Media Contact:
Tom Long
Thomas Long Corporate Communications
504.669.3030
tom@thomaslong.net Steve Worthy
Fore!Kids Foundation
504.342.3000
sworthy@forekidsfoundation.com
NEW ORLEANS, LA (April 20, 2017) -This year's Zurich Classic of New Orleans will offer fans perhaps the strongest field ever to play here in modern times, said Steve Worthy, CEO of the Fore!Kids Foundation, producer of the tournament.
(NOTE TO EDITORS: the complete list of teams to date appears at the end.)
The Zurich Classic this year will feature six players ranked in the world's top 10, 15 in the top 30 and 25 of the top 50. "When you account for the number of players who focus on international tours and aren't eligible on the PGA Tour, the depth of the field looks even stronger," said Worthy.
Top ten players entered include Jason Day (third), Hideki Matsuyama (fourth), Jordan Spieth (fifth), Henrik Stenson (sixth), Justin Rose (eighth) and Rickie Fowler (ninth).
Day, ranked number one in the world for 47 weeks, is teaming with Fowler. Masters runner-up and Olympic gold medal winner Rose has paired with Olympic silver medalist Stenson in this year's unique team format.
Some other strength of field highlights Worthy pointed out include:
On the PGA TOUR, this year's field includes six of the top 10 in FedExCup points, 12 of the top 20 and 17 of the top 30 to date.
The 158 players committed to date forming 79 teams (one team is held open pending the results of this weekend's Valero Texas Open) represent a combined 260 wins on the PGA TOUR.
The player with the most tournament wins is 2017 Presidents Cup captain Steve Stricker, who has posted 12 victories in his career. Just behind Stricker are Day with 10 titles; Bubba Watson and Spieth with nine; Geoff Ogilvy and K.J. Choi with eight and 2015 Zurich Classic champion Justin Rose and Retief Goosen with seven.
The last eight Zurich Classic champions are all entered this year. They include: Jerry Kelly (2009), Jason Bohn (2010), Watson (2011), Jason Dufner (2012), Billy Horschel (2013), Seung-Yul Noh (2014), Rose (2015) and Brian Stuard (2016). In addition, Choi won the tournament in 2002 for a total of nine past champions playing in 2017.
Twelve of the competitors in the Zurich Classic have won one or more of the majors: Keegan Bradley, Day, Dufner, Lucas Glover, Retief Goosen, Geoff Ogilvy, Louis Oosthuizen, Rose, Spieth, Stenson, Jimmy Walker and Watson.
The new 72-hole stroke play format will feature Foursomes (alternate shot) during the first and third rounds and Four-Ball (best ball) during the second and fourth rounds. The starting field will consist of a field of 80 teams. Following the conclusion of the second round, the field will be cut to the low 35 teams and ties at the 35th position. In case of a tie after 72 holes, there will be a sudden-death playoff using the Four-Ball format.
