Hale Irwin Commits to 2007 Bank of America Championship - Tournament Director West says tournament player field best ever
For Immediate Release, May 17, 2007:
CONCORD, Mass. - By just about any measure, tournament director
Tracy West says, the Champions Tour player field for the 2007
Bank of America Championship is one of the best ever, and to
prove the point, she announced the commitment of Hale Irwin to
the field for the tournament to be held June 18-24 at Nashawtuc
Country Club in Concord.
The field includes World Golf Hall of Fame members, players new
to the Champions Tour, top Tour money leaders and former Bank of
America Championship winners, including 2005 champion Mark
McNulty.
Irwin's commitment brings the number of World Golf Hall of Fame
members competing at Nashawtuc to six: Irwin, Tom Kite, Larry
Nelson, Nick Price, Lee Trevino and Tom Watson.
This will be 39-time PGA TOUR and nine-time Champions Tour
winner Tom Watson’s first appearance at the Bank of America
Championship, and he’ll be joined by first-timers Chip Beck, Jay
Haas, Scott Hoch, Price and Curtis Strange. This actually is
Strange's second time on the list of tournament competitors, but
he didn’t get to play last year, as the 2006 tournament became
only the second tournament in Champions Tour history to be
canceled because of inclement weather.
Well represented this year are the Tour's all-time top money
leaders: Irwin (1), Kite (3), Price (5), Haas (6), Hoch (8),
Watson (9), Larry Nelson (10), Craig Stadler (11), Bruce
Fleisher (12), Dana Quigley (17), Trevino (18), Bruce Lietzke
(20), Allen Doyle (21), Dave Stockton (22), Tom Jenkins (23) and
Bob Gilder (24).
Irwin tops the list of money leaders for the Bank of America
Championship, compiling $640,620 and seven top-10s in nine
appearances.
Irwin also joins several former Bank of America Championship
winners at this year's tournament. Mark McNulty will defend his
title as the tournament’s 2005 victor. Tournament champions
joining Irwin (1997 and 1998) and McNulty will be Stadler
(2004), Doyle (2003), Gilder (2002), Nelson (2000 and 2001), Jim
Dent (1996) and Jim Albus (1994).
Irwin is one of four players to win consecutive Bank of America
Championships. The others are Don January (1984 and 1985), Chi
Chi Rodriguez (1986, 1987 and 1988), the only player to win
three consecutive times, Bob Charles (1989 and 1990) and Nelson.
Irwin won 20 times on the PGA TOUR, including the 1974, 1979 and
1990 U.S. Open Championships. His 45 Champions Tour victories
include the 1996, 1997 and 1998 PGA Seniors Championship, 1998
and 2000 U.S. Senior Open, 1999 Ford Senior Players Championship
and 2004 Senior PGA Championship. He won this year’s MasterCard
Championship and has placed in the top-10 in four other
tournaments this season on the Champions Tour.
The twenty-seventh annual Bank of America Championship field
to-date includes:
Albus, Jim
Baiocchi, Hugh
Bean, Andy
Beck, Chip
Bryant, Brad
Canizares, Jose Maria
Dent, Jim
Dougherty, Ed
Douglass, Dale
Doyle, Allen
Eaks, R.W.
Edwards, David
Eichelberger, Dave
Fergus, Keith
Fernandez, Vicente
Fleisher, Bruce
Gilbert, Gibby
Gilder, Bob
Haas, Jay
Hall, Walter
Hanefeld, Kirk+
Harris, John
Hatalsky, Morris
Hepler, Denny+
Hoch, Scott
Irwin, Hale
Jacobs, John
Jenkins, Tom
Johnson, Mark
Kite, Tom
Knox, Kenny
Levi, Wayne
Lietzke, Bruce
Marsh, Graham
McCullough, Mike
McNulty, Mark
Nelson, Larry
Nielsen, Lonnie
Pate, Jerry
Pooley, Don
Price, Nick
Purtzer, Tom
Quigley, Dana
Reid, Mike
Renner, Jack
Romero, Eduardo
Sigel, Jay
Simpson, Scott
Simpson, Tim
Smyth, Des
Snead, J.C.
Stadler, Craig
Stockton, Dave
Strange, Curtis
Summerhays, Bruce
Thompson, Leonard
Thorpe, Jim
Trevino, Lee
Wadkins, Bobby
Wadkins, Lanny
Wargo, Tom
Watson, Tom
Weibring, D.A.
Alternates:
Hammond, Donnie
Kuramoto, Massy
Eger, David
Edward, Danny
Coody, Charles
Watson, Denis
+ Sponsor’s Exemption
