| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Palm Beach Gardens, Florida |
| Established | 1972 |
| Course(s) | PGA National Resort & Spa (Champion Course) |
| Par | 70 |
| Length | 7,241 yards |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | $5,700,000 |
| Month played | March |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 264 Justin Leonard (2003) |
| To par | -24 Justin Leonard (2003) |
| Current champion | |
| Rory Sabbatini | |
The Honda Classic is a PGA Tour golf tournament that is played each March in Florida. It was founded in 1972 as the Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic. In 1981, American Motors (AMC) backed the tournament. Since 1982, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. (Honda) has been the title sponsor.
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The event was originally played at the Inverrary Golf Club in Lauderhill, Florida. In 1984, it moved to the TPC Eagle Trace in Coral Springs, Florida, where it stayed until 1991. From 1992 to 1995, the event was held at the Weston Hills Golf & Country Club in Weston, Florida. It then returned to Coral Springs, first at the TPC at Eagle Trace in 1996 and then at the TPC at Heron Bay from 1997 to 2002. In 2003, the event moved to Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, first at the Country Club at Mirasol through 2006, then starting in 2007 at PGA National Resort and Spa's Champion Course. The 2007 event had a new executive director, Ken Kennerly, who oversees a newly formed tournament organizing committee.
As of 2007 the tournament's main beneficiary is the Nicklaus Children's Health Care Foundation, which is chaired by Barbara Nicklaus, wife of golfing legend Jack Nicklaus.
Some celebrated golfers have won this tournament, including Jack Nicklaus in 1977 and 1978. However, it has acquired a reputation for struggling to attract the top players. Tiger Woods has never taken part as a professional, Ernie Els was an absentee from 1999 until 2008, and Phil Mickelson has not played it since 2002. This is despite the fact that the prize money is comparable to other PGA Tour events outside of the "big nine" (the majors, the World Golf Championships individual events, The Players Championship, and The Tour Championship). The total purse was US$5,700,000 in 2011, with a top prize of $1,026,000 (this can be contrasted to the total purse for the match held in 1981 of $300,000 (the equivalent of only $724,449 in 2012 dollars[1]).
Part of the problem is this event's position on the PGA Tour schedule. It is the least-heralded of the Tour's "Florida Swing" that includes the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Cadillac Championship (a World Golf Championship event). With these two other popular events, plus The Masters in early April, many of the world's top players choose to take off the week of The Honda Classic. However, the hope is that the field will continue to strengthen due to the change in venue to PGA National, a well-regarded course that hosted the 1987 PGA Championship and the 1983 Ryder Cup.
| Years | No. | Venue | City | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–11 | 5 | PGA National Resort & Spa (Champion Course) |
Palm Beach Gardens | Florida |
| 2003–06 | 4 | Country Club at Mirasol | Palm Beach Gardens | Florida |
| 1997–2002 | 6 | TPC at Heron Bay | Coral Springs | Florida |
| 1996 | 1 | TPC Eagle Trace | Coral Springs | Florida |
| 1992–95 | 4 | Weston Hills Golf and C.C. | Weston | Florida |
