The Barclays

August 23-26, 2007
Westchester Country Club
Harrison, NY
Par: 71 / Yardage: 6,839
Purse: $7 million with $1.25 million going to the winner
Defending Champion: Vijay Singh

List of Champions & Scores

Results & Scores 2006 Barclays Classic

Box Score of 2006 Barclays Classic

Tournament facts:

Tournament information:

Three years later, in 1979, American Express pulled out as title sponsor and the event became known as the Manufacturers Hanover Westchester Classic. The name lasted until 1990, when Buick became the title sponsor. In 2005, Barclays took over as chief sponsor of the event.

The Barclays, usually played the week before or after the U.S. Open in June, has been shifted to the middle of August where it will be the first event in the four-week postseason.

Course information:

For tournament week the nines are flipped on the hilly and heavily wooded course. The average green size at Westchester is 4,300 square feet, which makes it one of the smallest on the PGA Tour. Course has 57 bunkers and the water comes into play on 1 hole. Before it changed dates, The Barclays was one of the favorite stops because its considered ideal preparation for the U.S. Open. Now it will be judged for it's own merit, and one of the reasons it was picked to host the FedEx Cup playoffs. Four of its holes, (8,11,12 & 15) are always ranked in the Top-100 of the tour with 11 and 12 in the top-50, while 13 of the 18 holes played over par in last years Barclays Classic. Another characteristic of the course is the holes that have rocky outcroppings, which create blind shots. Before the Westchester Classic got started in 1967 the course was used numerous times in tour events. It was the site of the Apawamis Pro-Am between 1952 and '62 and then the Thunderbird Classic in 1963. The Par 71 course plays at 6,829 yards. It has a course rating of 73.2 and a slope rating of 136, making it difficult, yet manageable. The course features Bent Grass on the tees and fariways, both of which are cut at 7/16". The greens are a 7/64" cut of Creeping Bent Grass and Poa Annua, while the rough is a 4" to 5" cut of Kentucky Blue Grass, Perennial Rye Grass, and fine Fescue.

Over the years, Westchester has racked up numerous accolades. Golf Digest consistently ranks it as one of the best golf courses in the state of New York. The classical golf course has been ranked as high as 80th nationally in terms of classical golf courses. Most impressive is the course's representation on the "Mean 18", the list that features the 18 most difficult holes on tour. With four holes on the list, Westchester is the most represented of any course.

The Buzz:

Now Tiger Woods is getting the bulk of the whiplash for not playing in the Barclays but there is others. Stephen Ames, Bernhard Langer, Jose Maria Olazabal, Ryan Palmer and Jason Bohn will also skip the first of four events in the FedEx Cup series. According to Ames management agency, Ames wants to rest his suspect back, Langer will play the European Tour's KLM Open, while Palmer is sitting out for a family illness. Olazabal is laid up with a knee injury, Bohn has not played in more than two months, due to a rib injury. Now a lot is going to be written on why Woods isn't playing the Barclays but the fact is that he will go into the event number one and there is a slight chance that he could come out of it number one. For him to lose that spot here is what has to happen:

Here are some things to look for this week:

Photo: © Al Messerschmidt/WireImage The 18th Hole of The Westchester Country Club, home of the 2007 Barclays. is a short par 5 that will lead to a lot of drama, like it has in past years.

Westchester Country Club, site of this week's Barclays is one of those storied old gems that we don't see that much on the PGA Tour. In a day of the pros hitting it 300 plus yards that won't work on the 6,829 yard Westchester CC. The course is one in which you can't overpower, in a way hitting it too far is a obstacle on this short layout.
The course is very hilly with tree-lined fairways. If that isn't enough the rough is always difficult and many consider it the toughest they play all year.

• Key stat for the winner:
  The Barclay's is a test of survival and maybe that's why in the history of the even it's 34 winners have won 63 majors.
• Hitting greens in regulation will be paramount. The tight venue will require good ball control, which will result in hitting lots of greens. Look for the winner to hit a plethera of greens in regulation this week.
• Good putting is a necessity for this event. The course has a stimpmeter rating of 11.5, which means players who handle the flat-blade and have a good feel for the green will do well.
• Very important that a player does well on par 5s. The final hole at Westchester is a par 5 which has produced many exciting finishes. But the most exciting finishes on that hole happened in back to back years starting in 1982. That's when Bob Gilder finished his third round by holing a 251-yard 3-wood in front of a live television audience. The shot help propel him to a 19-under 261 score which today is the lowest total in tournament history. Not to be outdone, the next year Seve Ballesteros came to the same hole in the final round in a three way tie. But thanks to a 225-yard 3-iron to within six feet of the cup and the eagle putt, Ballesteros won the tournament.
• Is there any rhyme or reason for a player to win this week? In looking at past champions, all of them have one thing in common, a knack for getting it up and down when needed. Westchester is a tough course in terms of rough just hitting you up so the winner will have to be able to make par from any position. That will continue to be the way to at Westchester.
• This week is a mix of tour stars like Mickelson, Vijay, Ernie Harrington and Sergio with a lot of first time winners and a lot of non-winners. In past years, winning had a lot to do with the weather, when it's good the tour stars seem to shine but in bad weather it becomes a long shot delight. Also look for those who play well with the lead, 24 of the 40 winners have held the lead going into the final round and went on to win. In the last 16 years, 13 of those three round leaders have won while since 1994 the only ones that didn't win fwas in 2000 with Dennis Paulson 2004 with Sergio Garcia and last year with Vijay Singh.
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