Buick Open

The Buick Open was a PGA Tour golf tournament from 1958 to 2009. In 2007, the tournament was held at the end of June, a change from its traditional spot between The Open Championship and the PGA Championship. Regardless, many prominent players used it as a "tune-up" for the subsequent major.

Buick Open
Tournament information
LocationGrand Blanc, Michigan
Established1958
Course(s)Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club
Par72
Length7,085 yards (6,479 m)
Tour(s)PGA Tour
FormatStroke play
Prize fundUS$5,100,000
Month playedJuly/August
Final year2009
Tournament record score
Aggregate262 Robert Wrenn (1987)
To par−26 as above
Final champion
Tiger Woods
Location Map
Warwick Hills G&CC
Location in the United States
Warwick Hills G&CC
Location in Michigan

For the event's first decade, the Buick Open Invitational was played at Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club in Grand Blanc, Michigan. After 1969, professional golf events in the area fell off the PGA Tour schedule and a series of pro-ams and other similarly unofficial events took place, mostly at Flint Golf Club in Flint, Michigan.

Flint native, and PGA touring professional Larry Mancour had returned to Michigan to play in the Buick Open and stayed to build the Grand Blanc Golf Club. He then added nine holes at the Flint Elks Golf Club where he remained the professional for 20 years. He rescued the Buick Open when General Motors dropped sponsorship of the tournament. With local Buick dealers Mancour started the Little Buick Open in 1969. It drew players and fans and led to the rebirth of the Buick Open in 1977.

The Buick Open officially made its return to the PGA Tour in 1977 at the Flint Elks Club, and in 1978 the event returned to Warwick Hills G&CC, where it remained until its demise.

The Associated Press reported July 28, 2009, that General Motors would end its sponsorship of the Buick Open after the 2009 tournament, in order to devote its marketing resources to cars and trucks.[1] The PGA Tour replaced the tournament with the Greenbrier Classic at The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.[2]

As in the 1970s, a series of pro-ams and other unofficial events now take place in Grand Blanc, with the AJGA's Randy Wise Open taking place at Warwick Hills and most pro-ams and a golf festival at the Jewel of Grand Blanc (the former Grand Blanc Golf Club).

In 2014, an unrelated tournament with the same name was started in China. The event is played on PGA Tour China.

In 2018, the former General Motors financing arm, now Ally Bank, returned to Warwick Hills to sponsor a PGA Tour Champions event, The Ally Challenge. Jim Furyk is the only player to have won both, winning the 2003 Buick Open, and the 2020 Ally Challenge, which also was the Champions' return after the pandemic, winning in his first tournament.

Fans

The 17th hole at Warwick, a par 3, is known for having one of the rowdiest galleries in professional golf. Fans often created chants directed at particular golfers. The famed 17th hole was also known by locals as the second largest outdoor cocktail party in the world (presumably deferring to the annual Florida–Georgia college football game as the largest). Players at the tournament loved the hole because of the atmosphere it creates. "This is a great tournament to play in, it's a beer drinkers' tournament", said John Daly.

Long hitters

In its final years, the tournament was dominated by long hitters. Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Brian Bateman, and Kenny Perry combined for eight wins in its final nine years. Several other players ranked highly in driving distance finished second during that span, including Woods, Jason Gore, Geoff Ogilvy, Bubba Watson, and John Daly.[3]

