Author: lenz

Furyk may be the next `Mr. Chicago’ in golf

With all due respect to Tom Watson, Hale Irwin and even Tiger Woods, there is another contender when debating the most successful player on Chicago courses. Jim Furyk should also be on the list.

All four players have feasted on Chicago area courses. Furyk just did it most recently – and is still doing it at the somewhat advanced age of 49.

Watson won the Western Open, predecessor to the BMW Championship, three times between 1974-84. Irwin won the 1990 U.S. Open at Medinah as well as one Western and three PGA Tour Champions tournaments on Chicago courses while Woods owns two Westerns and two PGA Championship here.

Furyk’s record isn’t bad either. He won the 2003 U.S. Open at Olympia Fields and the 2005 Western at Cog Hill. He also posted a 59 at Conway Farms, in Lake Forest, en route to a third-place finish in the 2013 BMW played there and now still another impressive BMW is looming.

Furyk was four-under-par after five holes Thursday en route to posting a 6-under-par 66 at Medinah. He’s tied for third place, one stroke off the lead going into Friday’s Round 2.

“I’ve always liked Medinah, and Chicago has been good to me,’’ Furyk admitted. “I’ve always enjoyed coming back to Chicago and seeing the fans here.’’

This week it’s more a personal thing. Furyk had to walk off the course at Conway Farms in the 2015 BMW with a wrist injury. He had surgery the following year and wasn’t
in full recovery mode until this year when he played his way into three major championships and the FedEx Playoffs.

“My motivation is I had three years off basically where I wasn’t playing good golf,’’ said Furyk. “I want to prove to myself that I can do it again.’’

A quick turn-around

Rory Sabatini estimated his score at 82 in Wednesday’s pro-am, but he was much better when the tournament started on Thursday. Playing in the third group off the No. 1 tee, Sabatini chalked up five birdies in the first eight holes en route to a 67.

“I think my amateurs thought I was the amateur in my pro-am group,’’ said Sabatini. “If you would have offered me 70 before I teed off I probably would have run for the hills with it quickly. Maybe (67) is a little bit more than I’m capable of in my old age (43).

The Slovakian golfer is definitely on the comeback trail after battling injuries and rebuilding his putting stroke over the last three years.

“This is probably the first time in many years I’ve actually played to my potential,’’ he said.

One stroke did it

Tony Finau’s play was nothing special in the first 12 holes of the BMW Championship, then a 35-foot putt dropped for a deuce at the par-3 thirteenth. That changed everything.

Finau followed with an eagle-birdie showing on the next two holes and posted a 67.

“Sometimes you just need to see the ball go in, no matter from where or if you chip it in or putt from 20 or 30 feet,’’ said Finau. I was able to see a 35-footer go it, and that gets your mindset in a different direction. I knew I had a par-5 in front of me and a drivable par-4, so I was able to score on the holes I needed to coming down the stretch.’’

Here and there

Joel Dahmen’s 66 got him into a tie for third place with Furyk, but he’s been enjoying Chicago all week. His wife Lona turned 31 on Tuesday and they celebrated her birthday at Alinea, a Chicago restaurant. “They do different things with food and chemistry and they change your sensory,’’ he said. “They have smelly things all over the place and the lighting is weird. We got to go down to the kitchen. Just a super cool experience.’’

Phil Mickelson is far down the FedEx standings and his opening round 70 didn’t help his chances of getting into the top 30 to qualifying for next week’s Tour Championship in Atlanta. Michelson wasn’t deflated, however. “I let a good round go, but I’m playing much better. I feel a lot better about my game,’’ he said.

Collin Morikawa, fresh out of the collegiate ranks, shot 67 and is now a contender for Rookie of the Year. “It’s definitely popped up out of the blue over the past month, since I’ve gotten a win,’’ he said. “That’s not something that I’m going to worry about until everything is over. I’ve got to worry about tomorrow.’’

Tiger feels better, opens up before teeing off in the BMW Championship

Tiger Woods took to the famed No. 3 course at Medinah on Wednesday and played only nine holes in the Gardner Heidrick Pro-Am, the last pre-tournament event before Thursday’s start of the BMW Championship.

Woods worked only his short game on the back nine, just like he did at last week’s first FedEx Cup Playoff event in New York. In that one he withdrew after a poor first round, citing a mile oblique strain.

Don’t worry, though. A similar scenario isn’t in the forecast at Medinah. At least it wasn’t when Woods addressed the media on a variety of topics after his pro-am round. Here’s the latest update on the ongoing tale of Tiger:

His health: Six days after his WD at The Northern Trust tourney in New York Woods declared his body “way better.’’

“It was nice to take those days off, and I had to just let it calm down and get a bunch of treatment. It feels so much better now,’’ he said.

