The annual Travelers Championship is coming back in full force this year and the organizations taking part in the 2022 tournament are thrilled that the golf tournament will return to business-as-usual after disruptions wrought by the pandemic.
“This is the first year things have been normal for the tournament in three years,” said Nathan Grube, executive director of the Greater Hartford Community Foundation, which operates the tournament.
“Our last normal year was 2019.”
Grube, who also serves as tournament director, says the Travelers Championship was held in 2020, but with no spectators or hospitality kiosks. In 2021 the tournament was allowed to go on with limitations in both crowd sizes and hospitality involvement.
The tournament this year will be held June 20-26, with the Pro-Am play taking place on June 20 and 21 and the televised tournament running from June 23-26.
This year’s tournament purse is $8.3 million, Grube said.
“We’re going to have full fans back this year, with no crowd restrictions. And the hospitality is back as well, all the corporate venues, and the Fan Zone is back this year. This year it’s going to feel and look like what people remember back from 2019. It’s going to be really exciting, there's going to be a lot of crowd energy.”
So far, the 2022 players field includes Dustin Johnson (the 2020 Travelers champion) Rory McIlroy, Scotty Scheffler, Justin Thomas and Bubba Watson - who was the 2008, 2010 and 2015 Travelers champion.
This year’s defending champion is Harris English, who won the 2021 championship in a tournament-record, eight-hole playoff.
While Travelers Insurance is the title sponsor of the tournament, there are also dozens of other sponsors, including Eversource Energy, Mohegan Sun Casino, Webster Bank and Hartford Healthcare, to name a few.
Since its inception in 1952, the tournament has raised more than $44 million for charities in the greater Hartford region.
In 2021, the tournament generated $2.2 million for more than 125 charities throughout the region, including the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, which serves children and families coping with cancer and other serious illnesses.
“Generating money for these amazing local charities remains the top objective of the Travelers Championship,” Grube said. “Celebrating with our charitable partners and hearing about how the funds will benefit thousands of Connecticut residents motivates us to create the best tournament experience for everyone who attends.
For tickets to the Travelers Championship or more information visit travelerschampionship.com.