Buick Open

June 28 - July 1, 2007
Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club
Grand Blanc, MI
Par: 72 / Yardage: 7,127
Purse: $4.9 million with $882,000 going to the winner
Defending Champion: Tiger Woods

List of Champions & Scores

Results & Scores 2006 Buick Open

Box Score of 2006 Buick Open

Tournament facts:

Tournament information:

The tournament was a success. The combination of big-named golfers, paired with a paltry $1.00 admission price, brought fans out in droves to see the event. The Buick Open was hosted at Warwick Hills through the 1969 tournament. After the 1969 tournament, Buick pulled out as title sponsor. The loss of Buick's sponsorship money, coupled with the low monthly dues, left the tournament in deplorable financial condition. The only option was for the tournament to take a sabbatical, which it did through 1972. The Buick Open's next stint was tournaments held at other courses, with very limited sponsorship from 1972 through 1977. Following that, more reorganization led to a break with Buick making a return in 1978. Since 1978, the Buick Open has been held at Warwick Hills and has flourished.

Course information:

Lenz's Tudor Mansion was to be the clubhouse while much of the surrounding land would be covered by the golf course and course-side estates. With the location of the club set, it was time to find a golf course architect. The shareholders in Warwick Realty entrusted James Gilmore Harrison, a golf course architect from Turtle Creek, PA. He laid out the plans for the course within 60 days and by the end of summer, 1956, construction on the course had commenced. Less than a year later, in June of 1957, the course was open for play. The only other major change to the course came in 1967, when architect Joe Lee overhauled most of the course to the tune of $180,000. Comparable to $1.5 million today, the renovation transformed a solid course at best, into the venue that earned it "20th best in State" for 1997-1998, according to Golf Digest.

From the championship tees, the Par 72 Warwick Golf & Country Club course is one of the most difficult in the state of Michigan. Playing at 7,127 yards, it has a course rating of 74.1 and a slope rating of 132. The tees and fairways are a combination of creeping Bent Grass and Poa Annua, cut at 3/8" and 7/16" respectively. The rough is part Kentucky Blue Grass, part fescue. It is cut between 4" and 6", depending on the hole. As for the greens, they are fairly straight and measure between 10.5 and 11.5 on the stimpmeter. The 1/8" creeping Bent Grass and Poa Annua mixture provides putters with a quick, but fair putting surface that will allow the "hot" putters to go low, as evidenced by Billy Mayfair's record 9-hole score of 27 in 2001.

Warwick Hills eases golfers into competition. Of the front 9 the majority of the holes are predominantly long and straight. The first hole, a 567-yard Par 5, seems intimidating because of its length; however, it typically plays as one of the easiest holes on the course because it provides an easy birdie hole for the longer hitters. The back nine, though shorter, incorporates more water, trees, and dog-legs. It is capped off by the two of the most difficult holes on the course. Number 17, a 195-yard Par 3, is known for its difficulty. The front left of the green is protected by water while there are three greenside bunkers (left, right, and front) that can come in to play. Along with its notoriety for difficulty, 17 has become known for its raucous crowds that line the back of the green and chant for their favorites. Number 18, a 435-yard Par 4, provides, arguably, the most difficult test on the golf course. It is lined throughout by trees, fairway and greenside bunkers, and a water hazard.

The Buzz:

The Buick Open has always been an amalgom of proved and new players. Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh have combined to win the event five times; conversely, It has served as a jumping off point for numerous professionals, serving as the venue for 11 first-time winners on tour. This year, more than in the past, the Buick Open looks like it could potentially be a glimpse of tomorrow's best, rather than today's best.

Here are some things to look for this week:

Photo: © Michael Cohen/Wire Images The 17th Hole of Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club, home of the 2007 Buick Open..

Tournament use to be the event before the PGA Championship, then last year it was two weeks before. That didn't seemed to effect the tournament which always has a strong field, until the move this year. Still the timing is good with players getting ready for the British, PGA Championship and the FedEx Cup. So the field may not be a hit like past years but there is a lot to play for.

• Key stat for the winner:
  Length is a big advantage at Warwick Hills. In looking a the list of champions, long drivers like Tiger Woods, Kenny Perry, Vijay Singh, Woody Austin, Fred Couples and Dan Forsman have won in the last decade.
• Warwick Hills is a par 72 and at 7,127 yards you have to go low and dominated the par 5s. I can guarantee you one of the reasons Tiger Woods plays each year is because the course is perfect for him, he loves to dominate par 5s. Since 1997 the average score on the par 5s of the winners is 8 under. For the champions of the Buick Open the winner score is 10 under. Last year Woods played those holes in eight under in his victory.
• Warwick Hills isn't considered a pushover by any standards but it's getting pretty close. In 2006 it was the ninth easiest course on the PGA Tour with the hardest hole ranked 315th hole on the PGA Tour. In 2005 it was the 13th easiest course on the PGA Tour, with no holes in the 50 hardest holes on tour. Between 1978 and 1989 of the 877 players that completed 72 holes 678 of them (77.3%) shot under par. Between 1990 and 1999 of the 759 players that completed 72 holes, 664 of them (87.4%) of the were under par. Since 2000, 527 of the players that completed 72 holes, 496 of them (94.1%) were under par. In 2005 only four of the 79 players that completed 72 holes were under par while in 2006 75 of the 79 were under par. So the fact in all this, par doesn't get you much at Warwick Hills.
• Course also favors shotmakers and good putters. Again, look at some of the past champions you won't find any better putters than Justin Leonard, Tom Pernice, Jr. and Jim Furyk plus shotmakers like Woods and Singh.
• The players that make a lots of birdies because scores tend to be on the low side. Since 1990 the average score of the winners on the PGA Tour is 15 under, at the Buick its been 19 under.
• 11 first time winners have made mark at the Buick Open. Since 1995 Woody Austin (1995), Justin Leonard (1996) and Tom Pernice became winners for the first time at Warwick Hills. This is important because with the limited marquee names in the field the chances are better for a first-timer.
  
• One of the rare tournaments on the PGA Tour in which until two years ago there was only one multiple winner and that was back in the 60s when Tony Lema won back to back. That was broken in 2005 with Vijay Singh and Tiger Woods last year became the third multiple champion.
  
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