For More Media Information:
JHenker@zimmerman.com
San Francisco Recreation and
Park Department
RPDcommunications@sfgov.org
SAN FRANCISCO – May 6, 2021 – TPC Harding Park, the only city-owned public course managed by the PGA TOUR, announces the renovation completion of its practice facility which began in November 2020, along with the new addition of Toptracer Range technology.
“Through collaboration with our PGA TOUR partners, it’s exciting to see this vision come to life,” said TPC Harding Park General Manager Tom Smith. “We’re incredibly proud of the end product and to be the only driving range in San Francisco with this cutting-edge technology.”
Open to the public seven days a week, the all-new practice facility features top-of-the-line artificial turf, full grass putting green and short game area, new range balls, 20 hitting stalls, nine targets, professional instruction and club fittings, as well as adding Toptracer Range technology. The revolutionary technology allows golfers a virtual component that measures the speed, distance and direction of their shots. Through an app, players can chart their improvement over time or play a multitude of games. The same technology has changed the way golf is viewed on television by charting the flight of the ball through a blue line.
The renovated practice facility is now the most technologically advanced in the San Francisco area and will continue to establish its presence as a premier location for practice and providing PGA TOUR quality amenities to the golfing public. The $880,000 project received $500,000 in funding from the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department and approximately $380,000 from the PGA TOUR.
“TPC Harding Park is a jewel that shone brightly during the 2020 PGA Championship. But it’s always been a treasure for locals—from high school kids to elderly folks who walk the course for exercise. The new practice facility just adds to the fun, and its high-tech component and is something both avid golfers and novices will enjoy,” said San Francisco Recreation and Park Department General Manager Phil Ginsburg.
TPC Harding Park features 27 holes of championship golf designed by Willie Watson, architect of the nearby Olympic Club. Known as Harding Park Golf Club when it opened in 1925, the course was named after avid golfer and former President Warren G. Harding. Over the course of its history, golf legends such as Ken Venturi, Billy Casper and Gary Player all walked its fairways. The course underwent a major renovation project 2002 to restore the fairways to their original glory, concluding just in time to test the skills of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson in the 2005 WGC-American Express Championship and later in the 2009 Presidents Cup. TPC Harding Park also hosted PGA TOUR Champions’ Charles Schwab Cup Championship in 2010, 2011 and 2013, as well as the PGA Championship in 2020.
To learn more about TPC Harding Park, please visit www.tpc.com/hardingpark or call 415-664-4690.
###
About the TPC Network
Owned, operated, and licensed by the PGA TOUR, the TPC Network is comprised of 30 premiers private, resort and daily fee golf properties designed by some of golf’s most elite architects. Twenty of the clubs are operated by affiliates of PGA TOUR Golf Course Properties, Inc. Each TPC has hosted or has been designed to host TOUR-sponsored golf tournaments. Since TPC Sawgrass first opened its world-renowned PLAYERS Stadium Course in the fall of 1980, TPCs have provided the PGA TOUR with rent-free venues for tournaments, helping to boost championship golf purses and increasing charitable donations to grass roots non-profit organizations. At the same time, TPCs have provided recreational golfers with the unique opportunity to test their skills on the same layouts where the world’s best golfers compete.
TPCs are known for their history of hosting PGA TOUR-sponsored golf tournaments, their outstanding conditioning and amenities, as well as a commitment to environmental excellence. The TPC Network is also distinguished by its unwavering commitment to further the PGA TOUR’s giving back mission through support of charitable and community-based programs. For more information, please visit www.tpc.com. For the most up-to-date news, follow the TPC Network on Twitter (@PlayTPC), Instagram (@PlayTPC) or Facebook.com/TPCNetwork.
About the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department
The San Francisco Recreation and Park Department currently manages more than 220 parks, playgrounds and open spaces throughout San Francisco, including two outside city limits—Sharp Park in Pacifica and Camp Mather in the High Sierras. The system includes full-complex recreation centers, swimming pools, golf courses, sports fields and numerous small-to-medium-sized clubhouses that offer a variety of sports- and arts-related recreation programs for people of all ages. Included in the Department’s responsibilities are Golden Gate Park, Coit Tower, the Marina Yacht Harbor, the San Francisco Zoo and Lake Merced. In 2017, San Francisco became the first and only city in the nation where all residents have access to a park within a 10-minute walk, a direct result of the Department’s commitment to increasing and improving parkland in the city.