How that latest injury happened: “Swinging. As I’ve said before, the forces have got to go somewhere, and unfortunately when I make any kind of tweaks and changes to my swing a new body part is aching. I can’t play around the back like I used to, and unfortunately things flare up.’’

Chicago memories: “This is one of the areas that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed playing over the years. It’s where I made my first cut on the PGA Tour (in the 1995 Western Open at Cog Hill). I’ve had some good memories and some wins (the 1999 and 2006 PGA Championships at Medinah) here.’’

Changes to the course: “It’s a lot bigger, a lot longer than I remember. They’ve certainly lengthened it since ’99 and ’06 and when we played here in (the 2012 Ryder Cup). No. 13 is a big hole now, and they’ve moved up 15, so now it’s driveable. Before we were hitting 2-irons down there from the back tee.’’

His planned course in Chicago: “We’re excited about it. The project is still continuing. Still going forward. It (the combined existing courses at Jackson Park and South Shore) is an incredible piece of property. We’re trying to do something that’s unique. One of the things we’ve talked about is that all kids will play for free. That’s something we need to make happen.’’

President’s Cup: Woods is the U.S. captain for the fall matches in Australia and might be a player as well.

“I’m hoping to put myself in the top eight. Right now I’m seed 12th, and I’m trying like hell to make the team on my own. Obviously I have some work to do. I’ve got to play well this week to make that happen.’’

Would you make yourself a captain’s pick: “It would come down to the top eight guys, myself and my vice captains about who the guys will fill the next four slots – whether it’s me and three other guys or just four other guys. Either way, I’m going to Australia.’’

Looking ahead to East Lake: “I’m trying to win this tournament, just like anybody else in the field, and trying to get to East Lake where a lot of things changed for me last year. Hopefully I can make that happen.’’

Woods made it to East Lake, the Atlanta course that hosts The Tour Championship, then won his first tournament since 2008.

The 2020 Ryder Cup: Steve Stricker will captain the U.S. team at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin.

“Stricks is ready,’’ said Woods. “He’s ready for not only this year (when he’ll be one of Woods’ three vice captains in the President’s Cup) but next year. He’s our guy. All the players out here know him, trust him, have the utmost respect for him. When Stricks speaks, we all listen.’’

Woods begins his bid for the BMW Championship at 11:54 a.m. on Thursday and is paired with C.T. Pan and Billy Horschel in the first round. Tee times begin at 9:15 a.m. and run through 1:;27 p.m., all off the No. 1 tee.

The BMW Championship was part of the original start of the FedEx Cup Playoffs in 2007. Woods won both the BMW Championship and FedEx Cup in both 2007 and 2009. He also won the BMW Championship, then played at Cog Hill, in both of those years.

Koepka puts Bo Jackson in the spotlight at the BMW pro-am

Brooks Koepka is the No. 1-ranked golfer in the world, the reigning PGA champion and the winner of four major championships in the last three years. On Wednesday, though, he played second fiddle to one of his playing partners in the Gardner Heidrick Pro-Am, the final warmup for Thursday’s start of the BMW Championship at Medinah.

Koepka was paired with Bo Jackson, already a legend in both baseball and football. Koepka called him “probably the greatest athlete ever.’’

“It was fun to play with him. It was cool to get to meet him after watching so much of what he was doing when I was a little kid,’’ said Koepka. “He’s so athletic, and just talking to him – he’s such a nice guy. I enjoyed it today, and I hope he did as much as I did.’’

They’re both big into fitness and compared notes during their pro-am round.

“He’s incredible,’’ said Koepka. “We were talking about his work ethic and what he did when he was playing and had to take care of his body. He’s big into biking now.’’

Poulter’s dilemma

England’s Ian Poulter, dazzling at Medinah seven years ago in Europe’s dramatic win over the U.S. in the Ryder Cup, has a different kind of challenge this week. He’s never qualified for The Tour Championship but could with a big week at Medinah.

Poulter is surprised that he hasn’t qualified for the final event of the FedEx Cup Playoffs but it’s easy to see why. He plays on both the PGA and European tours and needs more starts on the American tour to pile up more FedEx points.

“I respect my European Tour card, and I play my fair share in Europe,’’ he said. “I always have, and I always will. But that sacrifice is at a big expense.’’

Poulter usually plays between 17-19 events on the PGA Tour while some of his FedEx rivals play 26-28.

“Would it be better if I played 27 events here? Yes,’’ said Poulter. “Would it be a good thing for the European Tour? No. So I get it. I’ve sacrificed money, but money is not everything.’’

Is Bradley really defending?

Keegan Bradley is the defending champion in the BMW Championship, having won last year at Aronimink in Philadelphia, but he doesn’t feel like one.

“I don’t think you’re technically defending because it’s a different course,’’ said Bradley. “Normally when you’re defending, you’re coming back. It’s the same clubhouse, same people, same course. This is all different, but it’s still the BMW and it’s still a big tournament.’’

