Few things match the joy of spending Sunday, the tournament’s final day, at the Charles Schwab Challenge. For a golf lover – or simply a lover of being outdoors in a beautiful setting – it’s one of the best days of each year.
I’ve been going to the annual tournament at Colonial Country Club for a long time – long before 2018, in fact, when it became the Charles Schwab Challenge. It has never disappointed, and I’ve got to give it to the folks at Schwab once again for saving the tournament five years ago when it was on life support.
Heck, they even kept it alive during the COVID-19 pandemic when there were no fans in attendance. Suffice to say Fort Worth and Colonial Country Club owe Schwab a lot as the tournament is back at full strength with hordes of happy folks coming through the gates for a great time and to see some fantastic golf.
While the tournament does not release official attendance numbers, let’s just say if you combined all the folks who came through the gates you’d have another decent sized Fort Worth suburb.
Along with the crowds, of course, came a lot of money for the coffers of Cowtown. Officials said it will be a bit before they have exact figures, but for some time now those who know have said the tournament has an annual impact of around $25 million.
To keep this or any tournament going people need to show up and spend money, and they did – in droves, from all indications. A lot of those folks make their way to Fort Worth from all across this great nation. For many, far and wide, Colonial and the city some affectionately call Funkytown is where anyone who is anyone wants to be seen on Memorial Day weekend.
“We couldn’t have asked for a better 77th tournament. The weather was perfect all week, the sea of fans having a great time and enjoying the scene was fun to watch and the thrilling finish was a fitting end to a picture-perfect tournament,” said tournament director Michael Tothe.
This year, one of those out-of-town – out-of-state, actually – visitors was my son-in-law Stephen Garcia. He, my daughter Kinsley and the cutest 1-year-old granddaughter in the whole wide world, Wren, were in for a visit from Colorado. Stephen, being the avid golfer he is, was the epitome of a golfing fan attending his first professional tournament.
He took in the gorgeous and glorious atmosphere as we followed his favorite golfer, Max Homa, for a few holes. We watched as another golfer’s ball went kerplunk in the water at the legendary 13th hole, with Stephen, my best buddy/golfing partner Mark – and me – all saying in unison, “I can do that!”
Which is when my wife, the lovely Junell, were she there, would have chimed in with a smile, “Yeah, but he doesn’t do it every round.”
Some excellent golf was played at Colonial this past weekend. In fact, Stephen and the rest of us who hung around until the end were treated to a playoff, the second straight year for that to happen. And while it wasn’t as exciting as 2022 when Sam Burns chipped in from 38 feet out on the fringe to defeat Scottie Scheffler (who missed his own 37-foot putt), the playoff went two holes before Emiliano Grillo sank a 5-foot birdie putt for the win.
Grillo, by the way, had double bogeyed the final hole of regulation to set up the playoff. The victory was only the second of his PGA career and came almost eight years after his first.
“In three of our last four tournaments, the winner has been decided by a playoff. It’s great to see so many fans stick around until the final putt,” Tothe said.
The Charles Schwab Challenge is more than great golf, though. For example, the 1973 fully restored and modernized Schwab Bronco awarded to Grillo following his victory is one very cool ride – just as the Dodge Chargers given to previous winners were.
And who could ever tire of seeing the champion don the plaid jacket synonymous with the winner at Colonial? By the way, the seats in the Bronco had that same plaid pattern stitched in them.
Told you it was a cool ride.
Thanks to the Schwab folks as well for the Schwab On Tap craft investing experience. What’s better than golf and free beer? And thanks for limiting the amount so as to keep the experience – and the drive home – safe and enjoyable.
Over the Colonial Hedge was also a new and nice touch. It offered a great view of the 18th green and was a great place to see the final hole of regulation and the first playoff hole after a day of much walking.
Of course, then we all got up and walked to the 16th for the second playoff hole.
You walk a lot at Colonial and the sun is often blazing hot, though it did give us a bit of a break this year. But it’s worth every tiring step and every dollop of sunscreen applied.
And I would be remiss if I didn’t say thanks to the folks at Colonial and Schwab for their great recognition of our military heroes. Not only do they annually offer free tickets, with a special Patriots Outpost hospitality center, the flyover and stop down on the tourney’s final day to honor veterans is both appropriately humbling and gratifying.
It’s also another reason why Sunday at Colonial is so special. But then, any day at this tournament is fantastic.
All that’s by way of saying thanks for the memories, and now here’s a nod to the new ones to come.
Fans attending this year’s tournament saw the Colonial course one last time in its present shape. While it’s hard to imagine it being any better, the layout will be new and improved when the tournament returns in 2024.
The golf course is undergoing a $21 million renovation and will be closed for almost an entire year, returning in its new and full glory in time for next year’s Charles Schwab Challenge.
Highlights will include new bunkers, tees, and greens, along with a more modern irrigation system.
The greens, while they will still feature the Bentgrass that Colonial is famous for, will have a new underground cooling and heating system.
“Jim Nantz and the CBS crew talked a lot about the course renovation and Colonial history during the broadcast, which was a nice way to say goodbye to the current course and usher in a new era for Colonial and the tournament,” Tothe said.
I’m glad I got to play the old course a few years ago in a media tournament. Here’s hoping I get a chance to try the new one.
And you can bet I’ll be there on final-round Sunday again next year with my buddy Mark and also Stephen, who said he wouldn’t miss it for the world.
Thanks, Schwab, for keeping one of Fort Worth’s most special events well, special.
Rick Mauch writes regularly for the Fort Worth Business Press, covering a wide array of topics including business, sports and entertainment.