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As the 2024 Masters at Augusta National Golf Club comes to an end, PGA Tour players are already gearing up for the 2024 RBC Heritage.
The 2024 RBC Heritage will be played at Harbour Town Golf Links in South Carolina from April 16 to 18. Since 1969, Harbour Town Golf Links has been hosting the tournament. The course is considered among the best golf courses by experts.
The course was established in 1969 and designed by Pete Dye. The tournament was earlier known as Heritage Classic or The Heritage. The tournament is now known as RBC Heritage as it has been sponsored by the Royal Bank of Canada since 2011. The course is a par 71 course and is 7,213 yards.
The course despite being labeled as a links course is characterized by trees, specifically oak, pine, and magnolia trees. The presence of trees limits the room for error off the fairway. Even a slight deviation from the intended path can result in the ball being obstructed by trees.
As the course is characterized by small greens and abundant trees, it demands accuracy from players. There are water hazards on the 4th, 8th and 14th holes. The 8th hole is considered to be the toughest, as it has a narrow green and water hazards on the left.
The final stretch of the RBC Heritage is even harder. The 17th hole, a par 3 over water, imperils golfers to fierce winds off the lagoon. There are three bunkers on both sides to catch errant shots. The 18th hole, a signature par 4, has a narrow fairway bordered by marshland and trees, with the iconic Harbour Town Lighthouse in the distance.
How did Pete Dye design the RBC Heritage course?
According to the PGA Tour website, Charles E. Fraser, the man behind Sea Pines Resort, reached out to Jack Nicklaus, then a seven-time Major champion. Nicklaus recommended Pete Dye for the job as his own course design skills were not up to the mark. Nicklaus and Dye had competed against each other in the past and collaborated in 1967 to design The Golf Club near Columbus.
Dye, intentionally created a golf course with narrower fairways and smaller greens which surprised the players in the first tournament. During the first two rounds in 1969 on this course, 39 players took 80 or more strokes to complete the course.
Arnold Palmer was the winner of the inaugural event at Harbour Town Golf Links. Since then the maximum wins came from David Love III who won the competition five times. The multiple winners are as follows:
- Davis Love III: 5 wins (1987, 1991, 1992, 1998, 2003)
- Hale Irwin: 3 wins (1971, 1973, 1994)
- Stewart Cink: 3 wins (2000, 2004, 2021)
- Johnny Miller: 2 wins (1972, 1974)
- Hubert Green: 2 wins (1976, 1978)
- Tom Watson: 2 wins (1979, 1982)
- Fuzzy Zoeller: 2 wins (1983, 1986)
- Payne Stewart: 2 wins (1989, 1990)
- Boo Weekley: 2 wins (2007, 2008)
- Jim Furyk: 2 wins (2010, 2015)
This 2024 RBC Heritage tournament will feature PGA Tour players including Scottie Scheffler, Rory Mcllroy, Justin Thomas, Ludwig Aberg, Xander Schauffele, Wyndham Clark, Patrick Cantlay, and last year's champion Matt Fitzpatrick.
With a purse of $20 million, the winner of RBC Heritage will take home prize money of $3.6 million prize.