While Medinah isn’t where Bradley won last year it is a course where he’s done well. Paired with Phil Mickelson, he was a U.S. hero in the first two days of the 2012 Ryder Cup matches. But he was also part of the U.S. team that blew a 10-6 lead in the singles matches on the final day of the competition. Bradley was one of the U.S. losers, having been beaten by Rory McIlroy 3 and 1 after McIlroy – apparently confused by a time zone change — barely made his tee time.

“It’s incredible to be back at Medinah. I have so many memories of this place,’’ said Bradley. “Some of my fondest memories of my life have happened here. But it’s always a treat to play in the BMW in the FedEx Cup Playoffs because you know you’ve got a chance to win the whole thing.’’

Here and there

While 70 players qualified for the BMW Championship only 69 will compete over the next four days. Kevin Na is skipping the event to be with his wife, who is pregnant.

Joe LaCava, Tiger Woods’ caddie, was inducted into the WGA’s Caddies Hall of Fame. LaCava, 55, was on Fred Couples’ bag when Couples won the Masters and he was carrying for Dustin Johnson before hooking up with Woods.

Odds-makers list Koepka, at 5 to 1, Rory McIlroy (7-1) and Patrick Reed, (8-1) as the current favorites to win the FedEx Cup next week. Tiger Woods (250-1) and Jordan Spieth (350-1) are notable longshots.

Twenty-two players in the BMW field have competed at Medinah previously and Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods battled over the No. 3 course three times – in the PGA Championships of 1999 and 2006 and the Ryder Cup in 2012.

McIlroy downplays his late arrival at Medinah’s Ryder Cup

Rory McIlroy nearly missed his tee time in the last big event he played at Medinah. He can only laugh about it now.

The moment of infamy came in the 2012 Ryder Cup. McIlroy didn’t account for a time change and didn’t realize he needed to be at Medinah until someone called him. He needed a police escort to barely make it in time for a singles match against American Keegan Bradley.

McIlroy didn’t get a warmup on the range but still beat Bradley 3 and 1. He was embarrassed about his tardiness, but not about the result.

“Hopefully I won’t need (the escort) this time,’’ he said. “I’m staying a little closer to the course. That was a long time ago. I’ve played in three Ryder Cups since then, and a lot of things have happened during that time.’’

Among them was his marriage to Erica Stoll, a former PGA of America employee who was the director of transportation during the Medinah Ryder Cup. They married in 2017.

McIlroy won the FedEx Cup in 2016 and is third in the standings going into the BMW Championship, trailing Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed, winner of The Northern Trust – the first playoff event on Sunday. McIlroy is happy this year’s PGA Tour’s playoff series has been reduced from four to three tournaments.

“That’s based on the position I’m in,’’ he said. “But I’ve also got to play a tournament in Switzerland the week after its over, so it’ll be four tournaments in a row for me. The FedEx Cup is more of a sprint now, but it’s something you really want to win.’’

The path to doing that is a little different this year, with the format assuring that the winner of next week’s Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta already assured of winning the FedEx Cup.

“The year I won was the year I had my worst ranking (36th) going in,’’ said McIlroy. “That year I won in Boston and the Tour Championship. But he also won two playoff events in 2012 and didn’t win the FedEx Cup. Brandt Snedeker beat him out that year.

“With 13 top-10s and two wins, this has been my most consistent year by far,’’ he said. “But the narrative has become that consistency isn’t valued as much as it once was. That’s true of all sports.’’

“You just have to appreciate the FedEx Cup for what it is,’’ summed up McIlroy. “Patrick Reed was way back. Then he won last week and came all the way up to second. But I sort of like the position I’m in.’’

WGA reaches a milestone in caddie scholarships

No matter what happens in the BMW Championship at Medinah the week will have been a success as far as John Kaczkowski, the Western Golf Association president and executive director, is concerned.

“We’re thrilled to announce that we have achieved our goal of having a record 1,000 caddies enrolled in college,’’ Kaczkowski told a gathering at the Caddies to College celebration a few hours before Medinah opened its gates for tournament spectators on Tuesday.

The WGA had targeted 1,000 as a goal for the last five years, and this year the number hit 1,010 spread around 18 universities.

“At a time when more families are struggling to send their child to college we’re meeting the need of providing Evans Scholarships to young caddies who show strong records of academic, leadership and financial need,’’ said Kaczkowski.

Since the first two scholarships were awarded in 1930 the WGA has accumulated over 11,000 alumni scholars.

Formed in 1899, the WGA gets its scholarship money from over 32,000 donors nationwide and the proceeds from its tournaments. The BMW Championship is the biggest of those. Others are the Evans Scholars Invitational, a new event on the PGA’s Korn Ferry Tour, and four prestigious amateur events.

