TRAVEL GUIDE

Wisconsin Travel and Greater Milwaukee Open

Golf is the sport that used to be seen as an older sport but has recently enjoyed renewed popularity. With professional golfers such as Tiger Woods creating a more youthful following around the world, especially in North America, the sport's audience base has increased significantly and events such as PGA Tour have attracted new viewers.

The Greater Milwaukee Open is part of the PGA Tour that happens every year. PGA Tour is a tax-exempt membership group of professional golfers and it is the organization that operates the United States' main professional golf tours for men. The mission of the PGA Tour is to expand domestically and internationally to increase the financial benefits for the players while maintaining its commitment to the integrity of the game. To be eligible to play, each PGA Tour player has earned a position on the priority ranking system that will be used to select full-field open tournaments. In 2005, PGA Tour has 48 official events, offering more than $250 million in prize money. PGA Tour events also raise revenue for charitable causes in the communities they visited.

The PGA Tour travels to different city and holds tournaments for professional golfers, attracting many audiences to travel across states and the country, and in this case, part of their Wisconsin travels for the Great Milwaukee Open. The more well-known golfers playing at a certain tournament, the bigger the attraction from golfing fans everywhere. There are four major championships: Masters Tournament, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship but every PGA Tour event is a big occasion. With the Great Milwaukee Open is the only PGA Tour event in Wisconsin, it always draw many people to make it part of their Wisconsin travel to Milwaukee to watch the professional golfers.

PGA Tour is not just all about the tournaments and watching the professional golfers swing their best game. The PGA Tour gives back to the community they travel to and played in. The tournament supports an array of organization and charities by donating money that in turn help individuals in the local communities. The U.S. Bank Championship, also known as Greater Milwaukee Open in Wisconsin has donated a record amount of $600,300 to various charitable causes and organizations in 2004.

Brown Deer Park Golf Course in Milwaukee Wisconsin is currently home to the PGA Tour's Great Milwaukee Open, also known as the U.S. Bank Championship. Brown Deer Park Golf Course is part of the Milwaukee County Park System which includes 15 other golf courses and numerous other recreational facilities. A well-run and well-maintained public course, many Wisconsinites consider it as a jewel in the Milwaukee Park System courses and include Brown Deer Park Golf Course as a stop in their Wisconsin travels. The length of the course is moderate but the difficulty is considered high with Blue Tee Rating of 72.6, Slope 132 and White Tee Rating of 72.0, Slope 129. Cost is considered as high for a publicly owned course but not unreasonable for a PGA tour course. Despite the higher cost compared to other public owned courses, out-of-town keen golfers will make it part of their Wisconsin travels to Milwaukee for the chance to have a swing in a PGA tour course.

The Brown Deer Park is a traditional golf course featuring sand bunkers that come into play on nearly every hole. The course is not particularly long, so most holes are playable for the average golfer. The greens tend to be faster than most public courses but nothing too tricky. There is enough difficulty for the average golfer, but not so impossible that leaves you frustrated. So if you are a golf lover and love to try a swing at a PGA tour course, the Brown Deer Park, home of the Greater Milwaukee Open is a good place to start. For your future Wisconsin travels, be sure to plan it in time to catch the PGA Tour!