Nedbank Golf Challenge

Nedbank Golf Challenge
Tournament information
Location	Sun City, South Africa
Established	1981
Course(s)	Gary Player Country Club
Par	72
Length	7,834 yards (7,163 m)
Tour(s)	European Tour ; Sunshine Tour
Format	Stroke play
Prize fund	US$6,000,000
Month played	December
Tournament record score
Aggregate	263 Ernie Els (1999)
To par	−25 as above
Current champion
	Johannes Veerman
Location map
	Gary Player CC Location in South Africa Gary Player CC Location in North West

Last updated December 14, 2024

The Nedbank Golf Challenge, previously known as the Million Dollar Challenge, is an annual men's professional golf tournament played at the Gary Player Country Club in Sun City, North West province, South Africa. It was first played in 1981 and takes place towards the end of the year, in November or December.

For many years the tournament was a small-field invitational stroke play event with typically 12 players competing. Since it became a European Tour event in 2013, the field size has increased, to 30 from 2013 to 2015 and to 72 in 2016. Originally it was not an official event for any of the major tours.

From 2010 to 2012, a separate tournament for senior golfers was held concurrently.

History

The first tournament was played from 31 December 1981 to 4 January 1982 with a field of 5: Seve Ballesteros, Johnny Miller, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Lee Trevino. Ballesteros and Miller tied on 277 with Nicklaus a stroke behind after he missed a putt at the final hole. Miller beat Ballesteros at the ninth hole of a sudden-death playoff. The pair played the 16th to 18th holes three times before Ballesteros three-putted. Miller won $500,000 out of total prize money of $1,000,000.^[1]

The date was moved to early December 1982 for the second tournament, with 10 players competing. Total prize money remained at $1,000,000 with $300,000 for the winner and $50,000 for the 10th player. There was another playoff, with Raymond Floyd beating Craig Stadler at the fourth extra hole.^[2] The format remained unchanged from 1983 to 1986 with the event played in early December each year.

The 1987 event introduced a winner-take-all $1,000,000 first prize, although there were additional prizes for the lowest round each day. The field was reduced to 8 players. Ian Woosnam won by 4 strokes and took the first million dollar prize in golf.^[3] The winner-take-all idea was dropped for 1988, although the first prize remained as $1,000,000. The format remained largely unchanged through 1999, with the first prize always $1,000,000, although the field increased from 8 to 10 in 1989 and to 12 from 1993. There were two playoffs during this period. In 1996 Colin Montgomerie beat Ernie Els with a birdie at the third extra hole, while in 1998 Nick Price beat Tiger Woods with a birdie at the fifth extra hole.

In 2006, the tournament carried World Rankings points for the first time since 1999.^[4] In 2013 it was expanded to 30 players: the defending tournament champion; the top 10 PGA Tour FedEx Cup players, the top 10 European Tour Race to Dubai players; the Sunshine Tour, Asian Tour, Japan Golf Tour and PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit winners; the Alfred Dunhill Championship winner; and the top 5 South African players in the World Rankings.

From 2000 to 2002 the first prize was increased to US$2 million, but the following year the winner's share of the total prize fund was reduced from more than half to around 30%. The standard winner's share on the PGA Tour is 18% and on the European Tour it is 16.67%. In 2006 the winner received $1.2 million out of a total purse of US$4.385 million, so the prize distribution is now not far from the normal pattern for a professional tournament, once allowance is made for the small size of the field. That US$2 million first prize remained the largest in professional golf, but was matched in 2011 by the Lake Malaren Shanghai Masters.

The 2016 event was part of the European Tour Final Series, replacing the BMW Masters, while in 2017 the event was part of the new Rolex Series. Since 2016, the field of 72 consists of the top 64 available players from the current year Race to Dubai standings, the defending champion, the winner of the Sunshine Tour order of merit from previous year, and tournament invitations.

Winners

	European Tour (Rolex Series)	2017–2019
	European Tour (Race to Dubai finals series)	2016
	European Tour (Regular)	2013–2015, 2022–
	Sunshine Tour	2006–2012
	Unofficial event	1981–2005