The WGA accomplishment was not lost on Justin Rose, winner of the Fed Ex Cup’s $10 million bonus last year and the BMW champion in 2011 at Cog Hill. He’s one of the game’s top stars now, but had a rough start as a touring pro when he missed his first 21 cuts. Plenty of players would have questioned their career choice after that and moved on to something else.

“I had no other option,’’ said Rose. “I didn’t have an education. I didn’t have an Evans Scholar education behind me. I needed to figure it out.’’

He eventually did, but it wasn’t easy.

“I still loved the game. I still had a passion for it,’’ he said. “Most importantly I loved to practice. I loved striving to get better, and I still believed in myself for the most part.’’

That made all the difference. Rose may not repeat as FedEx Cup champion this year, since he goes into the BMW in 12th place in the FedEx standings. Still, he’s earned $4.3 million on the tour this year and $53.5 million in his career, so it’s not like he needs another $10 million.

Mountain climber

Harold Varner III may be the biggest surprise in the 70-man field that will tee off on Thursday. Until Tuesday he had never been to Chicago.

“I can’t say why or why not,’’ said Varner. “I’m just not a big tourist person. No one knows who I really am.’’

Varner is No. 29 in the FedEx standings after a tie for third in the first playoff event, The Northern Trust in New York, on Sunday. He went into that tournament at No. 102 but climbed the leaderboard fast.

His goal when the playoffs started was to make it into the top 30 players who will conclude the season at The Tour Championship next week at East Lake in Atlanta. That hasn’t changed.

“Last week was just a lot of fun,’’ he said. “Now that we’re in Chicago, the end goal is to make it to East Lake. I just need to play good golf and the rest will take care of itself.’’

Heartbreaker for India

Deerfield’s Vince India was on the brink of qualifying for the Korn Ferry Tour playoffs on Sunday, and that meant a PGA Tour berth for next season was more than a remote possibility. The top 25 after that circuit’s three playoff events get PGA Tour cards.

What happened to India was devastating. He led the circuit’s Portland stop through 36 holes and was in contention to win midway through the final round. Then a double bogey on the last hole dropped him from third to a tie for fifth. Third would have put him in the Korn Ferry’s postseason events, which begin next week. Fifth meant a return to two stages of qualifying school to regain his playing privileges for next season.

“If you told me I played well enough at Portland to salvage a crappy year and head back to the final stage I’d be ecstatic,’’ India said. “I played my heart out and was a little unlucky at the end.’’

India was in a green-side bunker with his second shot at the finishing par-5, then his sand shot rolled over the green into a collection area. His first chip was short and rolled back to his feet. That about did it for the former champion of both the Illinois State Amateur and Illinois Open.

Here and there

Winnetka’s Elizabeth Szokol had her best finish as a rookie on the LPGA Tour when she tied for sixth in the Scottish Open and earned $39,035.

Ryan Brown, formerly at Boyne Highlands in Michigan, is the new director of golf at Eagle Ridge in Galena.

Illinois senior-to-be Tristyn Nowlin will compete in the LPGA qualifying school before her final collegiate season begins and Grace Park, one of her former Illini teammates, has been named assistant coach at the University of Toledo.

PGA stars are back at Medinah for first time since U.S> Ryder Cup nightmare

The gates of Medinah Country Club open to the public for the first time since 2012 today. This week’s big event, the BMW Championship, will be much different than the last one held there – a devastating loss for Team USA in the Ryder Cup matches against Europe.

The BMW is a 70-player, 72-hole no-cut stroke play event that is the next-to-the-last event of the PGA Tour’s 2018-19 season. It’s also a FedEx Cup Playoff event with only the top 30 in the standings after it ends on Sunday advancing to the season-ending Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta next week.

Those 70 players competing at Medinah won’t include Kevin Streelman, Chicago’s best PGA Tour player, or established stars like Sergio Garcia, Bubba Watson or Henrik Stenson. They couldn’t stay or climb into the top 70 after The Northern Trust, first of this year’s three-tournament playoff series. It concluded with Patrick Reed’s victory on Sunday at Liberty National in New Jersey.

The win enabled Reed to climb to No. 2 in the FedEx standings behind Brooks Koepka.

Medinah might also be missing Tiger Woods with the first tee shot is hit on Thursday. He withdrew after one disappointing round at The Northern Trust, citing an oblique injury and said then that he was hopeful of playing at Medinah. His status is still uncertain.

Because of his WD last week Woods slipped from No. 28 to No. 38 in the FedEx Cup standings. If he doesn’t play at Medinah his season is over. If he does play he’ll need a goods finish to qualify for The Tour Championship, an event he won last year.

All that is plenty to digest in the short-term, but there’s more to it than that.

The PGA will have a playoff event in the Chicago area in 2020. The WGA has Aug. 20-23 dates for next year and a site secured at Olympia Fields, a private club in the far south suburbs with a tournament history almost as rich as Medinah’s.

