PGA Championship Preview

Although Kiawah Island is only 10 miles long and no more than 1.5 miles wide, the small island on the shores of South Carolina is set to host the PGA Championship this weekend. 

Kiawah Island’s small stature has proven to be a major obstacle at the PGA Tour’s final major.  Because of the lack of size, the PGA Tour had to limit ticket sales to around 25,000 per day.  When volunteers, course workers, media are factored in, the island will be forced to hold and transport about 30,000 people per day.  With one single two lane road to do so, there could potentially be major complications.  The course and the PGA Tour have worked on a comprehensive plan that should combat the issue.  According to Sports Business Journal, the course staff can park 1,600 cars per hour at maximum efficiency and they expect a traffic flow of about 1,400-1,500 at peak hours.  It’s going to be tough, but it could be done.

The PGA Tour’s final major will surely be a popular one with the season winding down and Tiger Woods coming in as the odds-on favorite to win.  Keegan Bradley looks to defend his 2011 PGA Championship crown while carrying the momentum of winning the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational last weekend at Firestone.  Although it is great to have Keegan Bradley with momentum coming into the tournament, the PGA Championship’s TV ratings will be driven by Tiger Woods’ place in the field per usual.  You can bet the house that TNT and CBS executives will be cheering hard for Tiger to at least be in the hunt on Sunday and throughout.

The PGA Championship will be played at The Ocean Course; a beautiful 7676 yard par 72 course located along the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.  Players could potentially face huge challenges with rain and wind.  This coming weekend will see a 40% chance of thunderstorms everyday and could experience some heavier wind gusts.

With the smaller ticket allotment, the high demand allowed the PGA Tour to charge premium prices for tickets.  Friday, Saturday, and Sunday single day tickets are sold out and single day Thursday tickets are $125.  A four day Championship Round ticket will get you access to all 4 days of competition but will run you $500.  For the more corporate tournament goers, there are one day Champions Club tickets for $700 with a 4 day Champions Club pass for $2700. 

Boasting a purse of $8,000,000 last year, Keegan Bradley took home $1,445,000 of that purse cashing in on a beautiful 4 day display of golf.  If we see anything like the battle between Bradley and Jason Dufner from last year, then the golf world is surely in for a treat regardless of whether Tiger Woods in the mix or not. 

Although it may be the least prestigious of the 4 PGA Tour majors, the PGA Championship is nothing to ignore.  The PGA Championship is hosted by one of the most beautiful course in America at The Ocean Club, and that southern hospitality will surely be felt. 

Tune in to TNT at 1 pm tomorrow to catch the start of the television coverage of the PGA Championship.  The final round will be broadcasted on CBS from 2-7pm on Sunday.  Don’t miss out on the PGA Tour’s last major of the year.

--Information from PGATour.com, Weather Channel, Sports Business Journal, PGAChampionship.com, KiawahIsland.com