#	Year	Tour(s)^[a]	Winner	Score	To par	Margin of victory	Runner(s)-up	Purse ($)	Winner's share ($)
Nedbank Golf Challenge
42nd	2024	AFR, EUR	Johannes Veerman	283	−5	1 stroke	Matthew Jordan Romain Langasque Aldrich Potgieter	6,000,000	1,020,000
41st	2023	EUR	Max Homa	269	−19	4 strokes	Nicolai Højgaard	6,000,000	1,020,000
40th	2022	AFR,^[b] EUR	Tommy Fleetwood (2)	277	−11	1 stroke	Ryan Fox	6,000,000	1,020,000
–	2021	AFR, EUR	Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic ^[5]^[6]
–	2020	AFR, EUR	Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic ^[5]^[6]
39th	2019	AFR, EUR	Tommy Fleetwood	276	−12	Playoff	Marcus Kinhult	7,500,000	2,500,000
38th	2018	EUR	Lee Westwood (3)	273	−15	3 strokes	Sergio García	7,500,000	1,250,000
37th	2017	EUR	Branden Grace	277	−11	1 stroke	Scott Jamieson	7,500,000	1,166,660
36th	2016	EUR	Alex Norén	274	−14	6 strokes	Wang Jeung-hun	7,000,000	1,166,660
35th	2015	AFR, EUR	Marc Leishman	269	−19	6 strokes	Henrik Stenson	6,500,000	1,250,000
34th	2014	AFR, EUR	Danny Willett	270	−18	4 strokes	Ross Fisher	6,500,000	1,250,000
33rd	2013	AFR, EUR	Thomas Bjørn	268	−20	2 strokes	Jamie Donaldson Sergio García	6,500,000	1,250,000
32nd	2012	AFR	Martin Kaymer	280	−8	2 strokes	Charl Schwartzel	5,000,000	1,250,000
31st	2011	AFR	Lee Westwood (2)	273	−15	2 strokes	Robert Karlsson	5,000,000	1,250,000
30th	2010	AFR	Lee Westwood	271	−17	8 strokes	Tim Clark	5,000,000	1,250,000
29th	2009	AFR	Robert Allenby	277	−11	Playoff	Henrik Stenson	4,385,000	1,200,000
28th	2008	AFR	Henrik Stenson	267	−21	9 strokes	Kenny Perry	4,385,000	1,200,000
27th	2007	AFR	Trevor Immelman	272	−16	1 stroke	Justin Rose	4,385,000	1,200,000
26th	2006	AFR	Jim Furyk (2)	276	−12	2 strokes	Henrik Stenson	4,385,000	1,200,000
25th	2005		Jim Furyk	282	−6	Playoff	Darren Clarke Retief Goosen Adam Scott	4,060,000	1,200,000
24th	2004		Retief Goosen	281	−7	6 strokes	Stuart Appleby Ernie Els	4,060,000	1,200,000
23rd	2003		Sergio García (2)	274	−14	Playoff	Retief Goosen	4,060,000	1,200,000
22nd	2002		Ernie Els (3)	267	−21	8 strokes	Colin Montgomerie	4,060,000	2,000,000
21st	2001		Sergio García	268	−20	Playoff	Ernie Els	4,060,000	2,000,000
20th	2000		Ernie Els (2)	268	−20	Playoff	Lee Westwood	4,060,000	2,000,000
Nedbank Million Dollar Challenge
19th	1999		Ernie Els	263	−25	5 strokes	Colin Montgomerie	2,500,000	1,000,000
18th	1998		Nick Price (3)	273	−15	Playoff	Tiger Woods	2,500,000	1,000,000
17th	1997		Nick Price (2)	275	−13	1 stroke	Ernie Els Davis Love III	2,500,000	1,000,000
16th	1996		Colin Montgomerie	274	−14	Playoff	Ernie Els	2,500,000	1,000,000
15th	1995		Corey Pavin	276	−12	5 strokes	Nick Price	2,500,000	1,000,000
14th	1994		Nick Faldo	272	−16	3 strokes	Nick Price	2,500,000	1,000,000
13th	1993		Nick Price	264	−24	12 strokes	Mark McNulty	2,500,000	1,000,000
12th	1992		David Frost (3)	276	−12	4 strokes	John Cook	2,500,000	1,000,000
11th	1991		Bernhard Langer (2)	272	−16	5 strokes	Mark Calcavecchia	2,500,000	1,000,000
10th	1990		David Frost (2)	284	−4	1 stroke	José María Olazábal	2,500,000	1,000,000
9th	1989		David Frost	276	−12	3 strokes	Scott Hoch	2,500,000	1,000,000
8th	1988		Fulton Allem	278	−10	1 stroke	Don Pooley	1,500,000	1,000,000
7th	1987		Ian Woosnam	274	−14	4 strokes	Nick Faldo	1,000,000	1,000,000
6th	1986		Mark McNulty	282	−6	3 strokes	Lanny Wadkins	1,000,000	300,000
5th	1985		Bernhard Langer	278	−10	2 strokes	Lanny Wadkins	1,000,000	300,000
4th	1984		Seve Ballesteros (2)	279	−9	6 strokes	Nick Faldo	1,000,000	300,000
3rd	1983		Seve Ballesteros	274	−14	5 strokes	Nick Faldo David Graham Fuzzy Zoeller	1,000,000	300,000
2nd	1982		Raymond Floyd	280	−8	Playoff	Craig Stadler	1,000,000	300,000
1st^[c]	1981		Johnny Miller	277	−11	Playoff	Seve Ballesteros	1,000,000	500,000

Notes

↑ AFR − Sunshine Tour; EUR − European Tour.
↑ In 2022 the event was sanctioned by the Sunshine Tour, however it was an unofficial money event; therefore the win is considered unofficial on that tour.
↑ The 1981 event was played from 31 December 1981 to 3 January 1982.