Putting on a PGA Tour event is an expensive proposition, and BMW did it for 12 years (this will be the 13th). Prize money this week is $9,250,000, which is much more than that of a standing tour stop. The John Deere Classic, Illinois’ other PGA Tour event which will hold its 50th anniversary staging in 2020, had a purse of $6 million for its last staging in July.

The WGA, which has been putting on tournaments since 1899, has been boosting its profile in recent years. The organization, which raises money for its Evans Scholars program, took over management of the two Women’s Western Golf Association’s amateur events and a tournament on the Korn Ferry (former Web.com) Tour this year. The organization is also building a new headquarters building in Glenview.

WGA leadership, however, has been tight-lipped about the BMW tourney’s future beyond the announcement of Olympia Fields as the next site. That, however, was a significant disclosure in that it broke a recent policy of shifting the tournament in and out of the Chicago area every other year. Prior to taking playoff status Chicago’s PGA event was an annual thing. It was played, as the Western Open, at a variety of Chicago courses beginning in 1962.

From 1974 to 1990 the home base was all-male Butler National, in Oak Brook. From 1991 to 2006 it was played at Lemont’s Cog Hill, Chicago’s biggest public facility. Then came the switch in dates – the Western was traditionally played over the Fourth of July weekend at that time – and the name change to reflect BMW’s involvement.

As a fall event the BMW Championship has rotated in and out of Chicago since 2012 and Medinah took it on for the first time this year. Medinah has hosted bigger events than the BMW Championship, but the club has never been interested in giving up its course for a big event on an annual basis.

In addition to the Ryder Cup Medinah’s No. 3 course has hosted three U.S. Opens (1949, 1975, 1990) and two PGA Championships (1999, 2006). Woods won both of the PGAs contested there.

HERE IS THE BMW CHAMIONSHIP WINNERS AND SITE.

2007 – Tiger Woods, Cog Hill.

2008 – Camilo Villegas, Bellerive (St. Louis).

2009 – Tiger Woods, Cog Hill.

2010 – Dustin Johnson, Cog Hill.

2011 – Justin Rose, Cog Hill.

2012 – Rory McIlroy, Crook Stick (Indianapolis).

2013 – Zach Johnson, Cog Hill.

2014 – Billy Horschel, Cherry Hills (Denver).

2015 – Jason Day, Conway Farms.

2016 – Dustin Johnson, Crooked Stick.

2017 – Marc Leishman, Conway Farms.

2018 – Keegan Bradley, Aronimink (Philadelphia).

JDC was a success, now comes the BMW Championship at Medinah

One down, and one big one to go. And then what? We’re all about to enter a period of transition.

Illinois is blessed with two PGA Tour events, but they couldn’t be more different.

The John Deere Classic has had a variety of names since its founding in 1971. It’s played two hours west of Chicago with a full field of 156 players. The BMW Championship has a richer history if you accept its beginnings with the Western Open of 1899. There was only one title change, when the Western was dropped from the title and the tournament was converted into a 70-player FedEx Cup Playoff event in 2007.

The John Deere Classic is entrenched in one city and one golf course, TPC Deere Run in Silvis. Prior to that it was played at only two other venues – Crow Valley and Oakwood, both in the Quad Cities area. The BMW Championship has been a roving event since its first playing in 2007. As the Western Open it was played all over the country until the Western Golf Association created a Chicago rotation in 1962.

While the John Deere Classic purse was a hefty $6 million for its playing the week before the British Open, the BMW will be much more lucrative for the players who qualify for it. Just the purse is $9,250,000 and the number of players competing in the no-cut event is less than half the number who teed off at TPC Deere Run.

And, after the BMW is played at Medinah from Aug. 15-18, the scenario will change for good. The question is, how much?

BMW’s sponsorship of the tournament ends after this year. The Western Golf Association has been looking for a replacement for 2020 and has lined up a quality course for next year’s event – history-rich Olympia Fields, a good followup to Medinah.

First, a look back at a most successful John Deere Classic. Clair Peterson, the tournament director since 2003, didn’t get one of his stronger fields this year but – as usual – that didn’t really matter.

“We love it when celebrity players are here, but the schedule for us – if you put the celebrity players aside — this is the perfect spot for us,’’ said Peterson. “The fall didn’t work for us. We’ve hit for the cycle. We’ve been opposite the British Open, the Ryder Cup, the President’s Cup – and we’re still here.’’

And happy to be there – in the summer, free from the sports distractions of the fall such as all levels of football.

The PGA Tour schedule was significantly revised for this year to get the biggest events away from the start of the National Football League season. Not all tournaments benefitted.

“For events that depend on celebrity golfers the schedule is more important,’’ said Peterson, “but we were going to have a heckuva show with a community that supports it on a golf course that usually has a real exciting finish and produces a great champion. That’s a priority. You talk about changing dates. Where are you going to move it to? It can’t be before May 31 (because of iffy weather), and it can’t go later.’’