Winners

YearWinnerScoreTo parMargin of
victory
Runner(s)-upWinner's
share ($)
Buick Open
2009 Tiger Woods (3)268−203 strokes Greg Chalmers
John Senden
Roland Thatcher
918,000
2008 Kenny Perry (2)269−191 stroke Woody Austin
Bubba Watson
900,000
2007 Brian Bateman273−151 stroke Woody Austin
Jason Gore
Justin Leonard
882,000
2006 Tiger Woods (2)264−243 strokes Jim Furyk864,000
2005 Vijay Singh (3)264−244 strokes Zach Johnson
Tiger Woods
828,000
2004 Vijay Singh (2)265−231 stroke John Daly810,000
2003 Jim Furyk267−212 strokes Briny Baird
Chris DiMarco
Geoff Ogilvy
Tiger Woods
720,000
2002 Tiger Woods271−174 strokes Fred Funk
Brian Gay
Mark O'Meara
Esteban Toledo
594,000
2001 Kenny Perry263−252 strokes Chris DiMarco
Jim Furyk
558,000
2000 Rocco Mediate268−201 stroke Chris Perry486,000
1999 Tom Pernice Jr.270−181 stroke Tom Lehman
Ted Tryba
Bob Tway
432,000
1998 Billy Mayfair271−172 strokes Scott Verplank324,000
1997 Vijay Singh273−154 strokes Tom Byrum
Russ Cochran
Ernie Els
Brad Fabel
Naomichi Ozaki
Curtis Strange
270,000
1996 Justin Leonard266−225 strokes Chip Beck216,000
1995 Woody Austin270−18Playoff Mike Brisky216,000
1994 Fred Couples270−182 strokes Corey Pavin198,000
1993 Larry Mize272−161 stroke Fuzzy Zoeller180,000
1992 Dan Forsman276−12Playoff Steve Elkington
Brad Faxon
180,000
1991 Brad Faxon271−17Playoff Chip Beck180,000
1990 Chip Beck272−161 stroke Mike Donald
Hale Irwin
Fuzzy Zoeller
180,000
1989 Leonard Thompson273−151 stroke Billy Andrade
Payne Stewart
Doug Tewell
180,000
1988 Scott Verplank268−202 strokes Doug Tewell126,000
1987 Robert Wrenn262−267 strokes Dan Pohl108,000
1986 Ben Crenshaw270−181 stroke J. C. Snead
Doug Tewell
90,000
1985 Ken Green268−204 strokes Wayne Grady81,000
1984 Denis Watson271−171 stroke Payne Stewart72,000
1983 Wayne Levi272−161 stroke Isao Aoki
Calvin Peete
63,000
1982 Lanny Wadkins273−151 stroke Tom Kite63,000
1981 Hale Irwin277−11Playoff Bobby Clampett
Peter Jacobsen
Gil Morgan
63,000
Buick-Goodwrench Open
1980 Peter Jacobsen276−121 stroke Billy Kratzert
Mark Lye
45,000
1979 John Fought280−8Playoff Jim Simons27,000
1978 Jack Newton280−8Playoff Mike Sullivan20,000
Buick Open
1977 Bobby Cole271−171 stroke Fred Marti20,000
1970–1976: No tournament
Buick Open Invitational
1969 Dave Hill277−112 strokes Frank Beard25,000
1968 Tom Weiskopf280−81 stroke Mike Hill25,000
1967 Julius Boros (2)283−53 strokes Bob Goalby
R. H. Sikes
Bert Yancey
20,000
1966 Phil Rodgers284−42 strokes Johnny Pott
Kermit Zarley
20,000
1965 Tony Lema (2)280−82 strokes Johnny Pott20,000
1964 Tony Lema277−111 stroke Dow Finsterwald8,000
1963 Julius Boros274−145 strokes Dow Finsterwald9,000
1962 Bill Collins284−41 stroke Dave Ragan9,000
1961 Jack Burke Jr.284−4Playoff Billy Casper
Johnny Pott
9,000
1960 Mike Souchak282−61 stroke Gay Brewer
Art Wall Jr.
9,000
1959 Art Wall Jr.282−6Playoff Dow Finsterwald
1958 Billy Casper285−31 stroke Ted Kroll
Arnold Palmer

Unofficial events in the 1970s

Flint Elks Open

  • 1976 Ed Sabo
  • 1975 Spike Kelley
  • 1974 Bryan Abbott

Lake Michigan Classic

Vern Parsell Buick Open

References

  1. "AP Source: GM to End Sponsorship of Buick Open". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-07-28. (Defunct prior to 7/10)
  2. "Greenbrier Classic Announcement". Bloomberg. 2009-08-05. Retrieved 2009-08-05.
  3. "Buick Open Winners". Archived from the original on 2012-09-07. Retrieved 2008-06-23.
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