PGA Members at the Center of a Big Travelers Championship Week in Connecticut

When Wyndham Clark hoisted the U.S. Open Trophy at Los Angeles Country Club as dusk settled in on June 18, golf fans probably thought most of the world’s best players were in for some much-deserved rest and recovery.

Not so.

In fact, a field featuring 14 of top 20 players in the world — including defending Champion Xander Schauffele (pictured below) —  and 38 of the Official World Golf Rankings’ top 50 will be at the 2023 Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut, at TPC River Highlands. Add in the thousands of fans and an award-winning atmosphere — which has been cultivated by PGA Professional and Tournament Director Nathan Grube — plus a Designated Event purse?

This one is in the can't miss category.

“People are just buzzing about it. This has been the one we’ve planned for the longest,” Grube said in an interview with the Connecticut State Golf Association. "This is the only professional golf event in New England this summer, so there’s a lot of excitement.”

Grube isn’t the only PGA Member involved in the Travelers either. The Connecticut PGA Section, led by Executive Director Tom Hantke, PGA, conducts the annual Monday Open Qualifier — this year’s will be at Ellington Ridge, which also hosted the two pre-qualifiers.

Andy Svoboda (pictured below), the PGA Head Professional at nearby Great River Golf Club in Milford, Connecticut, won the 92nd Connecticut PGA Championship, earning an exemption into the Travelers, which will have a $20 million purse for the first time in event history. Svoboda, who missed the cut by a stroke in last week’s U.S. Open, played in the 2018 and ‘21 tournament after earning a spot through the Monday Open Qualifer.

Add it all together, and this is a big-time tournament ready for the summer golf spotlight yet again — and this time, with just a little more pop.

“The excitement is translating to people wanting to be here,” added Grube. “We’ve invited a bunch of people to the party, and we want to make sure they have a good time while they’re here.”