- Defending champion Nate Lashley, Brandt Snedeker and Harold Varner III share in commitments.
- Field currently includes 13 of Official World Golf Ranking’s Top 50 players.
DETROIT (June 19, 2020) – The Rocket Mortgage Classic today announced that PGA TOUR superstars Patrick Reed, Bryson DeChambeau, Rickie Fowler and Bubba Watson have reaffirmed their commitment to play in the event scheduled for July 2-5 at the historic Detroit Golf Club.
The Rocket Mortgage Classic will feature 156 of the PGA TOUR’s top players, including 13 of the Official World Golf Ranking’s top 50, competing for a purse of $7.5 million. Additional TOUR professionals joining the field for the Rocket Mortgage Classic will be announced in the coming week.
“It’s meaningful, both for the Rocket Mortgage Classic and the city of Detroit, to have the players reaffirm their commitment to playing in the event,” said Jason Langwell, the Executive Director of the Rocket Mortgage Classic. “You can really feel the excitement among the players, not only to get back to playing golf, but in their desire to participate in the meaningful Changing the Course initiative. Everyone wants to play a role in helping to end the digital divide in Detroit, and there’s a strong sentiment of this year’s Rocket Mortgage Classic demonstrating how much good sports can do for a community.”
The field of participants features fan favorites and top players, including:
- Rafa Cabrera Bello, ranked 47th in the world and a five-time winner on the European Tour.
- Cameron Champ, one of the longest hitters on the PGA TOUR, who averaged more than 317 yards per drive through the 2019 Rocket Mortgage Classic and has won an event each of the last two seasons.
- Bryson DeChambeau, the fifth player in history to win both the NCAA Division I championship and the U.S. Amateur in the same year. A five-time winner on the PGA TOUR, he is currently the 12th-ranked player in the world.
- Rickie Fowler, the world’s #29-ranked player, is a five-time PGA TOUR winner and has represented the United States at the Ryder Cup on four occasions and three times at the President’s Cup.
- Lucas Glover, the 2009 U.S. Open champion and three-time PGA TOUR winner.
- Lanto Griffin, currently No. 8 in the FedExCup standings. Griffin has enjoyed a terrific start to the 2019–20 PGA TOUR season by finishing in the top-20 at A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier, the Sanderson Farms Championship, the Safeway Open, the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and the Bermuda Championship. He earned his first PGA TOUR victory this past October at the Houston Open.
- Viktor Hovland, the former top-ranked amateur who has ascended to 56th in the Official World Golf Rankings in less than one full year as a professional. Hovland earned his first professional victory at the 2020 Puerto Rico Open.
- Sungjae Im, the 2018-2019 PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year and current FedExCup points leader who claimed his first victory earlier this season in March at The Honda Classic.
- Nate Lashley, the defending Rocket Mortgage Classic champion. Lashley got into the field last year as the third alternate after an attempt to Monday qualify, and was ranked 353rd in the world at the start of last year’s tournament. He shot 63-67-63-70 to win the 2019 Rocket Mortgage Classic, earning $1,314,000.
- Davis Love III, a PGA TOUR veteran who has owns 21 career victories, including the 1997 PGA Championship, and has represented the U.S. on six Ryder Cup teams and six President’s Cup teams.
- Graeme McDowell, a four-time PGA TOUR winner who became the first European in 40 years to win the U.S. Open in 2010 at Pebble Beach.
- Patrick Reed, the 2018 Masters champion an eight-time winner on the PGA TOUR who is currently the sixth-ranked player in the Official World Golf Ranking.
- Scottie Scheffler, the 23-year-old who was the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year.
- Charl Schwartzel, a two-time PGA TOUR winner including the 2011 Masters in which he overcame a four-stroke deficit with a round of 66, two strokes ahead of the competition to don the Green Jacket.
- Vijay Singh, the World Golf Hall of Famer and 44-time PGA TOUR winner. Among his victories are three wins at the Buick Open in Michigan and three major championships.
- Cameron Smith, a two-time PGA TOUR winner, claiming his most recent victory this past January at the Sony Open in Hawaii.
