Web.com Tour event coming to The Landings in March 2018

SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) - When the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf left Savannah four years ago, most local golf fans expected and certainly hoped the city would get professional golf back.

While the players who will be coming to The Landings won't be as well-known as those on the Champions Tour, they will be playing at a high as level as you will find outside of the PGA Tour.

The Web.com Tour is the competitive equivalent of Triple-A baseball. It has become a feeder system for the PGA Tour with 75 percent of the players on the big tour having played the Web.com. With alumni including Ernie Els, Jim Furyk, Matt Kuchar and Bubba Watson, in addition to 2017 RBC Heritage champion Wesley Bryant, the tour has been producing champions for numerous years.

So, when it comes to the players who will compete in the Savannah Golf Championship next March, if you don't know them now, you'll be able to say you knew them when.

"I can assure you when you come out next spring and watch these guys play, they will go on to win on the PGA Tour. They will become the next stars on the PGA Tour. And when you look at how this tour performs relative to professional golf, we see 22 major champions who have played on this tour, seven players who have won The Players Championship and this is what you see from the players who will be on this golf course with you," Web.com Tour President Dan Glod said.

The Web.com tournament will be played on The Landings Deer Creek course and will be open to the public, although this is a private club. With the event coming the week before The Masters, this event could become Savannah's new kickoff to the golf season.

Glod cited the Savannah Golf Community and its support of the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf as one of the draws to bring the Web.com Tour here. With Savannah Mayor Eddie DeLoach and Chamber of Commerce President Bill Hubbard taking part in the ceremony, this is clearly being planned as an event for the entire Savannah community as well as The Landings.

"Well, you get about 150 golfers, then you get all the people who follow them, you get their families. It's not as big as the regular your, but it is a definite economic impact. Of course, it's a wonderful thing to get to do out here at The Landings, so it will be very good and exciting for the community and it's really nice to be able to spread our visitors out throughout the community rather than have it all congested in the downtown area, so it's an exciting time," Hubbard said.

Several local players have some status on the Web.com Tour, most prominently Savannah native Mark Silvers. Although former Georgia Southern golfer Blake Adams finished 10th in last week's Web.com event.

So, that could heighten the local connection to the Savannah Golf Championship.

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