July 26, 2021
Pub Thirteen anchors full lineup of daily activities during tournament week as fans return for the award-winning event
Columbus, Ohio – The 15th playing of the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship at The Ohio State University Golf Club – Scarlet Course, the week of August 23 – 29, marks the tournament’s return as a Korn Ferry Tour Finals event.
Since 2013¾the year the Korn Ferry Tour Finals were introduced¾The Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship has served as one of the Korn Ferry Tour Finals events, one of three tournaments at the conclusion of each Korn Ferry Tour season that awards the top-25 players within the Finals their PGA TOUR cards. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 season was combined with the 2021 season, postponing PGA TOUR promotion until the end of the 2021 campaign. In 2020, the three Korn Ferry Tour Finals tournaments were contested as Championship Series events.
“We are excited to welcome back our fans with complimentary admission and return to a Korn Ferry Tour Finals format for this year’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship,” said tournament director Kip McBride. “Our patrons were dearly missed in 2020 and this year they will be treated to one of the best fields on the Korn Ferry Tour and top-notch competition at the Scarlet Course, which continues to be one of the best tests of golf on Tour and a fan-friendly venue.”
The Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship is happy to once again offer fans a number of daily activities to compliment the world-class golf competition. Pub Thirteen and “Birdie Time is Miller Time” is a fan favorite. This tented venue provides premium views of the 13th hole and will be open all day during tournament rounds Thursday through Sunday. Fans will enjoy a sports bar atmosphere with drink specials for 13 minutes each time a player in the field makes a birdie on the par-3 13th hole. A shot clock will count down the minutes.
The Nationwide Children’s Hospital Putting Challenge will also take place Thursday – Sunday and will feature daily prizes, as well as a grand prize competition during Sunday’s final round.
On Saturday fans can enjoy FREE Graeter’s Ice Cream, compliments of Nationwide. Then on Sunday, the tournamentwill offer a free pancake breakfast from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. next to the main entrance gate. Try your luck catching pancakes flipped from distances up to 30 feet.
The week also features world-class golf, as evidenced by the impressive track records of past Nationwide Children’s Hospital champions, who for more than a decade have excelled on golf’s biggest stages. Justin Thomas, Harris English, Scottie Scheffler, Peter Uihlein and Robert Streb are just a few of the current PGA TOUR stars to have hoisted the prized trophy. So far this season, Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship winners account for 23 top-10 finishes on the PGA TOUR, including four wins. Overall, some of the top players in the game have battled for the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship trophy since 2007. In fact, from the current FedExCup points list, 15 of the top-25 players have competed in the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship. Names like Dustin Johnson, Thomas, Jordan Spieth, English, Xander Schauffele, Scheffler, Patrick Reed, Tony Finau and Bryson DeChambeau.
The Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship will play a pivotal role in determining who will earn PGA TOUR membership for 2021-2022 season. At the end of the three Finals events, a second set of PGA TOUR cards will be awarded to those top 25 players who earn the most cumulative points in the three Finals events.
The top-25 from the Korn Ferry Tour Regular Season will carry their points into the Finals. Their order of priority will be determined at the conclusion of the Finals.
Exempt status on the PGA TOUR will be awarded to one member inside of the Korn Ferry Tour Regular Season Top 25 at the conclusion of the three Finals events, using combined Regular Season and Finals points. Therefore, any Top-25 player can earn the coveted No. 1 position if he performs well enough in the three Finals events. A second full exemption will be awarded to the highest cumulative earner among the three Finals events, if different from the No. 1 player among the Top 25.
The field for the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship will compete over 72 holes of stroke play, with a cut to the top-65 players and ties after 36 holes. Golf Channel will broadcast tournament coverage from Thursday’s opening round to the trophy presentation on Sunday.
For general Tournament information, including how to become a volunteer, please visit www.ncc-golf.com or call (614) 764-GOLF. Stay connected with the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship on Twitter (@NCHC_Golf), Instagram (nchcgolf) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/NationwideChildrensChampionship).
ABOUT THE NATIONWIDE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL CHAMPIONSHIP
The Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship is owned and operated by Champions of the Community, Inc., an Ohio non-profit corporation. The event is one of three Korn Ferry Tour Finals tournaments that will determine the 50 players who earn PGA TOUR playing privileges for the 2021-2022 season and their eligibility position under the TOUR’s enhanced qualifying system. Featuring a purse of $1,000,000 the tournament is conducted to showcase the best golf on the Korn Ferry Tour on one of the most challenging venues in the world, The Ohio State University – Scarlet Course, for the enjoyment of spectators and to benefit charitable organizations in central Ohio. For more information, call 614-764-GOLF or visit our website at www.ncc-golf.com.
ABOUT NATIONWIDE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL
Named to the Top 10 Honor Roll on U.S. News & World Report’s 2021-22 list of “Best Children’s Hospitals,” Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of America’s largest not-for-profit freestanding pediatric health care systems providing wellness, preventive, diagnostic, treatment and rehabilitative care for infants, children and adolescents, as well as adult patients with congenital disease. Nationwide Children’s has a staff of more than 13,000 providing state-of-the-art pediatric care during more than 1.6 million patient visits annually. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children’s physicians train the next generation of pediatricians and pediatric specialists. The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of the Top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded freestanding pediatric research facilities. More information is available at NationwideChildrens.org.
ABOUT KORN FERRY TOUR
Founded (1990), owned and operated by the PGA TOUR, the Korn Ferry Tour identifies and develops golf’s next stars, preparing them to compete and win on the game’s biggest stage. In 2013, the Korn Ferry Tour became the path to the PGA TOUR, with the top 25 players securing PGA TOUR cards via the Korn Ferry Tour’s regular season and an additional 25 players securing promotion through the Korn Ferry Tour Finals. This season (2020-21) marks the 31st year of competition on the Korn Ferry Tour. More than three out of four PGA TOUR members are Korn Ferry Tour alumni. Tour alumni have accounted for more than 550 PGA TOUR titles, including 24 major championships. To learn more about the PGA TOUR, the Korn Ferry Tour and to follow the season-long quest for a PGA TOUR card, visit PGATOUR.COM or follow the Korn Ferry Tour on social media (Korn Ferry Tour).
ABOUT THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT
The Ohio State University Department of Athletics is completely self-supporting and receives no university monies, tax dollars or student fees. The Department of Athletics sponsors 36 fully funded varsity teams – 17 for women, 16 for men and three that are co-educational – and is committed to providing the very finest in academic and athletics support in an effort to provide its more than 1,000 student-athletes with a quality, life-changing experience at Ohio State.
ABOUT HNS SPORTS GROUP
HNS Sports Group is a Dublin, Ohio-based LLC founded in 2000. The company offers over 125-plus years of collective experience and is committed to providing professional, efficient and effective client representation in the categories of sponsorship consultation, event management, hospitality management, sales representation and tournament operation within the golf market. To learn more about HNS Sports Group, visit www.hnssports.com.
COURTESY NATIONWIDE CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL CHAMPIONSHIP COMMUNICATIONS
