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No. 1 Viktor Hovland, No. 2 Justin Suh, No. 3 Collin Morikawa and No. 4 Matthew Wolff, have accepted exemptions to play in the 2009 Travelers Championship. |
“Giving some of the best young players in golf an opportunity to play in our event has helped us build a relationship with them as they wrap up their amateur careers and turn pro,” said Travelers Championship Tournament Director Nathan Grube. “What Viktor, Justin, Collin and Matthew have been able to accomplish at the amateur level is impressive, and we’re looking forward to seeing what they can do as professionals at TPC River Highlands.”
Viktor Hovland is the reigning U.S. Amateur champion who recently won the Ben Hogan Award, which recognizes the top men’s college golfer while also factoring in amateur competitions. Hovland is a native of Oslo, Norway, who just finished his junior season at Oklahoma State University. By winning the 2018 U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach Golf Links, Hovland earned a spot in this year’s Masters, where he tied for 32nd to secure low amateur honors. He won three individual tournaments this college season and helped the Cowboys win the NCAA team title in 2018.
Justin Suh helped lead the University of Southern California to the NCAA Championship this season, which ended with him being named a first-team All-American for the second straight year. Suh tied for fourth in the individual competition at the NCAA Championship, and picked up two victories as a senior. His stroke average of 69.39 this season was the second-best in school history, only behind the 68.73 Suh recorded during his junior year. Suh made his first start as a professional last week at the Memorial Tournament.
Collin Morikawa was a four-time All-American at the University of California, including a first team selection in each of his final three seasons. Morikawa was named Pac-12 player of the year as a senior, when he won the individual conference tournament title, one of his two victories. He tied for sixth individually with an even-par total at the NCAA Championship, the only tournament in 12 stroke-play starts this season where he didn’t finish under par. Morikawa has qualified for next week’s U.S. Open, and is playing in this week’s RBC Canadian Open as a professional.
Matthew Wolff won the individual title at the NCAA Championship last week for his sixth individual victory of the season, setting a school record at Oklahoma State. Wolff was named the winner of the Jack Nicklaus National Player of the Year Award, received the Haskins Award as the most outstanding collegiate golfer in the United States and was a first-team All-American for both of his seasons at Oklahoma State. A 20-year-old from Agoura Hills, California, Wolff won four straight full-field college tournaments as a sophomore and finished the season with a 68.59 stroke average.
“This is an impressive group of young players embarking on their professional careers, and we’re thrilled they’ve decided to join us this year at the Travelers Championship,” said Andy Bessette, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at Travelers. “We’ve seen amateurs and new professionals do some amazing things over the years at TPC River Highlands.”
Hovland, Suh, Morikawa and Wolff join a player field that includes Brooks Koepka (No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking), Justin Thomas (No. 6), Francesco Molinari (No. 7), Patrick Cantlay (No. 8), Bryson DeChambeau (No. 9), Tony Finau (No. 14), Paul Casey (No. 15), Jason Day (No. 16), Tommy Fleetwood (No. 18), defending champion Bubba Watson (No. 19), 2012 champion Marc Leishman (No. 21), Louis Oosthuizen (No. 22), Patrick Reed (No. 23) and two-time winner Phil Mickelson (No. 25).
The 2019 Travelers Championship will be held June 17–23 at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut. For tickets and more information on this year’s tournament, visit www.TravelersChampionship.com.
About the Travelers Championship
The Travelers Championship, held in Cromwell, is one of the premier events on the PGA Tour and part of the FedExCup series. Named by the PGA TOUR in 2017 and 2018 as the recipient of the “Players Choice” award, the Travelers Championship proudly supports the TOUR’s Tradition of Giving Back by donating 100 percent of net proceeds to charities. Travelers, a leading provider of property and casualty insurance for auto, home and business, is the Official Property Casualty Insurance Provider of the PGA TOUR. The company became the tournament’s title sponsor in 2007. Travelers has been doing business in the Hartford community for more than 160 years and has been a corporate sponsor of this event each year since its inception in 1952. Complete details are available at www.TravelersChampionship.com.
—Staff Reports
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