US Airways - August 2013 - (Page 24)

explore A Growing Legacy The Wyndham Championship has become a critical August stop on the PGA Tour. By John Dell ★ Everybody loves a comeback story, and the Wyndham Championship has a great one. Nearly left for dead a few years ago, the tournament has evolved and is an important part of the end-of-the-season drive to the FedEx Cup playoffs. “Our tournament means a great deal in the FedEx Cup points, and I look at us as a wild-card game into the playoffs,” says tournament director Mark Brazil, who has helped shape the Wyndham Championship’s rise to distinction. When the PGA Tour revamped its schedule and added the FedEx Cup points system and the playoffs in 2007, it took a while for players to figure out how it all worked. It also took time for the PGA Tour to get it just right. But one thing was clear — the final regular-season tournament mattered a lot. august 2013 usairwaysmag.com From left: Bill Haas plays in the 2012 Wyndham Championship; ninth hole at sedgefield Country Club photos by (from left) peI/John GIllooly and anthony vInson smIth 24 That’s where the Wyndham Championship, held this month at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina, started to turn the corner. It matters that the final 125 players on the FedEx Cup points list make it into the playoffs, which start the week after the Wyndham Championship. It also matters a little more this season because the top 125 on the money list after the Wyndham Championship will secure PGA Tour cards for 2014. Webb Simpson, the 2011 Wyndham champion, has played in four previous tournaments, and he says it gets better each year. Last year the course introduced the more heat-tolerant Bermuda greens, much to the delight of the players. “The course is a great test, and the players love that,” says Simpson, who earned his first PGA Tour win at the Wyndham and then went on to win the U.S. Open the next summer. “And I think adding http://www.usairwaysmag.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of US Airways - August 2013

US Airways - August 2013
Table of Contents
CEO Letter
From the Editor
Did You Know?
Making It Happen
Hot Spots: Architectural Attractions
Wine & Dine: Italy's Gourmet Capital
Adventure: Diving for Dinner
Golf: The Wyndham Championship
Adventure: Drive Time at Bondurant
Great Escapes: Riu Resorts
Gear Up: Tools to Stay Cool
Travel Feature: Seattle's Outdoor Delights
US Airways: Staffing the Skies
Health Matters: Rapid Recovery
Special Section: Historically Black Colleges & Universities
Must Read: The Book of Immortality
Great Dates: Euphoria Festival
Puzzles
Readers Resource Index
Your US Airways Guide
Video Entertainment
Audio Entertainment
U.S. and Caribbean Service Map
International Service Map
Airport Terminal Maps
US Airways Fleet/Customs & Immigration
Passenger Info/Contact US Airways
US Airways MarketPlace®
Giving: Pulling Together
Window or Aisle?

US Airways - August 2013