Zurich Classic of New Orleans Confirmed Teams
Player Name
Partner
1
Tyrrell Hatton*
Jamie Donaldson*
2
Trey Mullinax*
Bobby Wyatt*
3
Jason Day
Rickie Fowler
4
Jason Dufner
Patton Kizzire
5
Justin Rose
Henrik Stenson
6
Jordan Spieth
Ryan Palmer
7
Jimmy Walker
Sean O'Hair
8
Bubba Watson
J.B. Holmes
9
Billy Horschel
Matt Every
10
Russell Knox
Kevin Streelman
11
Hideki Matsuyama
Hideto Tanihara*
12
Patrick Reed
Patrick Cantlay
13
David Lingmerth
Danny Lee
14
William McGirt
Robert Garrigus
15
Daniel Berger
Thomas Pieters
16
Steven Bowditch
Boo Weekley
17
Keegan Bradley
Brendan Steele
18
Wesley Bryan
Ryan Blaum
19
Alex Cejka
Soren Kjeldsen
20
Tony Finau
Daniel Summerhays
21
Fabian Gomez
Jhonattan Vegas
22
Branden Grace
Louis Oosthuizen
23
Cody Gribble
Jim Herman
24
Russell Henley
Blayne Barber
25
J.J. Henry
Tom Hoge
26
Charley Hoffman
Nick Watney
27
Mackenzie Hughes
Nick Taylor
28
Smylie Kaufman
Harold Varner III
29
Si Woo Kim
Sung Kang
30
Chris Kirk
Brendon Todd
31
Kevin Kisner
Scott Brown
32
Brooks Koepka
Chase Koepka*
33
Peter Malnati
Mark Wilson
34
Ben Martin
Ben Crane
35
Troy Merritt
Robert Streb
36
Rod Pampling
John Senden
37
Steve Stricker
Jerry Kelly
38
Brian Stuard
Chris Stroud
39
Hudson Swafford
Harris English
40
Vaughn Taylor
Andres Gonzales
41
Justin Thomas
Bud Cauley
42
42
Geoff Ogilvy
Ian Poulter
43
Carl Pettersson
Jason Bohn
44
Kyle Ramey #
Phil Schmitt #
45
Seung-Yul Noh
Byeong Hun An
46
Kevin Chappell
Gary Woodland
47
Roberto Castro
Scott Stallings
48
Jamie Lovemark
Luke Donald
49
Brian Harman
Johnson Wagner
50
David Hearn
Graham DeLaet
51
Kyle Reifers
Andrew Johnston
52
Ricky Barnes
Matt Jones
53
Patrick Rodgers
Cameron Tringale
54
Chez Reavie
Lucas Glover
55
Freddie Jacobson
Willy Wilcox
56
K.J. Choi
Charlie Wi
57
Spencer Levin
Rocco Mediate
58
Tyrone Van Aswegen
Retief Goosen
59
Derek Fathauer
Sam Saunders
60
Jonas Blixt
Cameron Smit
61
Zac Blair
C.T. Pan
62
Andrew Loupe
John Peterson
63
Mark Hubbard
Jonathan Randolph
64
Kyle Stanley
Ryan Ruffels*
65
Michael Kim
Brandon Hagy
66
Shawn Stefani
John Rollins
67
Ken Duke
Chad Collins
68
Steve Marino
Will MacKenzie
69
Morgan Hoffmann
Camilo Villegas
70
Grayson Murray
Cameron Percy
71
Kelly Kraft
Kevin Tway
72
Ollie Schniederjans
Richy Werenski
73
J.J. Spaun
Ryan Brehm
74
Dominic Bozzelli
J.T. Poston
75
Michael Thompson
Tim Wilkinson
76
Whee Kim
Greg Owen
77
Bryson DeChambeau
Rory Sabbatini
78
Martin Flores
Gonzalo Fdez-Castano
79
Seamus Power
Steven Alker
*Sponsor Exemptions
# PGA of America Section Exemption
###
About Fore!Kids Foundation:
Since 1958, the Fore!Kids Foundation has raised money to fund children's service organizations through golf events like the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, the Golf Ball Gala and several charitable golf tournaments. As a 501(c)(3) corporation, Fore!Kids has helped to raise more than $32 million to date for children's charities in metro New Orleans and Baton Rouge. More information at www.forekidsfoundation.com.
About the Zurich Classic of New Orleans:
Televised in more than 224 countries and territories, the Zurich Classic of New Orleans generates a significant economic impact on the city of New Orleans and the entire state of Louisiana. Independent research has shown that the tournament generates spending of more than $40 million within the local economy and garners $33 million in positive national and international media exposure for both the city and state throughout the year beyond the four days of competition.
The tournament will be played April 24-30, 2017 at TPC Louisiana in Westwego. Purse for 2017 totals $7.1 million, with each member of the winning team earning $1,022,400.
Single-day grounds tickets are only $25 each in advance and $35 each the week of the tournament starting April 24. Weekly passes are $75 and choices of suite and specialty venue options are available by calling the Tournament Office at 504-342-3000 or online at www.zurichgolfclassic.com.