The BMW has a date change this year, since the FedEx Playoffs were moved from September to August, but the field wasn’t affected. It’ll still be the top 70 on the FedEx point list on the week of the event. Having Medinah as the site certainly doesn’t hurt, either. The club wouldn’t want an annual event, but thrives on hosting golf’s biggies. The last biggie played there was arguably the biggest of them all – the Ryder Cup in 2012.

Medinah has hosted bigger events than the BMW Championship. In addition to the Ryder Cup it has hosted three U.S. Opens and two PGA Championships. But it has been seven years since the club’s famed No. 3 course welcomed spectator golf. Golf fans will turn out in droves, and 30 players will move on to the season-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta.

After that, what’s ahead for Illinois’ two big PGA events?

For the John Deere the big question is what’s in store for a milestone staging in 2020. That’ll be the tournament’s 50th anniversary. It requires something special.

“We’re writing a book,’’ said Peterson, obviously reluctant to go any further than that.

Craig DeVrieze, the veteran Quad Cities golf scribe, has been working on a history of the tournament for the last two years and it’s certain to be a good read. The tournament wasn’t always the smooth operation that it is now.

“You can’t believe the stuff that happened before John Deere took over,’’ said Peterson. “There were guys who took out mortgages on their houses to keep it going.’’

At one point a press conference had been called reportedly to announce the tournament’s demise. It was cancelled at the last minute, a good thing for all involved. John Deere has been an ideal sponsor since 1999 and TPC Deere Run an ideal venue since 2000.

As for the future of what is now the BMW Championship, obviously there’ll be a name change. I’m hoping that it might be called the Western Open again. That title was much too good to lose. A rotation among Chicago courses would be a good thing, too. Taking the tournament out of town every other year hurt in terms of consistency for Chicago golf fans. The move from Fourth of July dates to the fall didn’t help, either.

Chicago had a great thing going golf-wise before it accepted playoff status. I’m not so sure it needs to maintain it under its next sponsor, no matter what the title of the tournament is. Whatever happens to the tournament, the news of it may well be the biggest of the fall/winter golf announcements. Only time will tell.

Have golf bag, will travel: Our latest tour of the Eastern U.S.

AS PUBLISHED IN CHICAGOLAND GOLF, AUGUST 2019.

You can’t try this at home, that’s for sure.

While we continue to write about all things golf for this publication (and a few others), we’ve taken a special liking to Travel Destination pieces in the last 10 years. There’s nothing wrong with playing most of your golf close to home. In fact, we’ve always encouraged that.

Taking your game on the road, though, can be refreshing as well as educational. That’s our job – to find interesting places with golf courses that we think you’d like to visit. We check things out for you, and sometimes that takes considerable time on our part. A couple of our trips over the years have put us on the road for several weeks at a time, and this latest one took up almost all of the month of June.

On this one we headed to the eastern states — the first time we’ve ventured further in that direction than the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Trying to stay close to Interstate 95 we left our Florida home and passed through Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York and Maine.

Our trips are all driving ones, and this one took three weeks and covered slightly over 3,000 miles. Crazy, you’re thinking? Maybe so, but it was a lot of fun experiencing golf in states that we had basically never even visited.

We didn’t play in all the states that we passed through, and planning our trip was much more difficult than it had been for our previous journeys. Thanks to the efforts of Bruce Vittner, publisher of Southern New England Golfer and executive director of the Golf Travel Writers of America, we were included in a three-day writers’ familiarization trip to a golf destination in Maine. That triggered planning other stops that might be on the way or even beyond.

Here’s what we came up with:

GREENSBORO, N.C. – First stop was at the Grandover Resort, a great place that, we learned once we got there, plays a role on the PGA Tour. It is the headquarters site for the Wyndham Championship, which is held at the Sedgefield Country Club nearby. Interesting that a tournament sponsored by a hotel chain used a non-affiliated resort for such a key role in its showcase event, isn’t it?

Grandover has two good courses, the East and West. Both were designed by the architectural team of David Graham, an Australian who won both the U.S. Open and PGA Championship, and Gary Panks.

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – Colonial Williamsburg has more to offer tourists than golf, what with all its historical attractions. They’re well worth visiting, but the golf there is on the upswing, too. The well-known Kingsmill Resort isn’t the whole show golf-wise.

We hit three facilities – Royal New Kent, The Club at Viniterra and Williamsburg National – that were in full revival mode. Royal New Kent, designed by the late Mike Strantz, was Golf Digest’s Best New Course of 1997. Tough economic times led to its eventual closing but it re-opened in May after a $2 million rehab.