Related Research Articles

Jack William Nicklaus, nicknamed "the Golden Bear", is an American retired professional golfer and golf course designer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest golfers of all time. He won 117 professional tournaments in his career. Over a quarter-century, he won a record 18 major championships, three more than second-placed Tiger Woods. Nicklaus focused on the major championships—the Masters Tournament, U.S. Open, Open Championship and PGA Championship—and played a selective schedule of regular PGA Tour events. He competed in 164 major tournaments, more than any other player, and finished with 73 PGA Tour victories, third behind Sam Snead (82) and Woods (82).

Thomas Sturges Watson is an American retired professional golfer on the PGA Tour Champions, formerly on the PGA Tour.

John Laurence Miller is an American former professional golfer. He was one of the top players in the world during the mid-1970s. He was the first to shoot 63 in a major championship to win the 1973 U.S. Open, and he ranked second in the world on Mark McCormack's world golf rankings in both 1974 and 1975 behind Jack Nicklaus. Miller won 25 PGA Tour events, including two majors. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1998. He was the lead golf analyst for NBC Sports, a position he held from January 1990 to February 2019. He is also an active golf course architect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Memorial Tournament</span> Golf tournament held in Columbus, Ohio, United States

The Memorial Tournament is a PGA Tour golf tournament founded in 1976 by Jack Nicklaus. It is played on a Nicklaus-designed course at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, a suburb north of Columbus. The golf course passes through a large neighborhood called Muirfield Village, which includes a 1999 bronze sculpture of Nicklaus mentoring a young golfer located in the wide median of Muirfield Drive.

Anthony Jacklin CBE is an English golfer. He was the most successful British player of his generation, winning two major championships, the 1969 Open Championship and the 1970 U.S. Open. He was also Ryder Cup captain from 1983 to 1989; Europe winning two and tying another of these four events.

The World Series of Golf was a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, played at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio. From its inception in 1962 through 1975, it was an unofficial 36-hole event matching the winners of the four major championships. In 1976 it became an official PGA Tour event; the field expanded to 20 players and the event was lengthened to 72 holes. the victory and $100,000 winner's share went to Nicklaus. The field was increased to over 40 players in 1983, though it never exceeded 50; NEC began sponsoring the event in 1984.

The World Cup of Golf is a men's golf tournament contested by teams of two representing their country. Only one team is allowed from each country. The players are selected on the basis of the Official World Golf Ranking, although not all of the first choice players choose to compete. The equivalent event for women was the Women's World Cup of Golf, played from 2005 to 2008.

The Players Championship is an annual golf tournament on the PGA Tour. Originally known as the Tournament Players Championship, it began in 1974. The Players Championship at one point offered the highest purse of any tournament in golf. The field usually includes the top 50 players in the world rankings, but, unlike the major championships, it is owned by the PGA Tour and not an official event on other tours.

The Sentry is the calendar-year opening tournament of golf's PGA Tour season, played in Hawaii on the island of Maui. The tournament was founded in 1953; for most of its history the field was restricted to golfers who won a tournament on the tour during the previous calendar year, but players who qualified for the preceding Tour Championship are now invited as well. From 1986 through 2013, it was the opening event of each tour season; the PGA Tour switched to its wrap-around season in the fall of 2013. In 2022, Cameron Smith shot the lowest 72 hole to-par score in the history of the PGA Tour (−34) to win the tournament.

The Cognizant Classic is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour in south Florida. It was founded in 1972 as Jackie Gleason's Inverrary Classic, and prior to a schedule change in 2021 was frequently the first of the Florida events in late winter following the "West Coast Swing."

The Desert Classic is a professional golf tournament in southern California on the PGA Tour. Played in mid-winter in the Coachella Valley, it is part of the tour's early season "West Coast Swing."

The following is a partial timeline of the history of golf.

Billy Charles Coody is an American professional golfer, best known for winning the 1971 Masters Tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1986 Masters Tournament</span> Golf tournament held in 1986

The 1986 Masters Tournament was the 50th Masters Tournament, held April 10–13 at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia.