- Brandt Snedeker, who won the 2012 FedExCup with a victory in the season-ending TOUR Championship. He has nine total career PGA TOUR wins and was the 2007 Rookie of the Year.
- Harold Varner III, a fan favorite who has one PGA TOUR win, claiming the 2016 Australian PGA Championship. He was tied for second heading into the final round of the PGA Championship but fell to eventual champion Brooks Koepka.
- Bubba Watson, has 12 career wins on the PGA TOUR including wins at the 2012 and 2014 Masters tournaments.
- Danny Willett, the 2016 Masters champion became only the second Englishman to achieve the feat and the first European in 17 years to win at Augusta National.
- Aaron Wise, who claimed his first PGA TOUR win at the AT&T Byron Nelson in May 2018 on his way to earning Rookie of the Year honors that same season.
- Matthew Wolff, the 21-year-old second-year pro who earned his career victory at last July’s 3M Open.
Previously announced as sponsor exemptions are Sahith Theegala, the fourth-ranked amateur in the world, and Peter Kuest, the former BYU standout who won 10 times during his collegiate career.
As a 501(c)(3) organization, the Rocket Mortgage Classic directs its net proceeds to community partners, and in partnership with its title sponsor Rocket Mortgage, the event recently unveiled its new “Changing the Course” initiative – a multi-year campaign with a vision that every Detroit resident has access to the internet, technology and digital literacy training they deserve within five years. The COVID-19 pandemic shined a light on a number of unaddressed underlying issues in Detroit – internet accessibility being one of the most severe. The vision of “Changing the Course” is a Detroit where every resident has access to the technology, internet and digital literacy that is the baseline for education and opportunity in today’s economy.
In 2019, the Rocket Mortgage Classic raised more than $1.2 million in support of nonprofit organizations, with $1.1 million being directly invested in the city of Detroit. It also won three “Best Of” awards in its inaugural year from the PGA TOUR, including the “Fair Way Award” for its diversity and inclusion initiatives, making it the most-awarded event on the TOUR.
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About the Rocket Mortgage Classic
The Rocket Mortgage Classic made history in 2019 as the first PGA TOUR event ever held in the city of Detroit, and Nate Lashley added to the historic feel of the week by winning for the first time on the PGA TOUR and becoming the tournament’s inaugural champion. Embodying the spirit of Detroit, the week-long event featured great entertainment, cuisine and social activities on and off the course. The Rocket Mortgage Classic was the most awarded event during the 2018-19 PGA TOUR season, being recognized for “Best Special Event” (the AREA 313 Celebrity Challenge) and “Best Tournament Sales” as well as being honored with the first “Fair Way Award” for its diversity and inclusion initiatives. The Rocket Giving Fund is the primary charitable beneficiary of the tournament and will support many local charities. More information is available at RocketMortgageClassic.com and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@RocketClassic).
About Quicken Loans / Rocket Mortgage
Detroit-based Quicken Loans is the nation’s largest home mortgage lender. The company closed nearly half a trillion dollars of mortgage volume across all 50 states from 2013 through 2018. In late 2015 Quicken Loans introduced Rocket Mortgage, the first fully digital mortgage experience. Today, 98% of all home loans originated by Quicken Loans utilize Rocket Mortgage Technology.
Quicken Loans moved its headquarters to downtown Detroit in 2010. Today, Quicken Loans and its Family of Companies employ more than 17,000 full-time team members in Detroit’s urban core. The company generates loan production from web centers located in Detroit, Cleveland and Phoenix. Quicken Loans also operates a centralized loan processing facility in Detroit, as well as its San Diego-based One Reverse Mortgage unit. Quicken Loans ranked highest in the country for customer satisfaction for primary mortgage origination by J.D. Power for the past ten consecutive years, 2010 – 2019, and also ranked highest in the country for customer satisfaction among all mortgage servicers the past six consecutive years, 2014 – 2019.
Quicken Loans was once again named to FORTUNE magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list in 2019 and has been included in the magazine’s top 1/3rd of companies named to the list for the past 16 consecutive years. In addition, Essence Magazine named Quicken Loans “#1 Place to Work in the Country for African Americans.”
For more information and company news visit QuickenLoans.com/press-room.
