now happening at c spire

Features 19 PGA TOUR Champions major winners and five World Golf Hall of Famers

Biloxi, Miss. (March 18,2016) – The field for the 2016 Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic reads like a “who’s who” of professional golf with 75 players scheduled to compete for the $1.6 million purse in the PGA Tour Champions event scheduled from April 1-April 3 at the Tom Fazio-designed course in Saucier.

Five World Golf Hall of Famers, 19 PGA TOUR Champions Tour major winners and 11 PGA TOUR major championship winners will be featured in the three-day, 54-hole tournament – making this year one of the strongest fields ever, according to tournament officials who released the final field of players on Friday.

2015 MGRC champion David Frost will defend his title against some of the best players in the world, including former champions Jeff Maggert, Michael Allen and Fred Couples. Couples is joined in the field by fellow World Golf Hall of Fame members Tom Kite, Bernhard Langer, Colin Montgomerie and Larry Nelson. The 19 PGA TOUR Champions major winners account for 37 major wins on tour.

The field, which features 27 of the Top 30 on the current Charles Schwab Cup money list, also includes sponsor exemptions Roger Chapman, Mike Goodes, Blaine McCallister, Gary Hallberg and Grant Waite.

Chapman is a two-time PGA TOUR Champions major winner. The Englishman was victorious at both the 2012 U.S. Senior Open and the 2012 Senior PGA Championship. He made his debut in 2009 and began playing a full schedule in 2013.

Goodes, a North Carolina product who graduated from Chapel Hill, turned professional in 2007. He won the 2009 Allianz Championship and is also a two-time North Carolina State Amateur Champion, winning in 1989 and again in 2006.

McCallister, a Fort Stockton, Texas native, has recorded five career PGA TOUR victories. A professional since 1981, he attended the University of Houston, where he was a roommate of Fred Couples and Jim Nantz.

Hallberg was the 1979 NCAA individual champion while attending Wake Forest University. The Illinois product has nine career victories overall. He also started the Saturday Series Pro-Am held in conjunction with TOUR events.

New Zealand’s Waite, who graduated from Oklahoma, has three career victories overall. Also an instructor with several pros in his stable, he played on the New Zealand junior soccer team.

The Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic, which is presented by C Spire, is scheduled for March 31 - April 3 at Fallen Oak in Biloxi. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online at http://www.2016MGRC.com or by calling the tournament office at 228.896.6365. Children 16 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult.

The final field includes Allen, Billy Andrade, Tommy Armour III, Woody Austin, Jay Don Blake, Mark Brooks, Olin Browne, Bart Bryant, Tom Byrum, Mark Calcavecchia, Chapman, Jose Coceres, Russ Cochran, John Cook, Couples, Marco Dawson, Glen Day, Scott Dunlap, Brad Faxon, Dan Forsman, Carlos Franco, Frost, Fred Funk, Doug Garwood, Bob Gilder, Goodes, Paul Goydos, Mike Grob, Jay Haas, Hallberg, Todd Hamilton, Scott Hoch, John Huston, Lee Janzen, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Brandt Jobe, Kite, Langer, Steve Lowery, Jeff Maggert, McCallister, Scott McCarron, Rocco Mediate, Montgomerie, Nelson, Jesper Parnevik, Craig Parry, Steve Pate, Corey Pavin, Tom Pernice Jr., Kenny Perry, Tom Purtzer, Loren Roberts, Gene Sauers, Peter Senior, Wes Short Jr., Scott Simpson, Joey Sindelar, Jeff Sluman, Jerry Smith, Rod Spittle, Mike Springer, Kevin Sutherland, Jim Thorpe, Esteban Toledo, Kirk Triplett, Bob Tway, Scott Verplank, Bobby Wadkins, Waite, Duffy Waldorf, Mark Wiebe and Willie Wood.

ABOUT THE MISSISSIPPI GULF RESORT CLASSIC
In addition to C Spire as the tournament’s presenting sponsor, the Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic is uniquely funded by a group of 11 consortium partners who view this event as an ideal way to promote the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The 2016 consortium partners include C Spire, Mississippi Power, Beau Rivage Hotel & Resort-Fallen Oak, IP Resort & Spa, F.E.B. Distributing, Habitat for Humanity, Hard Rock Biloxi, Harrah’s Gulf Coast, Hancock Bank, Hollywood Gulf Coast/Boomtown, Coca-Cola and Roy Anderson Corp. The tournament is administered through the MGRC Foundation, Inc. Proceeds from the tournament benefit Habitat for Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

ABOUT HABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF THE MISSISSIPPI GULF COAST
Habitat for Humanity of the Mississippi Gulf Coast was formed in January 2007 when Harrison County HFH and HFH of Jackson County merged organizations. Since then, HFHMGC has incorporated Stone County into its service area and has constructed or repaired more than 898 homes. HFHMGC works in partnership with community stakeholders to create innovative, sustainable housing solutions by empowering all members of our community to actively participate in creating opportunity for people to transform their own lives. To learn more, visit www.hfhmgc.org.

ABOUT PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
PGA TOUR Champions has the most recognizable and accomplished players in the game, with many of its 34 members in the World Golf Hall of Fame competing regularly in its events. The Tour also counts numerous other major championship winners among its members. PGA TOUR Champions is where Legends play. PGA TOUR Champions is a membership organization of professional golfers age 50 and older. Conceived in 1980 as the Senior PGA Tour, it started with just four events and purses totaling $475,000. PGA TOUR Champions primary purpose is to provide financial opportunities for its players, entertain and inspire its fans, deliver substantial value to its partners, create outlets for volunteers to give back, protect the integrity of the game and generate significant charitable and economic impact in communities in which it plays. Points earned in official Charles Schwab Cup events in 2015 determined Bernhard Langer as the Charles Schwab Cup champion. In 2016, the newly-introduced Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs will identify and recognize the Tour’s leading player. The Commissioner of the PGA TOUR is Tim Finchem. Greg McLaughlin is President of PGA TOUR Champions. The PGA TOUR’s website is pgatour.com, the No. 1 site in golf, and the organization is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Follow the PGA TOUR Champions at facebook.com/ChampionsTour and on Twitter @ChampionsTour.

ABOUT BRUNO EVENT TEAM
Bruno Event Team is the largest dedicated sports event management company in the country. Bruno Event Team is experienced in all facets of event management, employing a year-round staff of 80+ employees in 13 offices around the United States and Canada. Bruno Event Team services each client with expertise in strategic planning, marketing, advertising, public and media relations, ticket and merchandise sales, sponsor relations, hospitality consulting, event operations, event financial planning/accounting and volunteer coordination. For more information, please visit www.brunoeventteam.com.