PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida (June 26, 2017) – A strong field was attracted to the 2017 Travelers Championship, played June 19-25 at TPC River Highlands, a private golf club in Cromwell, Conn., which was redesigned by Bobby Weed in 1989 in consultation with former PGA Tour players Howard Twitty and Roger Maltbie. In addition, last year Weed worked in conjunction with PGA Tour Design Services on a course-wide bunker renovation at TPC River Highlands to update the strategy, based on ShotLink® data, and to improve playability and maintenance.
“TPC River Highlands, overlooking the Connecticut River, offers players a variety of half-par holes with an exciting four-hole finish in an amphitheatre setting like no other,” said Weed.
For a thrilling and dramatic victory at this year’s Travelers Championship, in front of record crowds, Jordan Spieth blasted out of the bunker on the par-4 18th hole, the first hole of a sudden-death playoff against Daniel Berger, marking Spieth’s 10th PGA Tour win.
Operated by the PGA Tour, the 18-hole par-70 TPC River Highlands has been the venue for the tour’s annual Travelers Championship, previously known as the Buick Championship and the Greater Hartford Open, since 1984.
Some of the other notable names in this year’s 156-player field at the Travelers Championship included Patrick Reed, Rory McIlroy and Jim Furyk, among others. The defending champion was Russell Knox.
About TPC River Highlands
Founded in 1928 as Middletown Golf Club, the club became known as Edgewood Country Club in 1934. Purchased by the PGA Tour in the early 1980s, the golf course was redesigned to TPC standards by renowned golf course architect Pete Dye, and in 1984 reopened as the TPC of Connecticut. Weed completed a remodeling in 1989, at which time the course was renamed the TPC at River Highlands.
In 2012, TPC River Highland was ranked No. 25 by PGA Tour Pros in Golf World’s PGA Tour Course Rankings. Golf Digest listed the course as “One of the Top 10 Golf Courses in the State” and, for six consecutive years, TPC River Highlands was named the “Best Private Course in the State” by Connecticut Golfer Online.
About Bobby Weed Golf Design
Acclaimed golf course designer Bobby Weed specializes in design, renovation and repurposing. His work features a balance of visual appeal, sustainability and playability, all informed by an environmentally-sensitive aesthetic and an exceptional hands-on, holistic approach.
Weed began his professional career with an extended apprenticeship with Pete Dye, launching a collaboration of over 35 years’ duration and a lifelong friendship. Hired in 1983 by the PGA Tour as the Golf Course Superintendent at TPC Sawgrass, Weed went on to become the Tour’s in-house designer from 1987-1996. He was responsible for the design of many of today’s best-known TPC venues, which continue as host sites for prominent Tour events.
Weed also was able to collaborate with many of golf’s most familiar names, including Sam Snead, Gene Sarazen, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Raymond Floyd, Jerry Pate and Chi Chi Rodriguez – a rare cross section of experience.
In 1994, Weed’s career reached an apex with the formation of his own design firm, where he continues to “handcraft” golf courses. Today, Bobby Weed Golf Design has amassed an impressive list of new and renovated courses that consistently are ranked at the top of their respective categories, including The Olde Farm Golf Club, Spanish Oaks Golf Club, The Golf Course at Glen Mills, Medalist Golf Club and Timuquana Country Club.
Bobby Weed Golf Design also is a leader in golf course repurposing – a means to update layouts through redesign and reallocation of partial acreage for higher value land uses. Repurposing helps clubs and communities preserve golf while surmounting economic and other challenges. Weed’s skill, vision and business acumen coalesce to result in successful, refined and durable golf course design.
Bobby Weed is a member of the American Society of Golf Course Architects. He also is a 39-year member of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, was a former Certified Golf Course Superintendent and is a member of the Florida Turfgrass Association.
For more information on Bobby Weed Golf Design, see www.bobbyweed.com.
Contact:
Sally J. Sportsman
407-248-1144
sjsport@earthlink.net
