Buick Open

The Buick Open is a PGA Tour golf tournament which is held at Warwick Hills Golf and Country Club in Grand Blanc, Michigan. 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. In the past, many prominent players used it as a "tune-up" for the PGA, and it remains to be seen if they will now use it in the same way to prepare for the British Open. The Buick Open is the third of three Buick-sponsored events on the PGA Tour.

For the event's first decade, it was played at Warwick Hills in Grand Blanc. 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. The Buick Open made its return to the PGA Tour in 1977 at Flint Golf Club, and in 1978 the event returned to Warwick Hills G&CC, where it has remained to the present.

The 17th hole at Warwick, a par 3, is known for having one of the rowdiest galleries in professional golf. Fans often create chants directed at particular golfers, making it a fun place to watch the tournament. The famed 17th hole is also known by locals as the second largest outdoor cocktail party in the world. Players of the tournament love the hole because of the atmosphere it creates. "This is a great tournament to play in, it's a beer drinkers tournament" says John Daly.

In recent years, the tournament has been dominated by long hitters. Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Brian Bateman, and Kenny Perry have combined for seven wins in the last eight years. Several other players ranked highly in driving distance have finished second over that span, including Woods, Jason Gore, Geoff Ogilvy, Bubba Watson, and John Daly.

Winners

Buick-Goodwrench Open

Buick Open

1977 Bobby Cole

Flint Elks Open

1976 Ed Sabo (not PGA Tour event)
1975 Spike Kelley (not PGA Tour event)
1974 Bryan Abbott (not PGA Tour event)

Lake Michigan Classic

1973 Wilf Homenuik (not PGA Tour event)

Vern Parsell Buick Open

1972 Gary Groh (not PGA Tour event)
1970–1971 No tournament

Buick Open Invitational

References

External links

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Last updated on Saturday October 04, 2008 at 12:35:53 PDT (GMT -0700)
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