The Travelers Championship
is a golf tournament on the PGA Tour. It is the second most attended PGA Tour event annually only behind the FBR Open. It has been played annually in Cromwell, Connecticut since 1984, and since 1991 the tournament has been held on the course at the TPC River Highlands. Its position on the calendar has varied; in 2005 it was played in late August but in 2006 it was played in late June. Part of the FedEx Cup, the Travelers Championship has been played in late June, the week after the U.S. Open, in both 2007 and 2008.
For the tournament's first three decades, it was played at Wethersfield Country Club. In 1984, after the PGA Tour bought and redesigned Edgewood Country Club, the event moved to the new TPC of Connecticut in Cromwell. In 1991, the course was substantially redesigned with a completely new back nine holes and renamed the TPC at River Highlands. This TPC Property was the third PGA Tour owned/managed championship golf course in what would grow to a network of over 25 TPC Clubs (2007).
Over the last decade, longer hitters have done well at the tournament, with Stewart Cink, Hunter Mahan, J. J. Henry, and Phil Mickelson combining for five victories over an eight year span. Mahan also finished tied for second in 2006 and 2008. [1]
The purse for the 2006 tournament, under Buick's sponsorship, was $4.4 million, with $792,000 going to the winner. From 2007 to 2009, the purse under Travelers' sponsorship was $6 million, with $1,080,000 going to the champion.
The tournament was founded in 1952 as the Insurance City Open
; in 1967 it was renamed the Greater Hartford Open
, a title that was retained through 2003. From 1973-88, the GHO
also bore the name of entertainer Sammy Davis, Jr., who would often play in the pro-ams. Canon was a long-time sponsor of this tournament, and their employees would often take vacation time during tournament week to volunteer at the event.
The Insurance City Open was founded by the Greater Hartford Jaycees as a means to raise funds to support their philanthropic causes. The Jaycees are international leadership development organization for men and women ages 21-40. In 1971, The Greater Hartford Jaycees Foundation, Inc. was established as a grant-giving entity by the Greater Hartford Jaycees, Inc. with the help of Bob Murphy, who donated part of his winnings as 1970 Greater Hartford Open champion.
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