NICHOLASVILLE, Kentucky — The PGA Tour takes over the Bluegrass State this week, as the Champions course at Keene Trace Golf Club hosts the Barbasol Championship. This marks the eighth edition of the tournament, which began in 2015.
The tournament was held at the Grand National Course in Opelika, Alabama, from 2015 through 2017 before it moved to Kentucky for the 2018 event. (The 2020 edition of the Barbasol Championship was canceled in response to the coronavirus pandemic.)
While this week’s field at the Barbasol is vying for a spot in this year’s final major — the Open Championship, next week at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England — the future of the event is unknown. Barbasol’s sponsorship ends after this week’s tournament concludes.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Barbasol Championship this week:
What is the Barbasol Championship?
One of 44 events that make up the 2022-23 PGA Tour schedule, the Barbasol is the first regular-season PGA Tour tournament contested in Kentucky since the Kentucky Derby Open was held in Louisville from 1957-59.
What channel is Barbasol Championship 2023 on this week?
The first, second and third rounds will air live on Golf Channel and stream on Peacock, from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Sunday’s final round will air live on Golf Channel from 3 to 6 p.m., with Peacock carrying the live stream.
You can stream Golf Channel on YouTube TV.
Jim Herman of the United States celebrates on the 18th green after winning the Barbasol Championship at Keene Trace Golf Club on July 21, 2019, in Nicholasville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
What is the yardage for the Champions course this week?
The par-72 course will play at 7,328 yards during the Barbasol Championship. There are 10 par-4 holes and four par-3s and par-5s. The front and back nine, both with an even-par score of 36, feature the same hole groupings: five par-4s with two par-3s and two par-5s.
How many golfers are competing in the 2023 Barbasol Championship this week?
There are 156 players in this week’s field.
How many players make the cut at the Barbasol Championship?
The top-65 players, and ties, after the first two rounds will play the final 36 holes this weekend.
What will the 2023 Barbasol Champion winner receive?
In addition to the Open Championship berth, this week’s victor will take home a first-place check of $684,000 (out of the $3.8 million purse) as well as 300 FedEx Cup points. The top 70 in the FedEx Cup standings at the end of the regular season earn a spot in the playoffs, which begin Aug. 10 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, played at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee.
Are there any players in the Barbasol Championship field 2023 with Kentucky ties?
There are six golfers competing this week with ties to the Bluegrass State:
- Trey Cox, a Lexington native who played collegiately at Indiana Wesleyan.
- Jesse Massie, the director of instruction at Woodhaven Country Club, played at Trinity High School before starring at Eastern Kentucky. He earned a spot in the Barbasol after winning the Kentucky PGA Section Player of the Year. This is the first PGA Tour start of Massie’s career.
- Chip McDaniel, a former UK player who now is an assistant coach with the men’s golf program, emerged out of a three-man playoff in a Monday qualifier at Boone’s Trace National Golf Club in Richmond to snag a spot in the Barbasol. His best career PGA Tour finish came in 2019, when he tied for fifth at the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship.
- Louisville native Josh Teater, a 44-year-old who graduated from Lexington’s Henry Clay High School as well Morehead State, has played in more than 200 PGA Tour events dating back to 2005. Teater has two top-15 finishes in the Barbasol: He tied for sixth in 2019 and tied for 15th in 2021.
- Stephen Stallings Jr., a Louisville native, graduated from St. Xavier High before embarking on a college career at Kentucky. He has played in 11 PGA Tour events during his career, making seven cuts.
- Matti Schmid, a former U of L golfer from Germany, won the European Amateur in back-to-back years (2019 and 2020) and took low-amateur honors at the 2021 Open Championship at Royal St Georges Golf Club. His 65 in the second round of that year’s Open tied for the lowest-ever score by an amateur in golf’s oldest event. He’s trying to find his form this week: Schmid has missed the cut 14 times in 20 PGA Tour events this season, including five in a row.
Are there any former Barbasol Championship winners in the 2023 field?
There are three former Barbasol champions competing this week: Jim Herman (2019), Grayson Murray (2017) and Scott Piercy (2015).
Herman’s winning score of 26-under (262) in 2019 is the tournament record.
Are there any other notable players in the 2023 Barbasol Championship field?
A trio of major champions are on hand at the Barbasol: 2013 PGA Championship winner Jason Dufner, 2009 U.S. Open victor Lucas Glover and 2006 U.S. Open winner Geoff Ogilvy.
Glover also is the top-ranked player in this week’s field: He’s No. 112 in the newest Official World Golf Ranking.
Barbasol Championship odds 2023: Who should you bet on?
Per Tipico Sportsbook, Taylor Pendrith, the second-highest ranked player in the field (No. 113, one behind Glover), is the favorite to win the Barbasol Championship at +1500 as of Wednesday evening. Glover, Vincent Norrman and Peter Kuest are next in line at +2000 followed by Kevin Streelman and Akshay Bhatia at +2500.
Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @RyanABlack.
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