Viniterra, a Rees Jones design that opened 11 years ago, never closed but it carried on without a much-needed clubhouse. A new one opened the day after we played the course. Williamsburg National has two courses. Its Jack Nicklaus design, Jamestown, was closed for awhile and its Yorktown course needed work. Now both courses are in full swing.

KENILWORTH, N.J. – Our friends at Chicago-based KemperSports manage Galloping Hill, an interesting place that is one of the few public facilities to host the New Jersey State Open. It has 27 holes and, unfortunately, we could only look at them from the clubhouse. We got caught in horrendous traffic jams going through Washington D.C., and to cancel our scheduled tee time and then had to move on to make our next destination on time. From the clubhouse, though, you had an extraordinary view of many of the holes and it was a busy place.

VALLEY FORGE, Pa. – This stop involved play at only one course but was a natural destination as it will be the host of the 30th annual International Network of Golf Spring Conference next May. We wanted a sneak preview.

The five-day long Spring Conference, which rotates around the country every year, includes two golf outings. Usually more courses than one are involved, but not here. Raven’s Craw will be the site of both. A fun course designed by owner Ed Shearon, it grabs your attention from first tee shot because there’s half of a house on the edge on the No. 1 fairway. Why it’s there, who knows?

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – This was an eye-opener. Not only is Rochester a nice to look at, it’s also an outstanding golf town. We had stops at Ravenwood, The Links at Greystone and Deerfield. All are located in the suburbs of Rochester and are involved with the Finger Lakes and New York Golf Trails. The New York trail is the biggest in the country in terms of courses participation. It has 30 spread across the state.

Best of the trio on our schedule was The Links at Greystone, a Craig Schreiner design that opened in 1996.

POLAND, Maine – The Maine Golf Trifecta is one of the best golf packages we’ve seen because it offers a little bit of everything for a great price — $349 for three rounds of golf with two nights lodging and four buffet-style meals.

Poland Spring Resort, which dates back to 1797, has a Donald Ross course that opened in 1896. It’s short and user-friendly. Spring Meadows at Cole Farms is a fun layout with its array of elevation changes and Fox Ridge will challenge even the best of players. The latter two don’t have lodging so Trifecta participants stay at Poland Spring.

HOMEWARD-BOUND: No more golf on this trip, but we did experience some history. Vittner took us on a car tour of Newport, R.I., and that included a quick stop at Newport Country Club, the site of the first U.S. Open in 1895.

The end result was a lot of driving – sometimes it did seem like too much – but we could see the change in courses as we drove from state to state. Doing something like this takes some planning and a significant time commitment. We were tired when it was over, but it was a golfing adventure that we’ll never forget.

Cooke’s second Illinois Open run-away was different from his first

With The Glen Club serving as a backdrop David Cooke hits his final approach at the Illinois Open.

David Cooke became the 13th player to claim multiple wins in the Illinois Open on Wednesday and – like his first win in 2015 – this latest one was basically no contest.

Cooke won by five strokes when the tournament was held at Royal Melbourne, in Long Grove, four years ago and his 16-under-par score there was the second best in the tourney’s 70-year history.

His score and victory margin weren’t quite as impressive on Wednesday at The Glen Club, in Glenview, but he was still the dominant player in the field. Cooke was a four-shot winner over Northbrook’s Nick Hardy after posting a 13-under-par 203. He shot 67 at Ridgemoor on Monday and 69- 67 in his two rounds at The Glen Club.

“David played great this week,’’ said Hardy, whose 66 was the low score of the final round. “He got off to a good start at Ridgemoor (the alternate course for the finals) and never looked back.’’

David Cooke cradles the Illinois Open trophy for the second time.

Hardy, in his rookie season as a professional, stumbled in with a par 72 at Ridgemoor and shot 69-66 at The Glen. He was the tourney’s low amateur in 2016 and joint runner-up in 2017 before entering the professional ranks.

Cooke, meanwhile, joined some select company in the history of the premier championship for Illinois residents. Only Gary Pinns (five titles), Mike Small (four) and Dick Hart and Marty Schiene (three each) have more Illinois Open wins than Cooke.

Two-time winners beside Cooke were Jack Bell, Roy Biancalana, Emil Esposito, Gary Hallberg, Bob Harris, Bill Ogden, Rick Ten Broeck and Felice Torza. Torza won the first staging of the tournament in 1950.

Cooke’s second title came much differently than his first. He was an amateur when he won at Royal Melbourne, and he did it with a 63 in the final round. That helped land Cooke one of his first endorsement contracts, with Chicago-based Wilson Sporting Goods.

“It’s great to win as a pro. It makes me feel I’m headed in the right direction,’’ said Cooke. “In the first one I was more caught by surprise. I had never won anything in Illinois at that time, and I don’t think (the Illinois PGA officials organizing the event) realized who I was when they put me on the tee sheet. That made me mad, in a sense.’’

