RALEIGH - The gallery at this year's Rex Hospital Open will have to get reaquainted with TPC Wakefield Plantation because the course will be just a little different.
No, there was no major renovation for the upcoming Nationwide Tour event. It's just that the tournament officials decided to reverse the nines this year.
What previously was the front nine will be switched to the back nine, and the 158-man field will finish on what last year was No. 9, a 440-yard par 4 that requires a forced carry over a huge pond.
"The reason to flip the nines is to decrease the walk for patrons between the 16th green and 18th tee," tournament director Carson Gilbert said.
Gilbert said he wants No 16 - now a 158-yard par 3 - to take on a similar pool-hall personality as that of No. 16 at TPC Scottsdale during the Waste Managament Phoenix Open.
"We're trying to recreate that atmosphere," Gilbert said.
Besides the flip-flop nines, TPC Wakefield also made a couple of minor changes, as well - one that was unavoidable. First, the creek in front of the green on what is now No. 9 has been widened, making it an even bigger risk-reward hole. Going for the green in two on the 577-yard par 5 is even more dangerous.
The other change occurred when a fire threatened the course in February. High winds fueled a fire that had started on the side of a nearby road, destroying several trees on what was holes 12, 13 and 14. Because the course was dormant at the time, the grass has come back without issue, said TPC Wakefield Superintendent Todd Lawrence, but the course did lose some trees.
The ninth of the 26 Nationwide Tour events this year is scheduled for June 9-12. Nationwide players compete for a chance to move up to the PGA Tour.
John Riegger won the 2010 Rex Hospital Open after rain washed out the final day of play. Riegger’s final score of 20-under is a tournament record for 54 holes.
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