Puerto Rico Open
The Puerto Rico Open is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour that was first played in 2008. It is the only PGA Tour event ever held in Puerto Rico. The tournament is played at the Coco Beach Golf Course (previously Trump International Golf Club Puerto Rico) which was designed by Tom Kite. From its inception through 2015, it was played in early March as an alternate event to the WGC-Cadillac Championship, but in 2016 it moved to late March, opposite the WGC-Dell Match Play. All four rounds are broadcast on the Golf Channel.[1]
 | |
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Río Grande, Puerto Rico |
| Established | 2008 |
| Course(s) | Grand Reserve Country Club |
| Par | 72 |
| Length | 7,506 yards (6,863 m) |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour (alternate event) |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | US$3,800,000 |
| Month played | March |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 267 Chesson Hadley (2014) 267 Nico Echavarría (2023) |
| To par | −21 as above |
| Current champion | |
 Nico Echavarría | |
| Location Map | |
  Grand Reserve CC Location in Puerto Rico | |
The winner of the Puerto Rico Open earns 300 FedEx Cup points and 24 OWGR points, compared to 550 FedEx Cup and 70-80 OWGR points for World Golf Championships. As an alternate event, the winner does not earn a bid to the Masters, but still receives a two-year exemption on the PGA Tour (compared to three for a WGC event) and entry into the PGA Championship as a Tour winner. In 2015, the prize fund was US$3 million with $540,000 going to the winner.
The Puerto Rico Open is allocated eight additional sponsor exemptions. Four of these are designated for players from Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. The other four additional exemptions are unrestricted.[2]
For 2018 only, the Puerto Rico Open was an unofficial event as a fundraiser for relief efforts after Hurricane Maria, and was played at TPC Dorado Beach.[3]
The event had been considered to have an unofficial "curse" on the PGA Tour, as no winner of the event had ever gone on to win another tournament. The only exception to this was Michael Bradley who won the Puerto Rico Open for a second time in 2011, after winning his first in 2009, but never won another PGA Tour event.[4] However, Viktor Hovland broke the "curse" when he went on to win the Mayakoba Golf Classic in December 2020, having won the Puerto Rico Open earlier in the year.[5]
History
A Puerto Rico Open was played between 1956 and 1967. It was a fixture on the PGA-sponsored Caribbean Tour until 1965, after which sponsors rescheduled the event to later in the calendar year.[6] The Puerto Rico Open was revived as a stop on the Tour de las Américas 2004 and 2005, before being reincarnated as a PGA Tour event in 2008.
Winners
| Year | Tour[lower-alpha 1] | Winner | Score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up | Purse ($) | Winner's share ($) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Puerto Rico Open | |||||||||
| 2023 | PGAT | Nico Echavarría | 267 | −21 | 2 strokes |  Akshay Bhatia | 3,800,000 | 684,000 | |
| 2022 | PGAT | Ryan Brehm | 268 | −20 | 6 strokes | Max McGreevy | 3,700,000 | 666,000 | |
| 2021 | PGAT |  Branden Grace | 269 | −19 | 1 stroke |  Jhonattan Vegas | 3,000,000 | 540,000 | |
| 2020 | PGAT |  Viktor Hovland | 268 | −20 | 1 stroke | Josh Teater | 3,000,000 | 540,000 | |
| 2019 | PGAT | Martin Trainer | 275 | −15 | 3 strokes | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Aaron Baddeley Daniel Berger.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Roger Sloan Johnson Wagner | 3,000,000 | 540,000 | |
| Puerto Rico Open Charity Day | |||||||||
| 2018 | Unofficial pro-am event won by George McNeill and Cheyenne Woods | ||||||||
| Puerto Rico Open | |||||||||
| 2017 | PGAT | D. A. Points | 268 | −20 | 2 strokes | Bryson DeChambeau Retief Goosen Bill Lunde | 3,000,000 | 540,000 | |
| 2016 | PGAT | Tony Finau | 276 | −12 | Playoff | Steve Marino | 3,000,000 | 540,000 | |
| 2015 | PGAT |  Alex Čejka | 281 | −7 | Playoff | Jon Curran Emiliano Grillo Tim Petrovic Sam Saunders | 3,000,000 | 540,000 | |
| 2014 | PGAT | Chesson Hadley | 267 | −21 | 2 strokes |  Danny Lee | 3,500,000 | 630,000 | |
| 2013 | PGAT | Scott Brown | 268 | −20 | 1 stroke | Fabián Gómez Jordan Spieth | 3,500,000 | 630,000 | |
| 2012 | PGAT | George McNeill | 272 | −16 | 2 strokes |  Ryo Ishikawa | 3,500,000 | 630,000 | |
| 2011 | PGAT | Michael Bradley (2) | 272 | −16 | Playoff | Troy Matteson | 3,500,000 | 630,000 | |
| 2010 | PGAT | Derek Lamely | 269 | −19 | 2 strokes | Kris Blanks | 3,500,000 | 630,000 | |
