(KAPALUA, Maui, HI) Jan. 1, 2012 — The field for the 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions will include 28 champions of a combined 34 PGA Tour events from 2011 who will compete for the first 2012 PGA Tour title as the FedEx Cup regular season kicks off Jan. 5-9 at The Plantation Course at Kapalua Resort.
Thursday’s 2012 Hyundai Tournament of Champions pro-am round will be free to all spectators. The tournament will allow all youth 18 years-old and under accompanied by a ticketed adult into the tournament free of charge all week long.
Military (active duty, retired and reserve) and their dependents will also be permitted onsite for free for the entire week. Military members should bring their military ID to the gate for admission.
“The Hyundai Tournament of Champions has a world-class field with 28 champions from the 2011 PGA Tour season. The field includes an interesting continuation of what happened on Tour in 2011, with established veteran players like Steve Stricker, The Players champion K.J. Choi and David Toms playing at Kapalua. The Hyundai Tournament of Champions will also host a number of players who emerged in 2011 and captured the imagination of our fans with compelling performances on big stages,” said Tournament Director Nancy Cross.
Young stars in the Hyundai field include FedEx Cup champion Bill Haas, PGA Tour Rookie of the Year and major champion (PGA Championship) Keegan Bradley, and multiple 2011 tournament winners Webb Simpson and Nick Watney. Of the players in the field, 13 won events in 2011 while they were still in their 20s accounting for 15 victories.
Five of the record six rookies who accounted for seven victories in 2011 will tee it up at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions: Jhonattan Vegas (Bob Hope Classic); Brendan Steele (Valero Texas Open); Chris Kirk (Viking Classic); Scott Stallings (The Greenbrier Classic); and Keegan Bradley (HP Byron Nelson Championship and PGA Championship). Twelve of the 14 first-time winners on the PGA TOUR in 2011 are in the field.
Veterans include Steve Stricker, Bubba Watson, K.J. Choi, David Toms and Mark Wilson are among the veteran contingent. They combined for a total of 39 Tour wins and all but Wilson were members of their respective Presidents Cup teams in November.
Here is the full field: Aaron Baddeley, Keegan Bradley, Michael Bradley, Jonathan Byrd, K.J. Choi, Ben Crane, Harrison Frazar, Lucas Glover, Bill Haas, Chris Kirk, Martin Laird, Bryce Molder, Kevin Na, Sean O’Hair, Scott Piercy, D.A. Points, Rory Sabbatini, Webb Simpson, Scott Stallings, Brendan Steele, Steve Stricker, David Toms, Jhonattan Vegas, Johnson Wagner, Nick Watney, Bubba Watson, Mark Wilson and Gary Woodland.
Here’s the tournament’s Facebook page. Here is the tournament’s official website. Spots in the Thursday pro-am are still available by calling (888) 665-9160.