The International Federation of PGA Tours is delighted to announce that the World Golf Championships – American Express Championship will be played at The Grove, Hertfordshire, England, from September 28 – October 1, 2006.
It will be the first time that the United Kingdom has hosted one of the World Golf Championships since the series of top class global events was inaugurated in 1999. The WGC – American Express Championship has visited Spain twice, the United States once and Ireland on two occasions, most recently this week at Mount Juliet Conrad in Thomastown, Co Kilkenny.
The Grove, the former home of the Earls of Clarendon, has been transformed into a contemporary country estate with an outstanding 18 hole golf course, a five star hotel and spa surrounded in 300 acres of private ground. Situated close to Heathrow Airport and Central London, it has rapidly acquired the reputation as one of the UK’s premier new golf resorts within a year of opening, and is another course in the impressive portfolio of American architect, Kyle Phillips, who also designed Kingsbarns links near St Andrews in Scotland to great critical acclaim.
The WGC – American Express Championship was first played at Club de Golf, Valderrama, in 1999 when American Tiger Woods captured the title after a play-off with Spanish Ryder Cup player, Miguel Angel Jiménez.
Canada’s Mike Weir succeeded Woods as champion at Valderrama the following year, but the 2001 renewal scheduled for Bellerive Country Club in St Louis, Missouri, was cancelled out of necessity due to the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11.
Weir had to wait a further 12 months to defend his title at Mount Juliet Conrad in 2002, when Woods claimed the crown with only one bogey on his card – at the 72nd and final hole. A year ago at the Capital City Club in Atlanta, Georgia, Woods proceeded to land the title for the third time in four attempts with a two stroke victory.
The 2005 WGC –American Express Championship will take place in the United States for a second time next year at Harding Park in San Francisco before returning to Europe for a fifth time in seven years at The Grove.
Ken Schofield, Executive Director of The European Tour, said: ‘The International Federation of PGA Tours is delighted that the 2006 WGC – American Express Championship will be hosted by one of the UK’s most outstanding new venues in The Grove.
‘The Grove has already received significant international acclaim in a very short space of time since opening for business in 2003 and we look forward to a truly world class field assembling at this splendid setting in the heart of the Hertfordshire countryside in two years time.’
Jonathan Linen, Vice Chairman of American Express, said: ‘As a global company whose brand has long been associated with excellence and achievement, American Express sees a natural fit between our company and the World Golf Championships – a unique platform that showcases those same qualities by bringing together the best players from around the world to compete in some of the world’s most demanding golf environments. We look forward to an exciting event at The Grove.’
Chris Andrews, Commercial Director of The Grove, said: ‘We are delighted to welcome the elite of international golf and we will ensure that their stay with us will be memorable both on and off the course so that they too can enjoy what has become known throughout the world of golf as The Grove Experience.’
The World Golf Championships series also includes the Accenture Match Play Championship, the NEC Invitational and the World Cup, formerly the Canada Cup, which was first played in 1953.
For further information please contact:
European Tour Communications Division
E-mail: media@europeantour.com
Tel: +44 1344 840400 Fax: +44 1344 840444