| 2009 | PGAT | Michael Bradley | 274 | −14 | 1 stroke | Jason Day Brett Quigley | 3,500,000 | 630,000 | |
| 2008 | PGAT | Greg Kraft | 274 | −14 | 1 stroke | Jerry Kelly Bo Van Pelt | 3,500,000 | 630,000 | |
| 2006−07: No tournament | |||||||||
| American Express Puerto Rico Open | |||||||||
| 2005 | TLA | Daniel Barbetti | 268 | −20 | Playoff | Eduardo Argiró | [7] | ||
| 2004 | TLA | Rodolfo González | 282 | −6 | 1 stroke | Eduardo Argiró David Morland IV | [8] | ||
| Puerto Rico Open | |||||||||
| 1968−2003: No tournament | |||||||||
| 1967 | Chuck Courtney | 280 | −8 | 2 strokes | Art Wall Jr. | [9] | |||
| 1966 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Ramón Sota | 284 | −4 | 2 strokes | Bill Collins | [10] | |||
| 1965 | Howell Fraser | 288 | E | 1 stroke | Al Besselink Art Wall Jr. | [11] | |||
| 1964 | Art Wall Jr. | 289 | +1 | Playoff | Jay Dolan | [12] | |||
| 1963 | Charlie Sifford | 277 | −7 | 6 strokes | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} George Knudson | [13] | |||
| 1962 | George Knudson | 280 | −4 | 2 strokes | Al Geiberger Tony Lema Don Whitt Henry Williams Jr. | [14] | |||
| 1961 | Billy Maxwell | 273 | −11 | 7 strokes | Roberto De Vicenzo | [15] | |||
| 1960 | Joe Jimenez | 280 | −4 | Playoff | Stan Leonard | [16] | |||
| 1959 | Pete Cooper | 282 | −6 | 5 strokes | Ed Oliver | [17] | |||
| 1958 | Bob Toski | 288 | E | 2 strokes | Ernie Vossler | [18] | |||
| 1957 | Chick Harbert | 281 | −7 | 2 strokes | Roberto De Vicenzo | [19] | |||
| 1956 | Antonio Cerdá | 144[lower-alpha 2] | E | 5 strokes | Herman Barron Dick Ferguson | [20] | |||
Note: Green highlight indicates scoring records.
Notes
- PGAT − PGA Tour; TLA − Tour de las Américas.
- Shortened to 36 holes due to rain.
References
- "PGA Tour adds Puerto Rico Open to '08 schedule". PGA Tour. April 9, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2013.
- "2015–16 PGA Tour Player Handbook & Tournament Regulations" (PDF). October 5, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 12, 2016.
- "Puerto Rico Open back on PGA Tour schedule in 2019 after Hurricane Maria cancels 2018 plans". ESPN. Associated Press. December 21, 2017.
- Myers, Alex (February 18, 2020). "Why PGA Tour pros might want to think twice about winning the Puerto Rico Open". Golf World.
- Woodward, Adam (December 6, 2020). "Viktor Hovland breaks PGA Tour's 'Puerto Rico Open Curse'". Golfweek.
- "Citrus Open tops winter golf tour". Fort Pierce News Tribune. Fort Pierce, Florida. September 22, 1965. p. 12. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.
- "Puerto Rico Open once again raises the bar" (PDF). Caribbean Golf Magazine. May 2005. p. 39.
- "Rodolfo González campeón en Puerto Rico". espn.com.gt (in Spanish). March 21, 2004.
- "Courtney Wins Puerto Rico Open". Youngstown Vindicator. Youngstown, Ohio. AP. November 27, 1967. p. 15. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Sota Captures Puerto Rico Title". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. AP. November 21, 1966. p. 13. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Rookie Fraser Wins Tourney". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. AP. March 15, 1965. p. 13. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Art Wall Takes Caribbean Cup". Youngstown Vindicator. Youngstown, Ohio. UPI. March 9, 1964. p. 14. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Sifford Wins in San Juan Knudson 2nd". The Gazette (Montreal). Montreal, Canada. AP. March 4, 1963. p. 26. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Knudson Captures Puerto Rico Open". The Gazette (Montreal). Montreal, Canada. AP. March 5, 1962. p. 20. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Puerto Rico Open Win by Maxwell". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. AP. March 6, 1961. p. 11. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Golf Victory to Jimenez". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. AP. February 29, 1960. p. 12. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Coop Claims Second Win". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. AP. February 16, 1959. p. 10. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Toski Is Winner in Puerto Rico". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, Washington. AP. February 10, 1958. p. 10. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Harbert Wins Puerto Rican Open Tourney". The Gazette (Montreal). Montreal, Canada. AP. February 4, 1957. p. 26. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.
- "Cerda Cards 144, Wins Puerto Rican Golf Tournament". The Gazette (Montreal). Montreal, Canada. AP. February 6, 1956. p. 22. Retrieved May 8, 2020 – via Google News Archive.