail Hollow Championship | ||||||||
| 2010 | Rory McIlroy | 273 | −15 | 4 strokes | Phil Mickelson | 6,500,000 | 1,170,000 | |
| 2009 | Sean O'Hair | 277 | −11 | 1 stroke | Lucas Glover Bubba Watson | 6,500,000 | 1,170,000 | |
| Wachovia Championship | ||||||||
| 2008 | Anthony Kim | 272 | −16 | 5 strokes | Ben Curtis | 6,400,000 | 1,152,000 | |
| 2007 | Tiger Woods | 275 | −13 | 2 strokes | Steve Stricker | 6,300,000 | 1,134,000 | |
| 2006 | Jim Furyk | 276 | −12 | Playoff |  Trevor Immelman | 6,300,000 | 1,134,000 | |
| 2005 |  Vijay Singh | 276 | −12 | Playoff | Jim Furyk Sergio García | 6,000,000 | 1,080,000 | |
| 2004 | Joey Sindelar | 277 | −11 | Playoff | Arron Oberholser | 5,600,000 | 1,008,000 | |
| 2003 | David Toms | 278 | −10 | 2 strokes | Robert Gamez | 5,600,000 | 1,008,000 | |
Note: Green highlight indicates scoring records.
Sources[7]
References
- "New name for Quail Hollow: Wells Fargo Championship". PGA Tour. August 3, 2010. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
- Champions for Education
- Ross, Helen (June 27, 2016). "Changes in store for upcoming PGA Tour season". PGA Tour.
- Blondin, Alan (May 4, 2017). "Wilmington used to be home to star-studded PGA Tour event". PGA of America. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
- "Event in Charlotte renamed Quail Hollow Championship". PGA Tour. February 27, 2009. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
- "PGA Tour statement regarding additional tournament cancellations". PGA Tour. March 17, 2020. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
- Wells Fargo Championship – Winners – at www.pgatour.com