NEWS

PGA Professionals to be featured in CBS Sports special

By PGA of America
Published on
PGA Professionals to be featured in CBS Sports special

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – The PGA of America’s annual CBS Sports Special, “Road to the PGA Championship,” relates several players’ inspirational stories leading into next month’s 99th PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Among the segments are defending PGA Champion Jimmy Walker’s long-standing friendship with the PGA Professionals at his home course, The Clubs of Cordillera Ranch in Boerne, Texas; the unique dynamic shared between PGA TOUR player Justin Thomas and his instructor/father, PGA Master Professional Mike Thomas; and PGA TOUR rookie Wesley Bryan’s relationship with his PGA Professional father, George, who competed as a Club Professional in the 1999 PGA Championship at Medinah (Ill.) Country Club.

CBS Sports will debut “Road to the PGA Championship” nationally on Sunday, July 30, from 2-3 p.m. ET, with replays airing on Golf Channel on Tuesday, Aug. 1, from 9-10 p.m. ET and Wednesday, Aug. 2 from 2-3 p.m. ET.

CBS Sports will also air a special “PGA Championship Preview” on Sunday, Aug. 6, from 1-2 p.m. ET.

“Road to the PGA Championship” will chronicle Omar Uresti, a PGA Life Member from Austin, Texas, and his recent victory in the 50th PGA Professional Championship, which secured an exemption into this year’s PGA Championship. North Carolina native Webb Simpson will also be profiled and he will share his local knowledge of the famed Quail Hollow Club, where he is a member, and recounts his journey to becoming a Major Champion under the guidance of his college coach, PGA Professional Jerry Haas.

There will also be a segment introducing Rod Perry – the PGA Head Golf Professional at Crane Lakes Golf & Country Club in Port Orange, Florida – and his passion for growing the game as a PGA Junior League Golf Captain. Perry is making his fifth career appearance in the PGA Championship next month. In addition, PGA Professionals Dave McNabb (Head Golf Professional at Applebrook Golf Club in Malvern, Pa.) and David Muttitt (PGA Teaching Professional at Los Altos Golf Course in Albuquerque, New Mexico), will be highlighted, as both will be competing in the PGA Championship for the third time. There will also be a feature on Jason Mengel, the PGA of America’s Championship Director at Quail Hollow, whose many duties the last two years included coordinating the build-out and infrastructure that will ultimately welcome and support 200,000-plus golf fans during Championship Week.

The CBS Sports broadcast of the “PGA Championship Preview” will feature several special stories, including an in-depth interview with Defending PGA Champion Jimmy Walker, who endured a unique 36-hole Sunday last year at Baltusrol to secure the first major championship of his career.

Viewers will also enjoy hearing from Charlotte, N.C. native Davis Love III, who will reflect on the 20th anniversary of his memorable 1997 PGA Championship triumph at Winged Foot; a look at the Champion of the 2017 PGA Professional Championship, PGA Life Member Omar Uresti; and a touching segment voiced by Grammy-Award winner Darius Rucker on the many lives of U.S. military Veterans that PGA Professional Perry Green of Summerville, S.C., has enriched and saved through his groundbreaking PGA HOPE Chapter in nearby Charleston, S.C.

CBS announcers Jim Nantz, Nick Faldo, Gary McCord, Peter Kostis, Ian Baker Finch and Dottie Pepper will participate in a roundtable discussion, during which they will discuss Jordan Spieth’s initial attempt at the Career Grand Slam, the course at Quail Hollow, and their predictions for the 99th PGA Championship.

The PGA Championship is one of the premier golf events conducted by the PGA of America. Others include the Ryder Cup, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship. The PGA Championship perennially features the strongest field, the fairest setup, and deepest international lineup of any major golf championship. The 2017 PGA Championship will award one of the largest purses of any major championship: $10 million.

Since 1916, golf's best professionals have won the PGA Championship, including Jason Day, Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Raymond Floyd, Lee Trevino, Jack Nicklaus, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Gene Sarazen and Walter Hagen.