Northern Trust Open Preview

Next Sunday (24 February) the stars of the big screen will come together for the 85^th Academy Awards, the world's most prestigious and important annual awards in the movie industry first took place in 1929, three years after the first Los Angeles Open golf championship. The LA Open, now sponsored by Northern Trust, is one of the most significant and longest running PGA Tour events and has played a pivotal role in the development of top flight professional golf over the years, with several key historical milestones. From the first $10,000 purse to the first tournament to be broadcast on radio the Los Angeles Open has been a tournament of firsts.

The LA Open was the first feature a woman in the field and the first to feature an African-American competitor, Jack Nicklaus won his first cheque of his career in the 1962 tournament and 30 years later Tiger Woods made his PGA Tour debut at the tender age of 16. The tournament and course is synonymous with Ben Hogan, particularly relating to his achievement in 1948 when he won both the LA Open and US Open over the course at the Riviera Country Club. In recent years a modern all-American hero has become just as synonymous with Rivera as the Hawk was, Phil Mickelson has won two Northern Trust Opens and lost two play-offs in the last six editions of the tournament and will once again head the field as he goes in search of his third win in Southern California. Both Hogan and Mickelson however are eclipsed when it comes to number of wins in the Los Angeles Open, with MacDonald Smith and Lloyd Mangrum each claiming the title on four occasions.

Arguably the greatest role the LA Open has played in the world of golf since its creation by the Los Angeles Junior Chamber of Commerce in 1926 is the promotion and inclusion of African-American golfers, from Joe Louis in 1952 (San Diego Open) to Charlie Sifford in 1969 and most recently Tiger Woods in 1992 the championship has created visible landmarks in the history of golf within the African-American community, helping to break down barriers.

Joe Louis is most famous for being a World Heavyweight Champion Boxer, a career which saw him win 69 of 72 fights and hold the title for 140 consecutive months (1937-1948) before retiring from the sport and taking his other passion more seriously. Louis took up golf shortly before his first fight with Max Schmeling and became the first African-American to compete in a PGA Tour sanctioned event (the San Diego Open*) on a sponsors invite in 1952.

*The Northern Trust Open website says it was the LA Open Louis played in, but all other sources say it was the San Diego Open.

Louis' participation in the 1952 San Diego Open, his global celebrity and status helped to eventually overhaul the Caucasian Only policy in 1961 and clear the way for a generation of pioneering professional African-American golfers, such as Charlie Sifford and Calvin Peete. Pete Brown became the first African-American golfer to win a PGA Tour title when he won the 1964 Waco Turner Open. Charlie Sifford was the first to claim a PGA Tour card and famously won the 1969 Los Angeles Open at Rancho Park, he beat the South African Harold Henning in a play-off at the first extra hole. Many of the early African-American golfers had to experience prejudice, but their achievements in the face of adversity cleared the way for the greatest ever African-American golfer.

Tiger Woods made his PGA Tour debut at the age of 16 in the 1992 Nissan Los Angeles Open, over the last twenty years his achievements have made history, and although the number of professional African-American golfers has not increased the sport is now more acceptable amongst the African-American community and the way is clear for future generations of African-American golfers to compete at the very highest level of the sport. Despite Woods being born and growing up in the Los Angeles area his best finish is 2^nd place in the 1998 championship played at Valencia Country Club when he lost in a playoff against Billy Mayfair.

The stars of the big screen are coming next week but the stars of golf are here this week and there can be no doubt that the Northern Trust Open has established itself as by far the strongest field on the PGA Tour prior to the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. 2007 was the final year of the Nissan sponsorship and the tournament attracted a field so strong it awarded 70 Official World Golf Ranking points to the winner, since then it has awarded 68, 62, 58, 62 and 62 OWGR points respectively to the winner as the tournament has maintained its position in attracting the strongest full field for a strokeplay tournament prior to the Florida Swing.

Once again this year the Northern Trust Open has attracted a stellar field and will see two of Europe's Ryder Cup heroes make their 2013 debut; Former World Number One Luke Donald and 2010 US Open Champions Graeme McDowell will be joined by 2012 runners-up Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley, defending champion Bill Haas, Matt Kuchar, Hunter Mahan, Justin Leonard, Padraig Harrington, Trevor Immelman, Charl Schwartzel, Webb Simpson, Bubba Watson, Lee Westwood, Zach Johnson, Dustin Johnson, Ryo Ishikawa, Martin Laird, Peter Hanson, Retief Goosen, Sergio Garcia, Jim Furyk, Ernie Els, Stewart Cink, Nicolas Colsaerts and Robert Allenby in another sensational gathering of world-class talent just outside America's second most populous city.

One of the reasons for the general popularity of the Northern Trust Open is the outstanding golf course it is played on. Riviera Country Club was established in 1927, the course was designed by George Thomas and has hosted the Los Angeles Open continuously since 1973 with the exceptions of 1983 and 1998. Riviera has hosted three regular major championships, the first US Open on the West Coast (1948) and the 1983 and 1995 PGA Championships, along with the 1998 US Senior Open. In recent years minor changes and enhancements have seen the course extended to 7,279 yards but the course has retained its character and unique features, including the iconic short par four which is renowned as one of the truly great holes in world golf.

Holes such as the demanding par four fifteenth and par four finishing hole will play a pivotal role during the championship, the 18^th is one of the most recognizable in the world with its amphitheatre green and semi-blind tee shot proving time and time again to be a fitting conclusion to a course renowned as one of the world's best. “Riviera is definitely one of the greatest, no-nonsense golf courses in the world. It requires a player to play every club in his bag and every shot in his game.” says Johnny Miller.

The stellar field of competitors will all be attempting to add their names to a roll of honour which includes the majority of the great names in golf; Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson, Gene Littler, Doug Ford, Ken Venturi, Arnold Palmer, Billy Casper, Hale Irwin, Tom Watson, Johnny Miller, Lanny Wadkins, Mark Calcavecchia, Fred Couples, Tom Kite, Corey Pavin, Nick Faldo, Craig Stadler, Ernie Els, Mike Weir, Adam Scott, Steve Stricker and Phil Mickelson have all been victorious in Los Angeles.

These iconic figures in the game have provided some great memories at Riviera each February and we are set for yet another memorable week, if it can come close to the 2012 edition then another great chapter will be added to the illustrious history of the Los Angeles Open.

Northern Trust Open on television in the U.S.	Northern Trust Open on television in the UK
Thursday 12pm PT Golf Channel	Thursday 8pm Sky Sports 3
Friday 12pm PT Golf Channel	Friday 8pm Sky Sports 3
Saturday 10am PT Golf Channel 12pm PT CBS	Saturday 6pm Sky Sports 3
Sunday 10am PT Golf Channel 12pm PT CBS	Sunday 6pm Sky Sports 3