Return of the PGA to Indiana - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

Return of the PGA to Indiana

Posted: Updated:
CARMEL -

Lines of people were met with lines of buses in Carmel as golf fans made their way to the final day of the BMW Championship.

"I parked five minutes ago so piece of cake. It will be a great day for golf in Indiana" said Bob Nice as he boarded one of the shuttles.

Joyce Hubbard has been here all weekend from Evansville. She said Sunday was a much better experience than Saturday, "It's wonderful, wonderful compared to yesterday" she said.

On Saturday Chaos and confusion created long waits and frustration

Fridays rain made it too muddy to park cars at Cox Hall Gardens so a last minute change sent fans to a paved lot about three miles away instead. To make matters worse, tournament play was pushed back several hours to dry out the course.

"I waited about an hour and a half, the line went a block then finally the busses came in" said Bill Spaulding who was heading out for his second day of the tournament.

"I think part of the problem was people were really eagar to get here you know our gates didn't open until 10 and people started showing up a lot earlier than expected which kind of clogged up our parking situation for awhile" said Vince Pellegrino, vice president of the Western Golf Association.

Despite the issues Saturday and the wet weather, golf starved Indianapolis proved they have an appetite for the major players of the game.

Phil Tinsley hoped to witness some history unfold at Crooked Stick.

"Tiger, absolutely by far Tiger Woods want to see him back in his prime, by far" Tinsley said.

With what is being called a successful week at Crooked Stick with higher than expected crowds leaving many wondering will the tournament return?

Pellegrino said they would love to come back, "This is a challenging golf course. I think the weather softened it up a bit which is really out of our control but it's in perfect shape out there."

"This one I think will top all BMW Western opens in terms of attendance. The Hoosiers know how to take care of the crowds that come in and the people" said Daniel Carmichael who attended the final round with his grandson.

Vince Pellegrino, vice president of the western Golf Association says hoosier hospitality coupled with an ideal course make a return possible.

Indiana lovers of the game hope it wont be another 21 years before the pros tee off here again.

Powered by WorldNow
Links to the FCC website to view WTHR and/or WALV’s on-line public inspection files:
WTHR: https://stations.fcc.gov/station-profile/WTHR   ||   WALV: https://stations.fcc.gov/station-profile/WALV
Individuals with disabilities may contact Jill Pursell at publicfile@wthr.com, or 317.655.5602, for assistance with access to the public inspection files.
Powered by WorldNowAll content © Copyright 2000 - 2013 WorldNow and WTHR. For more information on this site, please read our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.