| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Location | Madison, Mississippi |
| Established | 1968 |
| Course(s) | Annandale Golf Club |
| Par | 72 |
| Length | 7,199 yards |
| Tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Format | Stroke play |
| Prize fund | $3,600,000 |
| Month played | July |
| Tournament record score | |
| Aggregate | 263 Dan Halldorson (1986) |
| To par | −22 Steve Lowery (2000) −22 Skip Kendall (2000) −22 Fred Funk (2004) |
| Current champion | |
| Chris Kirk | |
The True South Classic is a golf tournament on the PGA Tour. It is played annually in Madison, Mississippi, and as of 2011 is played in July. The tournament is held at the Annandale Golf Club. From 1968 to 1993 it was played at the Hattiesburg Country Club in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
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Known as the Magnolia State Classic from 1968 through 1985 with notable winners including Roger Maltbie, Craig Stadler, and Payne Stewart, the tournament was re-named the Deposit Guaranty Golf Classic in 1986. From 1999 to 2006, it was known as the Southern Farm Bureau Classic, and from 2007 to 2011 as the Viking Classic.
In the past, this tournament was generally played opposite of a major or limited field tournament (officially termed an "alternate event" by the PGA Tour). It later became part of the Fall Series, a group of events held after The Tour Championship, before returning to its former status as an alternate event in 2011. In either case, the leading players in men's professional golf rarely participate. Until 1994, it was played opposite The Masters and then opposite the British Open in the mid-90s. More recently, it played opposite various World Golf Championships and The Tour Championship. From 2007 to 2010, it generally played opposite the major team events involving PGA Tour players, namely the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup. In 2011, it returned to the PGA Tour regular season opposite The Open Championship.
It has been an official money PGA Tour event since 1994. Prior to that, it was a satellite event with the money counting but the wins counting as unofficial.
From 2007 to 2010, it was part of the Fall Series. Because the FedEx Cup season championship is already determined by that time, elite players generally pass on Fall Series events; most players in the tournament are trying to either make the Top 125 on the money list and retain their tour cards, or earn a quick two-year exemption by winning. The 2007 event was played in the same week as the Presidents Cup; most of the top Tour players played in that event instead of the Viking Classic. The situation was similar in 2008, with the tournament being scheduled opposite the Ryder Cup. The 2009 purse was due to be $3,700,000, with $666,000 going to the winner. That year's event was also to be the first in the tournament's recent history to be the sole event on the PGA Tour schedule for that week, as it had been moved to the end of October with a scheduled finish on November 1. However, the tournament was cancelled on October 31, due to unplayable conditions at the Annandale Golf Club. The event was not rescheduled.[1] The 2010 event was again held opposite the Ryder Cup. This would be the tournament's last fall edition, as it would move into the regular season the following year.
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True South Classic
Viking Classic
Southern Farm Bureau Classic
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Deposit Guaranty Golf Classic
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Magnolia State Classic
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