The PGA Tour exits Florida and heads to southeast Texas for the 75th edition of the Houston Open.
Contested at Memorial Park Municipal Golf Course, the Houston event is the first of two stops in Texas ahead of the Masters.
There was no tournament in 2023 as the event moved from a fall date and skipped a calendar year. Tony Finau will defend his 2022 title.
As we do each week, here’s a roundup of information and data points to prep you for the week in “H-Town.”
The Skinny
Texas Children’s Houston Open
Title Sponsor: Texas Children’s Hospital
PGA Tour Debut: 1946
Event Week: 13th (of 34)
Dates: Mar. 28-31, 2024
Where: Houston, Texas
Course: Memorial Park Municipal GC
Distance: Par 70, 7432 yards
Architect: John Bredemus (1936)
Reno: Tom Doak, Brooks Koepka (2019)
Field: 128 players, 36-hole cut
Purse: $9,100,000
Winning Share: $1,638,000
FedExCup: 500
Defending Champion: Tony Finau
How to Follow the Houston Open
TV: Thu-Fri: 4-7 p.m. ET (GOLF); Sat: 1-3:30 p.m. (GOLF), 3:30-6 p.m. (NBC); Sun: 1-2:30 p.m. (GOLF), 2:30-6 p.m. (NBC)
PGA TOUR LIVE: Thu-Fri: 8:15 a.m.-7 p.m. ET (ESPN+); Sat-Sun: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. (ESPN+)
RADIO: Thu-Fri: 1-7 p.m.; Sat-Sun: 1-6 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM)
LINKS: Website | Facebook | X | Instagram
Houston Open History
As one of the original four Texas stops on the tour, the Houston Open is one of the longest-running PGA Tour events, with its inaugural tournament teeing off in 1946. It’s had star power from the very beginning with Byron Nelson winning by two over Ben Hogan in that first year, and South African legend Bobby Locke taking the title in its second edition.
Over the years, other champions have included Hall of Famers such as Cary Middlecoff, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Curtis Strange, Payne Stewart, Raymond Floyd, Vijah Singh, and Phil Mickelson.
Singh and Strange are the only three-time winners, with seven other players having won twice including Palmer and Middlecoff, among others.
From 2007 until 2020, the Houston Open was contested the week prior to The Masters, where it offered the last ticket (with a win) to get into the field at Augusta National. It was part of the fall portion of the schedule for only two editions before returning to its traditional spot on the schedule in late March/early April.
The tournament has always been contested in the Houston area but has bounced around between different venues with The Woodlands (1975-2002), and The Golf Club of Houston (2003-2019) being the mainstays in the modern era. In 2020, it moved to a renovated and restored Memorial Park Golf Course, which hosted the tournament for a dozen years, beginning in 1951.
Shell Oil Company, the title sponsor since 1992, ended its affiliation with the tour following the 2017 edition. The tournament went without a corporate sponsor in 2018 and 2019. Little-known Vivint stepped in for the 2020 edition, with Hewlett Packard signing on for 2021 and Cadence Bank in 2022. In 2023, Texas Children’s Hospital signed a five-year deal to be the title sponsor through the 2028 edition.
History: Recent Winners
2022: Tony Finau (-16)
2021: Jason Kokrak (-10)
2020: Carlos Ortiz (-13)
2019: Lanto Griffin (-14)
2018: Ian Poulter (-19)
2017: Russell Henley (-20)
2016: Jim Herman (-15)
2015: J.B. Holmes (−16)
2014: Matt Jones (−15)
History: Records
Low Under-Par: -22 (Vijay Singh, 2002)
Low Score: 264 (Tony Finau, 2022)
The Course: Memorial Park GC
Memorial Park Golf Course, located in downtown Houston, is known as one of the very best municipal golf courses in the United States.
The course originally began as a 9-hole track with sand greens, built near the hospital at Camp Logan for use by convalescent soldiers (1912).
In 1935, following the closing of the hospital, golf course architect John Bredemus redesigned the course, making it an 18-holer. It opened in July of 1936 and, according to legend, Bredemus remarked that this was his “greatest golf course ever.”
It was the home of the Houston Open from 1951 to 1963, and through the years, it hosted the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Cary Middlecoff, and Jimmy Demaret.
In 1994, on behalf of Mayor Bob Lanier, a campaign began to restore the golf course. Great effort went to preserving its historical quality while allowing for proper maintenance for the future of the course. In 1995, the newly renovated 600-acre course opened with a lighted driving range, putting and chipping greens, and a beautiful new clubhouse facility.
Another renovation took place in late 2019: funded by the non-profit Astros Golf Foundation, the $18.5 million project has produced an even greater Memorial Park golf track.
Redesigned by world renowned architect, Tom Doak, the golf course now stretches to 7,292 yards and includes five par 5s (for amateurs).
“The course boasts strategic bunkering, and unique green contours with dramatic short-grass runoffs – making it a second-shot golf course,” according to the PGA Tour’s First Look.
Doak rose to the challenge by creating a municipal golf course that can be played by both tour professionals and the general public. Five-time major winner Brooks Koepka was the PGA Tour consultant on the project.
Houston Open Field
The field in Houston includes just six top-30 ranked players, headlined by world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler. The talented Texan will be joined by Wyndham Clark (No. 5), Sahith Theegala (15), Jason Day (20), Will Zalatoris (29) and defending champion Tony Finau (30).
Additional top-100 ranked players to watch include Kurt Kitayama (No. 41), Jake Knapp (46), Alex Noren (66), Keith Mitchell (70), Stephan Jaeger, (71), and Billy Horschel (87), among many others.
Luke List, Gary Woodland, Peter Malnati, Mackenzie Hughes, Tom Hoge, Cam Davis, and Daniel Berger are some of the other familiar names in Houston.
Top-5 Betting Favorites
Pos-Player-Odds
1. Scottie Scheffler (3-1)
2. Wyndham Clark (12-1)
3. Sahith Theegala (18-1)
4. Jason Day (25-1)
5. Alex Noren (30-1)
Full Field & Odds
Texas Children’s Houston Open | Memorial Park GC | Houston, TX | Mar. 28-31, 2024
Up Next On Tour
Following the Houston Open, the PGA Tour heads to San Antonio for the Valero Texas Open, the final event ahead of the 2024 Masters.
Apr 04-07 Valero Texas Open (San Antonio, TX)
Apr 11-14 Masters Tournament (Augusta, GA)
Apr 18-21 RBC Heritage (Hilton Head Island, SC)
Apr 25-28 Zurich Classic (Avoldale, LA)
May 02-05 CJ Cup Byron Nelson (McKinney, TX)
Credits: Getty Images, PGA Tour Media, Joel Cook
