Fred Couples, Ernie Els lead early commitments to desert's new senior golf event
Major champions Fred Couples, Ernie Els and Jim Furyk and long-time PGA Tour and now PGA Tour Champions star Steve Stricker are among the first players to commit to the Galleri Classic, the tournament that marks the return of the PGA Tour Champions to the Coachella Valley.
Couples, the 1992 Masters champion, has been a resident on and off in the desert for decades and played golf at Mission Hills Country Club during his time representing Landmark Land in the Coachella Valley. Els is a two-time winner of both the U.S. Open and the British Open. Furyk is a 12-time PGA Tour winner including the 2003 U.S. Open. Stricker has won 12 times on both the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions and was the captain of the victorious U.S Ryder Cup team in 2021.
The Galleri Classic, named after title sponsor GRAIL’s multi-cancer early detection test, debuts March 24-26 on the Dinah Shore Tournament Course at Mission Hills Country Club.
More:Galleri Classic names six cancer-related nonprofits as tournament charities
Couples, Els, Furyk and Stricker will be part of a 78-player field at the Galleri Classic, the first PGA Tour Champions tournament in the Coachella Valley since 1993. The golfers will play 54 holes March 24-26 for a purse of $2.2 million, with pro-am play set for March 22-23.
“The Galleri Classic is thrilled to welcome Fred Couples, Ernie Els, Jim Furyk and Steve Stricker to help us establish a new, special desert golf tradition,” said Michelle DeLancy, tournament director of The Galleri Classic, in a statement announcing the commitments. “This foursome is proof positive of our commitment to bringing many of golf’s icons, fan favorites and the strongest field possible to a community that is perfectly matched for the PGA Tour Champions.”
Hall of Famers in the field
Couples and Els share in the honor of induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame (Els inducted in 2011, Couples in 2013). They are two of 25 golfers to have been No. 1-ranked players in the Official World Golf Ranking.
A part-time resident of the Coachella Valley, Couples – who owns 14 PGA Tour Champions victories to go with his 15 wins on the PGA Tour – has won two PGA Tour Champions major tournaments and the Charles Schwab Cup Championship in 2013.
Regarded as one of South Africa’s two most accomplished golfers in history, Els counts the 1994 and 1997 U.S. Open and crowns at the 2002 and 2012 Open Championship among his 19 career PGA Tour victories. He enters his third PGA Tour Champions season while having recorded 32 top-10 results in 59 starts on the circuit.
Stricker is the PGA Tour Champions’ hottest golfer, claiming the tour’s season-opening tournament last weekend in Hawaii to win his third consecutive PGA Tour Champions start and his fourth win in his last five starts dating back to August 2022.
After tallying 17 PGA Tour victories and the 2010 FedExCup title, Furyk joined PGA Tour Champions in 2020 and won his first two starts. He added a third title, and his first senior major championship, at the 2021 U.S. Senior Open Championship.
The Galleri Classic’s ticket offerings, which can only be secured online at the event’s official website, as well as other tournament information, are available at www.thegallericlassic.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Galleri Classic: Fred Couples, Ernie Els lead early field for PGA Tour Champions golf event
