Congressional Country Club Takes Center Stage for Senior PGA Championship

When Richard Bland steps onto the first tee at Congressional Country Club this week to defend his Senior PGA Championship title, he'll face a course with a storied past and a thoroughly modern challenge. The venerable Blue Course, nestled just 10 miles northwest of Washington D.C., has undergone numerous transformations throughout its century-long history, with the most recent redesign by Andrew Green debuting in 2021. "I'm sure once I'm there, getting the feel of the place and being the defending champion, I'm sure I'm probably going to be walking a little taller that week," Bland said recently. "I can't wait to get going." The Englishman earned his exemption into last week's PGA Championship at Quail Hollow after his dramatic victory at Harbor Shores last year, where he fired an 8-under final round that included eight birdies in the first 12 holes and an eagle on the par-5 15th. Blue Course Bares Its Teeth Congressional will present an entirely different test than Bland faced at last year's Senior PGA. Stretching to 7,152 yards this week, and playing to a Par 72, the Blue Course is a brawny examination that will challenge even the longest hitters among the senior set. Rod Perry, who will be one of 36 PGA of America Golf Professionals competing as part of the Corebridge Financial Team, knows Congressional will not only be a test from the tee, but the green as well. "Congressional is a BIG golf course, built for hosting BIG events. From the tees we're playing, it's not overly long, but the green complexes are some of the most severe I've ever seen,” says Perry, who’s the PGA Head Professional at Crane Lakes Golf & Country Club in Port Orange, Florida. “There are specific quadrants within the greens themselves that players must get the ball into to have any legitimate chance at birdie. There are definitely some 'no-go' spots when it comes to missing greens. Miss it in the wrong place, and there will be consequences." Perry’s fellow competitor Rob Labritz, a former PGA of America Golf Professional who now plays full-time on the PGA TOUR Champions, also offers some insight into the current conditions:  "The course is in absolutely perfect condition—firm and fast with undulating greens and very tight surrounds," Labritz notes. "I will be aiming to hit a lot of fairways. The ball is going to roll so far that you don't need a driver off a lot of the tees." Labritz also points out that players will need to adapt to changing conditions. "The golf course is going to change on Thursday and Friday due to some rain and colder weather, but it looks like the wind is going to stay from the same direction," he says. "My plan in the majors is always one shot at a time. Don't think of the past, don't think of the future. Just hit every shot to the best of my ability—oh, and make a few putts." From Presidents to Rockefellers: A Century of Prestige Congressional's backstory reads like a who's who of American influence. The club got its start back in 1921 when two Indiana Congressmen, Oscar E. Bland and O.R. Luhring, wanted a place where politicians and business leaders could mix. The idea caught on quickly – early membership lists included names like Rockefeller, DuPont, Chrysler, and newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst. Golf course architect Devereux Emmet crafted the original layout in 1924, but the course we see today bears the fingerprints of several designers. Robert Trent Jones reworked it in the 1950s, then his son Rees made further changes in the '80s and early 2000s. Green's recent overhaul opened things up considerably – fewer trees, reasonably generous fairways, and bunkers with those distinctive jagged edges that have become his calling card. And you can't talk about Congressional without mentioning that enormous Spanish Revival clubhouse dominating the landscape. It's actually the largest clubhouse in America, and with Green's tree removal, you can now see it from all over the property. The course itself is immaculate – bent grass from tee to green that's being meticulously prepared for championship play. Those expanded putting surfaces have distinct sections created by internal contours, meaning approach shots need to find the right tier or face challenging putts across ridges and swales. Capital Showdown: D.C.'s Major Moment  Jason Epstein, Congressional's PGA Director of Golf and Athletics, can barely contain his excitement. "We are both excited and honored to welcome the Senior PGA Championship," he said last week. "This makes us only the fourth club in the country to host all four of the United States men's traveling majors, and just the second to host all three of the PGA's traveling majors." The timing couldn't be better for fans of senior golf. Many of the tour's big guns are playing some seriously good golf right now. Steven Alker has been rock-solid all season, while Miguel Angel Jimenez still has that magic touch. And don't count out major champions like Ernie Els, Stewart Cink, and Retief Goosen – they've all been showing flashes of their old brilliance this year. Risk or Reward? The Architectural Chess Match Players will need their strategic thinking caps on this week. Take the 12th hole, for instance – a par-4 that can play anywhere from 265 to 455 yards. It features this dramatic nest of bunkers guarding the inside of the dogleg. The choice is yours: challenge those traps and get a shorter approach, or bail out right for safety but face a longer shot in. What makes the hole so devilish is that you can actually see the green from the tee, just peeking out left of those bunkers. More than a few players will be tempted to take an aggressive line, only to find themselves in sandy trouble. The area near the clubhouse, where the 10th and 18th holes wrap around opposite sides of a lake, will be buzzing with spectators. This part of the property has been reworked several times – Green's renovation created a new 10th that plays from near the clubhouse to a green sitting where Robert Trent Jones's original 18th green once was. The Final Act: Drama on the 18th Speaking of 18, the finishing hole is a storyteller's dream – a 437-yard par-4 requiring precision and nerve. The smart play off the tee is just left of the bunkers on the right, where the slope will give you some extra roll. But it's the approach that will really test these players, hitting to a peninsular green that juts into the water at an angle. Sunday's pin position could well determine who hoists the trophy. Dave Carr, another PGA of America Golf Professional in the field, explains his strategy for solid play at Congressional. “The course is fantastic. The greens are really tricky—you need to know precisely how far you want to land your approach shots,” Carr, the PGA Director of Instruction at Teal Bend Golf Club in Sacramento, says.There are lots of slopes and little pockets on the greens that can make putting challenging. “My plan is to drive it well. The rough is thick, and you're really limited in hitting approach shots when you find yourself in it. If I can keep it in the fairway, I think the middle of the greens will be a great place to be. It's going to be an excellent test for sure. The weather will really decide how aggressive you can be out there." As another major championship unfolds at this storied venue, all eyes will be on whether Bland can capture lightning in a bottle twice or if another champion will emerge from the talented field. Either way, Congressional's Blue Course will provide both the stage and the challenge worthy of crowning a true champion.