| 1984–91 | 8 | TPC Eagle Trace | Coral Springs | Florida |
| 1972–83 | 11 | Inverrary Golf Club | Lauderhill | Florida |
| Year | Player | Country | Score | To par | 1st Prize ($) | Purse ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Honda Classic | ||||||
| 2011 | Rory Sabbatini | South Africa | 271 | -9 | 1,026,000 | 5,700,000 |
| 2010 | Camilo Villegas | Colombia | 267 | -13 | 1,008,000 | 5,600,000 |
| 2009 | Y.E. Yang | South Korea | 271 | -9 | 1,008,000 | 5,600,000 |
| 2008 | Ernie Els | South Africa | 274 | -6 | 990,000 | 5,500,000 |
| 2007 | Mark Wilson | United States | 275 | -5 | 990,000 | 5,500,000 |
| 2006 | Luke Donald | England | 276 | -12 | 990,000 | 5,500,000 |
| 2005 | Pádraig Harrington | Ireland | 274 | -14 | 990,000 | 5,500,000 |
| 2004 | Todd Hamilton | United States | 276 | -12 | 900,000 | 5,000,000 |
| 2003 | Justin Leonard | United States | 264 | -24 | 900,000 | 5,000,000 |
| 2002 | Matt Kuchar | United States | 269 | -19 | 630,000 | 3,500,000 |
| Honda Classic | ||||||
| 2001 | Jesper Parnevik | Sweden | 270 | -18 | 576,000 | 3,200,000 |
| 2000 | Dudley Hart | United States | 269 | -19 | 522,000 | 2,900,000 |
| 1999 | Vijay Singh | Fiji | 277 | -11 | 468,000 | 2,600,000 |
| 1998 | Mark Calcavecchia | United States | 270 | -18 | 324,000 | 1,800,000 |
| 1997 | Stuart Appleby | Australia | 274 | -14 | 270,000 | 1,500,000 |
| 1996 | Tim Herron | United States | 271 | -17 | 234,000 | 1,300,000 |
| 1995 | Mark O'Meara | United States | 275 | -9 | 216,000 | 1,200,000 |
| 1994 | Nick Price | Zimbabwe | 276 | -8 | 198,000 | 1,100,000 |
| 1993 | Fred Couples | United States | 207* | -9 | 198,000 | 1,100,000 |
| 1992 | Corey Pavin | United States | 273 | -15 | 198,000 | 1,100,000 |
| 1991 | Steve Pate | United States | 279 | -9 | 180,000 | 1,000,000 |
| 1990 | John Huston | United States | 282 | -6 | 180,000 | 1,000,000 |
| 1989 | Blaine McCallister | United States | 266 | -22 | 144,000 | 800,000 |
| 1988 | Joey Sindelar | United States | 276 | -12 | 126,000 | 700,000 |
| 1987 | Mark Calcavecchia | United States | 279 | -9 | 108,000 | 600,000 |
| 1986 | Kenny Knox | United States | 287 | -1 | 90,000 | 500,000 |
| 1985 | Curtis Strange | United States | 275 | -13 | 90,000 | 500,000 |
| 1984 | Bruce Lietzke | United States | 280 | -8 | 90,000 | 500,000 |
| Honda Inverrary Classic | ||||||
| 1983 | Johnny Miller | United States | 278 | -10 | 72,000 | 400,000 |
| 1982 | Hale Irwin | United States | 269 | -19 | 72,000 | 400,000 |
| American Motors Inverrary Classic | ||||||
| 1981 | Tom Kite | United States | 274 | -14 | 54,000 | 300,000 |
| Jackie Gleason-Inverrary Classic | ||||||
| 1980 | Johnny Miller | United States | 274 | -14 | 54,000 | 300,000 |
| 1979 | Larry Nelson | United States | 274 | -14 | 54,000 | 300,000 |
| 1978 | Jack Nicklaus | United States | 276 | -12 | 50,000 | 250,000 |
| 1977 | Jack Nicklaus | United States | 275 | -13 | 50,000 | 250,000 |
| 1976 | No tournament. Instead, the Inverrary Golf Club hosted The Players Championship | |||||
| 1975 | Bob Murphy | United States | 273 | -15 | 52,000 | 260,000 |
| 1974 | Leonard Thompson | United States | 278 | -10 | 52,000 | 260,000 |
| Jackie Gleason Inverrary-National Airlines Classic | ||||||
| 1973 | Lee Trevino | United States | 279 | -9 | 52,000 | 260,000 |
| Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic | ||||||
| 1972 | Tom Weiskopf | United States | 278 | -10 | 52,000 | 260,000 |
Note: Green highlight indicates scoring records.
Sources[14][15]
Three men have won the tournament more than once.