While Wednesday’s second win came off a workmanlike effort, the first one was much more emotional. It came just eight months after the death of Cooke’s younger brother Chad. He was 20 when he passed away from an apparent heart disorder while playing in a pickup basketball game at Charleston Southern.

David Cooke, 26, grew up in Bolingbrook and won some college tournaments while attending North Carolina State. While there he met Claire Corbitt, and they’ll be married in Asheville, N.C. on Saturday to climax a most memorable week. Cooke didn’t let the pending wedding distract him from business on the course.

“We had everything set up and ready to go,’’ he said. That freed him up to protect the three-stroke lead he had when the day started, and no player cut into that margin in the final 18. Cooke’s goal for the final round was to go bogey-free, and he did it.

The reward was a tournament record first-place check of $23,768, and the overall purse of $120,000 was also an Illinois Open best. There were 32 professionals and 20 amateurs in Wednesday’s final round.

Cooke will use at least some of his prize money to finance another run at the European PGA Tour’s qualifying tournament in November. He earned conditional status last year but only got into two tournaments. In opting for Europe instead of the PGA Tour Cooke is taking the same approach as current world No. 1 Brooks Koepka did when he was at that stage of his career.

“The money will help out at Q-School,’’ said Cooke. “I wasn’t sure I was going to go, or how I was going to pay for it.’’

He knows now.

Illinois Open win could be an early wedding present for Cooke

A beautiful day at The Glen Club on Tuesday set the stage for a duel between Wheaton’s Tee-K Kelly (left) and Bolingbrook’s David Cooke in Wednesday’s final round of the 70th Illinois Open.

Bolingbrook’s David Cooke could win the 70th Illinois Open today. He enters the final round at The Glen Club, in Glenview, with a three-stroke lead but he might have other things on his mind.

Cooke, who won the tournament in 2015 when he was still an amateur, will catch a flight to North Carolina on Wednesday night. On Saturday he gets married to Claire Corbitt in Asheville. They met as students at North Carolina State.

First things first, though.

The Illinois Open is the premier tournament for state residents and, if he wins today, Cooke would become the tourney’s first repeat champion since Illinois coach Mike Small won three in a row from 2005-07.

Small, still seeking that record-tying fifth title in the tournament that would tie him with Gary Pinns, was one of Cooke’s playing partners in Tuesday’s second round.

Finishing his round with a 5-iron from 200 yards that covered the flagstick on the par-5 eighteenth hole, Cooke’s concluding two-putt birdie gave him a 69 for a 36-hole score of 8-under-par 136. Tee-K Kelly, the two-time Illinois State Amateur champion from Wheaton, and East Peoria amateur David Perkins are three shots behind entering the final round of the 54-hole championship.

Kelly, already a winner as a pro on the PGA Tour’s Latinoamerica circuit, might be the more likely challenger in the final round. He knows Cooke very well.

“We go way back. David (Cooke) was at Purdue during my freshman year at Ohio State,’’ said Kelly. “Now we share the same agent (Barry Meister) and same coach (John Perna).’’

Perkins, an Illinois State player, blew a six-stroke lead in the final round of the Illinois State Amateur at Cantigny, in Wheaton, last month but is in position to make amends in the Illinois Open.

Cooke, who transferred to North Carolina State, won his first Illinois Open when he was still a student there.

“It gave me confidence because I was still wondering what career path to take,’’ said Cooke. After college he tried the Latineamerica tour last year and then earned full status on the European Challenge Tour.

Perkins had a dazzling start Tuesday, going eagle-birdie-par-birdie that triggered the day’s low round – a 65. The last birdie of Perkins’ hot streak stopped a foot away on a par-3. As good as Perkins was, he could only get in position to possibly give Cooke a run in the final round.

Kelly, trying to become only the 11th player to post wins in both the Illinois State Amateur and Illinois Open, opened the tournament with a bang on Monday when he went eagle-birdie on the first two holes at Ridgemoor, the alternate course for the finals. He held the tournament lead late Tuesday until putting his tee shot in the water at the par-3 seventh at The Glen, resulting in a double bogey.

Kelly has put that mishap behind him.

“I’m super comfortable with this golf course right now,’’ said Kelly. “It’s how we all wanted it to play, and the weather is perfect. It should be a fun day tomorrow.’’

Frank Hohenadel, the head pro at Mistwood in Romeoville, is a stroke further behind Kelly and Perkins in fourth and the five-man group tied for fifth includes two of Small’s Illini players — recent graduate Nick Hardy and current player Tommy Kuhl.

Preferring to compete on the PGA Tour’s Korn Ferry circuit, Vince India — last year’s champion — didn’t defend his title. Today’s final round will feature 52 players – the 32 pros and 20 amateurs who survived the 36-hole cut. It came at 3-over par 147.

The final round starts at 8 a.m. with Cooke, Kelly and Perkins teeing off last at 11:07 a.m.