The Piccadilly Medal was a men's professional golf tournament on the British PGA tournament circuit that was played in 1962 and from 1964 to 1976. Since the circuit later evolved into the European Tour, the tournament is recognised as an official European Tour event from 1972. It was played in a variety of formats. From 1962 to 1967 it was a 72-hole stroke-play event, in 1968 it was a four-ball better-ball match play event, from 1969 to 1975 it was a knockout stroke-play event while in 1976 it reverted to the 72-hole stroke-play format. From 1964 to 1968 the event was played on the East course at Wentworth, just before the Piccadilly World Match Play Championship which was played on the West Course there. Carreras withdrew their golf sponsorship after the 1976 season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1980 Masters Tournament</span> Golf tournament

The 1980 Masters Tournament was the 44th Masters Tournament, held April 10–13 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1983 Masters Tournament</span> Golf tournament

The 1983 Masters Tournament was the 47th Masters Tournament, held April 7–11 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. Seve Ballesteros won his second Masters and third major title, four strokes ahead of runners-up Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite. Play on Friday was postponed due to heavy rain, and the final round was completed on Monday for the first time since 1973.

This article summarizes the highlights of professional and amateur golf in the year 2009.

Branden John Grace is a professional golfer from South Africa who currently plays for LIV Golf. He formerly played on the European Tour, the PGA Tour, and the Sunshine Tour. In 2012, he became the first player in the history of the European Tour to win his first four European Tour titles in the same year.

Thomas Paul Fleetwood is an English professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and European Tour. He has won seven times on the European Tour. He won the silver medal for Great Britain, at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.

References

↑ "Floyd wins Sun City play-off". The Glasgow Herald . 4 January 1982. p. 14. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
↑ "Miller's rich reward". The Glasgow Herald . 6 December 1982. p. 16. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
↑ "Wizard Woosie scoops million dollar jackpot". The Glasgow Herald . 7 December 1987. p. 9. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
↑ "World Rankings are refined, but still confusing". Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 13 March 2008.
↑ "Nedbank Golf Challenge cancelled for second year in a row". News24. 26 July 2021. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
↑ "2020 Nedbank Golf Challenge Cancelled". PGA European Tour. 28 August 2020. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2020.

External links

25°20′20″S27°06′22″E / 25.339°S 27.106°E / -25.339; 27.106

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[5] AFR − Sunshine Tour; EUR − European Tour.

[unofficialafr-6] In 2022 the event was sanctioned by the Sunshine Tour, however it was an unofficial money event; therefore the win is considered unofficial on that tour.

[9] The 1981 event was played from 31 December 1981 to 3 January 1982.

[gh1981-1] "Floyd wins Sun City play-off". The Glasgow Herald . 4 January 1982. p. 14. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2017.

[gh1982-2] "Miller's rich reward". The Glasgow Herald . 6 December 1982. p. 16. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2017.

[gh1987-3] "Wizard Woosie scoops million dollar jackpot". The Glasgow Herald . 7 December 1987. p. 9. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2017.

[4] "World Rankings are refined, but still confusing". Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 13 March 2008.

[7] "Nedbank Golf Challenge cancelled for second year in a row". News24. 26 July 2021. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2021.

[8] "2020 Nedbank Golf Challenge Cancelled". PGA European Tour. 28 August 2020. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2020.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[a]

[b]

[5]

[6]

[c]

v t e European Tour events
Major championships	Masters Tournament PGA Championship U.S. Open The Open Championship
Rolex Series	Hero Dubai Desert Classic Genesis Scottish Open (P) BMW PGA Championship Abu Dhabi Championship DP World Tour Championship
Other Race to Dubai tournaments	BMW Australian PGA Championship (A) ISPS Handa Australian Open (A) Nedbank Golf Challenge (S) Alfred Dunhill Championship (S) AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open (S) Ras Al Khaimah Championship Bahrain Championship TBC (Middle East) Magical Kenya Open Investec South African Open Championship (S) Joburg Open (S) Porsche Singapore Classic Hero Indian Open (I) Volvo China Open (C) TBC (Asia) Turkish Open Soudal Open Austrian Alpine Open KLM Open Italian Open BMW International Open ISCO Championship (P) Barracuda Championship (P) TBC (Europe) Danish Golf Championship Betfred British Masters Omega European Masters Amgen Irish Open FedEx Open de France Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Acciona Open de España TBC (Europe) Genesis Championship (K)
Team events	Ryder Cup Team Cup
Other	European Tour Qualifying School J. P. McManus Pro-Am Olympic Games Former events
(A) – co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour of Australasia; (C) – co-sanctioned by the China Tour; (I) – co-sanctioned by the Professional Golf Tour of India; (J) – co-sanctioned by the Japan Golf Tour; (K) – co-sanctioned by the Korean Tour; (P) - co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour; (S) - co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Tour.