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Last Updated: Jan 13, 2020 - 6:37:05 PM |
Competitors Tee Off for the start of the Korn Ferry Great Exuma Classic
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Sandals Emerald Bay GC | Great Exuma, Bahamas | January 12-15, 2020
Quick Facts
Golf Course: Sandals Emerald Bay Golf Course (Par 72 / 7,001 yards) Course Designer: Greg Norman
Purse: $600,000 (Winner: $108,000 / 500 points)
Golf Channel Coverage: Sunday: 2-5 p.m. ET | Monday: 2-5 p.m. ET | Tuesday: 2-5 p.m. ET | Wednesday: 1:30-4:30 p.m. ET Field Overview (as of January 10)
• 36 Korn Ferry Tour winners with 58 career victories
• Seven PGA TOUR winners with 18 career victories
• 12 players making their debut on the Korn Ferry Tour
• Inside the Field
• Rds. 1 & 2 Tee Times
• Power Rankings
Past Champions
Two of the three past champions of The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic at Sandals Emerald Bay have gone on to earn their PGA TOUR card for the following year. In 2017, Kyle Thompson went on to post two more runner-up finishes (Lincoln Land Championship presented by LRS and the KC Golf Classic) and finish 13th in “The 25.” In 2018, Sungjae Im made waves with his victory at Sandals Emerald Bay before going on to lead the money list wire-to-wire. He was named Korn Ferry Tour Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year in 2018 before claiming PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year honors in 2018-19. He went on to star for the International Team at the 2019 Presidents Cup while posting a 3-1-1 record. In 2019, Marty Dou sunk a 55-foot birdie putt at the last hole to clinch a two-stroke win. The victory was his second in his Korn Ferry Tour career. Dou fell just short of earning a return to the PGA TOUR, finishing 28th on the Regular Season points list.
Entering its fourth year, The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic at Sandals Emerald Bay has traditionally produced a strong test for golfers to open the season. In 2017, tournament conditions were some of the toughest in the Tour’s history. The cut-line of 11-over par was the highest in Korn Ferry Tour history, and the champion, Kyle Thompson (-2), was the only player to finish under par. The par-4 12th hole played as the toughest in Tour history over the course of a tournament with a scoring average of 5.008, and the course was the toughest on Tour in 2017 by almost two strokes. In 2018, conditions were much more scorable as Sungjae Im won his first career start by four strokes at 13-under par. Sandals Emerald Bay was rated as the third toughest course on Tour during the 2018 season, while the par-4 12th came in as the seventh toughest hole on Tour in 2018 (4.381). Last year’s edition of the tournament provided perfect conditions as Marty Dou set a new tournament record at 18-under, besting the previous record by five strokes. The course ranked as the 12th-toughest on Tour in 2019 with a scoring average of 71.695.
Course Information
Sandals Emerald Bay has provided the backdrop to the Korn Ferry Tour’s season-opening event each year since 2017. Designed by World Golf Hall of Famer Greg Norman, Sandals Emerald Bay is recognized as one of the most scenic oceanside golf courses in the Caribbean while holding the distinction as the longest course in the Caribbean at just over 7,000 yards. The front nine is mostly landlocked by mangroves and dunes while the back nine circles around the peninsula of Emerald Bay and includes six oceanside holes.
By the Numbers: Sandals Emerald Bay Golf Course
Hardest hole (2019): No. 12 (par 4, 499 yards) – 4.330 average, 20 birdies, 21 double bogeys or worse
Easiest hole (2019): No. 1 (par 5, 532 yards) – 4.424 average, 22 eagles, 222 birdies
Tournament Record (18 holes): 63 (-9), 2019 – John Oda – First Round
Tournament Record (72 holes): 270 (-18), 2019 – Marty Dou
Top Five to Watch
• Marty Dou – The 22-year-old will have the opportunity to make history this week as he attempts to defend his title after a two-stroke victory last year. No player has ever successfully defended his title on the Korn Ferry Tour.
• Theo Humphrey – The Vanderbilt University product will make his second career start on the Korn Ferry Tour after a missed cut at last year’s Nashville Golf Open Benefitting the Snedeker Foundation. Humphrey was an accomplished amateur before turning pro, topping out as the eighth-ranked amateur in the world and being named the 2018 SEC Player of the Year.
• Braden Thornberry – A highly touted amateur throughout his career, Thornberry underwhelmed in his rookie season on the Korn Ferry Tour last season after earning only conditional status. The former No. 1 amateur in the world rebounded at Q-School, earning co-medalist to earn fully exempt status this season.
• Augusto Nunez – Nunez enjoyed a dominant performance on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, winning the Order of Merit and finishing top-20 in all 15 events he competed in.
• Max McGreevy – McGreevy has bounced around tours since winning an NCAA title at the University of Oklahoma but enters the 2020 season with fully exempt status on the Korn Ferry Tour after winning the PGA TOUR Series-China Order of Merit during the 2019 season.
Chase for The 25 With the 2020 season opening this week in Exuma, all eyes turn to the kickoff to the Korn Ferry Tour’s 2020 Regular Season points list. The points list replaced the money list prior to the 2019 season as the system to ascend to earn one of the 25 PGA TOUR cards awarded at the end of the Regular Season in Portland. At the conclusion of the WinCo Foods Portland Open presented by KraftHeinz, the top-25 point earners will receive their PGA TOUR cards. Additionally, the top-75 players in Korn Ferry Tour points (plus ties) will be eligible to play in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals.
About Korn Ferry Tour
Founded (1990), owned and operated by the PGA TOUR, the Korn Ferry Tour identifies and develops those players who are ready to compete and win on golf’s biggest stage. In 2013, the Korn Ferry Tour became The Path to the PGA TOUR with all 50 available PGA TOUR cards coming through the Tour and the season culminating at the Korn Ferry Tour Finals. This season marks the 30th year of competition on the Korn Ferry Tour. Three out of four PGA TOUR members are Korn Ferry Tour alumni. Tour alumni have won more than 500 PGA TOUR titles, including 24 major championships and eight PLAYERS Championships. To learn more about the PGA TOUR, the Korn Ferry Tour and to follow theseason-long quest for a PGA TOUR card, visit PGATOUR.COM, or follow the Tour on social media via Instagram (@KornFerryTour), Twitter (@KornFerryTour) and Facebook (facebook.com/KornFerryTour).
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