On Sunday, Harris English defeated Kramer Hickok in an eight-hole playoff to win the Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut.
When English hit a 16-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole on the final round’s 26th round, he won. The win marks the 31-year-second old’s of the season and his fourth on the PGA Tour.
Hickok, who was looking for his first PGA Tour victory, forced a playoff by making an eight-foot birdie putt on 18 to force a playoff. He scored a 3 under 67 while English shot a 65 through 18 holes to finish at 13 under 267 for the four rounds.
Afterward, English remarked, “I’m sorry it took seven or eight holes, but we were both grinding.” “Kramer is a formidable opponent. We both fought to the last end, which is exactly what you want.”
The only longer sudden-death playoff in PGA history occurred at the 1949 Motor City Open in Northville, Michigan, when Lloyd Mangrum and Cary Middlecoff were named co-winners after 11 playoff holes owing to darkness.
Marc Leishman of Australia finished in third place after shooting a final-round 64. At 11 under, Mexico’s Abraham Ancer (65) placed fourth.
Bubba Watson, who was tied for third place with Hickok after three rounds, faded in the final five holes. Watson went 6-over down the stretch, with a double bogey and four bogeys, to complete the round at 3 over 73 and tied for 19th place at 7 under 273.
The event began 69 years ago, in 1952, as the Insurance City Open in 1967, it was renamed the Greater Hartford Open, which it held until 2003. From 1973 until 1988, the GHO was also known as the Sammy Davis Jr. Hotel, after the performer who frequented the pro ams. From 1985 until 2002, Canon was a title sponsor, and its workers frequently used vacation time during tournament week to help at the event. From 2004 to 2006, Buick was the title sponsor, with The Travelers Companies taking over in 2007.
For the first three decades, the event was held at Wethersfield Country Club, about five miles (8 kilometres) north of Hartford. The event was relocated to the new TPC of Connecticut in Cromwell in 1984, after the PGA Tour purchased and renovated Edgewood Country Club. The TPC at River Highlands was renamed in 1991 after a significant makeover that included an entirely new front nine courses. In what would become a network of over 30 TPC Clubs, this TPC property was the third PGA Tour owned/managed championship golf course (2010).
The prize pool for the 2006 tournament, sponsored by Buick, was $4.4 million, with the winner receiving $792,000. The purse under Travelers’ sponsorship was $6 million from 2007 to 2010, with $1,080,000 going to the champion.
Longer hitters have had success in the event during the previous ten years, with Stewart Cink, Hunter Mahan, J. J. Henry, Phil Mickelson, and Bubba Watson combining for six titles. In 2006 and 2008, Mahan tied for second place.
Its date has shifted throughout the years; in 2005, it was held in late August, while in 2006, it was held in late June. The Travelers Championship, which is part of the FedEx Cup, has been held in late June, the week after the US Open, since 2007.
It is a part of the Open Qualifying Series for the 2020 season, with the top two non-exempt finishers in the top 8 earning up to two berths in the Open Championship.
