US Bank brings new emphasis to Milwaukee event
BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2004 US Bank Championship | Preview | 21 Jul 2004
The name may have gone but the event which has played such a significant role in Wisconsin golf more than 35 years now, remains. The tournament we knew as the Greater Milwuakee Open, now has the support of US Bank for at least the next three years and with it the surety of its place on the PGA Tour.
The tournament has never had a naming rights sponsor previously although it has always had a strong and loyal sponsor base.
The course has been the venue here since 1994 when the event moved from its long time home of Tuckaway Golf Club in Franklin just outside Milwaukee. It is one of the few Municipal courses hosting PGA Tour events.
Brown Deer Park Golf Club was built in 1929 and designed by George Hanson but underwent changes in the early 1990’s when Roger Packard and Andy North were involved in preparing it for its role in staging a PGA Tour event. The course now measures 6760 yards and as such is one of the shortest on the PGA Tour.
The defending champion is Kenny Perry who, the week before the British Open last year, won by a shot over Steve Allan and Heath Slocum. Jeff Sluman, Shigeki Maruyama, Loren Roberts and Carlos Franco are other recent winners.
As has been the case for much of its existence, the event has had to put up with being very close to the British Open so the strength of its field has often been affected by the fact that many players are either on the way to or way back from a tough week in Britain. This year is much the same although several who figured prominently on Sunday at Royal Troon are currently entered in the field. Scott Verplank, Kenny Perry, K.J. Choi, Mark Calcavecchia and Bob Estes all finished inside the top twenty last week and are all scheduled to line up.
Kenny Perry was 16th last week and if he has recovered from the trip and the rigours of the buffeting that he and the field withstood at Troon, then he can contend. He had three weeks off after his missed cut at the US Open before his respectable 16th place last week and prior to Shinnecock Hills he had been in fine form with a 6th place at the Memorial and a 9th at the Buick. Perry was 4th in 2002 and 5th in 2001 in addition to his win last year. He must go close.
Scott Verplank is also returning from a fine week in Scotland where he finished 7th, his best performance in a British Open. He has been a model of consistency this season and despite the fact he has not played in Milwaukee since missing the cut in 1991, he should do well.
K.J. Choi showed again last week just how good a player he is developing into. He was 16th at Royal Troon and like Verplank hardly misses a cut these days. He was fifth here two years ago and should be considered one of the favourites.
Skip Kendall played brilliantly in Scotland, eventually finishing 11th after leading through thirty six holes. He has played very well over the last two months and has very good form here with four top tens in his last five starts. There might be a bit of value about Kendall if looking for a bet and he has the credentials to do well.
Loren Roberts was playing well before missing the cut at the recent John Deere Classic, but this is an event that he loves. He has been twice a winner here and runner up on another occasion. A quadruple bogey during the first round at his last event did him no favours and he can be expected to bounce back on a course that clearly fits his game.
Another course specialist here is two-time winner Jeff Sluman who, in finishing 8th at the recent John Deere Classic, signalled he is primed for revenge for his missed cut last year, on what must rate as one of his favourite venues.
Mark Calcavecchia is playing well at present and while he has not gone close to winning on this course, he has occasionally played well.
Carlos Franco is another who has played well here winning in 1999 and slowly returning to the form we saw from him then. He has played consistently well this season and there have been enough glimpses of form to suggest that a return to winning form would not be out of the question.
Scott Hoch is back playing well after a brief lapse of form and as a previous winner at Deere Park, he is likely to show up.
Notah Begay was third last week at the BC Open and was 20th here last year. He seems to be finding his way back to where he was a couple of years ago and may show up.
Of the others with some hope, Australians Steve Allan and Greg Chalmers, who both seem to be getting close to their best form and have played well here previously have some chance. Steve Allan was runner up last year and he played well when 17th at the BC Open last week.
Chalmers was fifth in 2002 and in the past two weeks he seems to have found a way to overcome a very ordinary run of form. He was 4th at the John Deere Classic and 27th at the BC Open last week, which by his recent standards have been great weeks.
Other Australasians lining up include Steve Elkington and Grant Waite.
