The Champions Tour returns to central Iowa in three weeks when the Principal Charity Classic begins at the Glen Oaks Country Club in West Des Moines. Jay Haas won the tournament in 2007 and says the Champions’ Tour offers golfers opportunities that would never have dreamed of a few years ago.
Haas says they are lucky to still be playing the game into their 50’s and 60’s as none of them thought they’d still be playing. And playing for more money than they made in the 1970’s and 80’s.
Twenty-six of the top 30 players on the tour are expected to take part and Haas says the large crowds that the tournament draws make it an attractive stop for the players.
He says they don’t get such crowds very often, so it is a thrill to come up the 18th hole and hear the cheers from the full skyboxes. Tournament director Dave Starr expects all of the defending champions to be part of the field, along with some new players like Nick Price.
The first round of the tournament is May 30th.