POTOMAC — PGA Tour golf returns to the nation’s capital this week for the first time in four years as the Wells Fargo Championship makes a unique appearance at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm.
The tournament, which normally takes place at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, was bumped as that course gets ready to host the Presidents Cup this September.
The National tournament, hosted by Tiger Woods, was held in the D.C. area both at Avenel Farm and at nearby Congressional Country Club up until 2018. The tournament had struggles in its final years securing a long-term sponsor and was rebranded and moved to Detroit in 2019.
But for one week, this course that’s no stranger to PGA Tour golf is back in the spotlight, and its tough, rolling hills are ready for their closeup.
“The course is in unbelievable shape … it’s a hard golf course, there’s not many let-up holes out there,” said Rockville native and University of Virginia graduate Denny McCarthy, who has two top 10 finishes on tour this season.
The par-70 course is set up at 7,160 yards for Wells Fargo. If that lower-than-typical par doesn’t communicate the difficulty enough, then the 3-inch Kentucky Bluegrass rough, 80 bunkers and only two par-5 holes may.
“You’re going to have to hit the ball in the fairway, the rough is up in some spots,” McCarthy said. “It’s just a good, hard golf course. You’ve got to take on a lot of shots, and there’s not much bailout.”
Defending champion and three-time Wells Fargo winner Rory McIlroy enters as the favorite, though with one important notation: He’s never played Avenel Farm in a tournament before. Someone who has played — and dominated — the Potomac loop is Francesco Molinari. The Italian won the 2018 National here, shooting 21-under par and tying a course record with a 62 in the final round to win by 8 strokes.
Both will be playing in their first tournaments since the Masters and will tee off together in the first round at 7:34 a.m. Thursday, along with Webb Simpson. The three are among 11 former major champions in the field, including Americans Patrick Reed, Gary Woodland, Zach Johnson and Keegan Bradley.
Other notables in the field include Tony Finau, who finished runner-up in last week’s Mexico Open, and Ricky Fowler, who’s missed the cut in five of his eight starts this year.
Cloudy and wet conditions are forecast for the balance of the week, as the Washington area still can’t kick the rain and cooler temperatures that have permeated the region over the last month.
Rain is expected Tuesday night into Wednesday. Thursday’s first round should have some of those clouds and storm chances carry over with highs in the low 70s per AccuWeather.
Temperatures are then expected to plummet into the low 60s as a low-pressure front moves in for the second round. Rain chances on Friday currently hover around 90% with even colder temperatures in store for the weekend.
• George Gerbo can be reached at ggerbo@washingtontimes.com.
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