Golfers are flooding onto the grounds of the Country Club of Jackson as the Sanderson Farms Championship is underway once again.
The tournament, which is Mississippi’s lone PGA Tour event, began Monday morning with the pro-am portion teeing off at 8 a.m. Two more pro-am rounds will take place on Wednesday, one for adults and another for youth, before the hopeful moneymakers hit the course on Thursday.
Over the last decade, the purse at the Sanderson Farms Championship has grown into one of the Tour’s most competitive. Rivaling the Farmers Insurance Open and The Honda Classic for the fall’s largest purse, this year’s prize money in Jackson is $7.6 million, with the winner taking home a check of $1.368 million. Proceeds from the event go to various charities across Mississippi, with Children’s of Mississippi being the forefront grantee.
Looking to repeat as winner will be Luke List, who drained a putt from distance to win in a playoff in 2023. List will be joined by former champions Mackenzie Hughes, Cameron Champ, Ryan Armour, Cody Gribble, and Peter Malnati.
Other notables in the field include Rickie Fowler, Zach Johnson, Gary Woodland, Webb Simpson, Harris English, S.H. Kim, Keith Mitchell, Stephan Jaeger, Adam Schenk, Ben Griffin, and Joe Dahmen. All four Mississippians currently on the Tour will also be competing – Hayden Buckley, Davis Riley, Wilson Furr, and Chad Ramey.
Steve Jent, executive director of the Sanderson Farms Championship, believes this year’s field could be the strongest since the tournament was founded in 1968. He said the reason behind the collective group of talent is players love making an easy trip to Jackson.
“I always talk about that it’s 132 of the best players from around the world, but where they are from a category standpoint in terms of strength of field for us, it’s really good,” Jent said. “These guys travel from all over the country, too.
“We’re really easy. It’s a great city. It’s a great area. We’ve got great restaurants and great hotels. It’s easy to move around. And so, we’re kind of a favorite for players in the fall if they can make it. It’s just a convenient tournament. We treat them well, and they love the food.”
As for course conditions at the Country Club of Jackson, Mississippi avoided impacts from Hurricane Helene as it ravaged other Southeastern states. As other tropical development is currently being tracked, it looks like rain will hold off and the Sanderson Farms Championship will see mostly sun with some cloudage. Even if that changes, Jent touts what he calls the best greenskeepers on the PGA Tour and their ability to make the tournament happen one way or another.
“I’ve got the best superintendent on the PGA Tour and his staff in Stan Reed,” Jent said, adding that continual upkeep of the greens has made it a player-favorite course. “They’ve done a lot of work on this golf course over the years to sand-plate a lot of the landing areas, and the drainage is amazing.”
For the fans, free shuttle transportation will be available at Northpark Mall. Upon arrival, there will be a variety of activities outside of the play itself with a fan zone on the 18th hole, the Michelob Ultra deck on the 13th, and a six-hole putting course for kids.
To purchase tickets for the Sanderson Farms Championship, click here. The event will wrap up on Sunday, Oct. 6.
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