The New England Classic was a

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

tournament on the

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also known as the PGA Tour, the PGA Tour Champion ...

from 1969 through 1998. It was held under various names at Pleasant Valley Country Club in

Sutton, Massachusetts Sutton, officially the Town of Sutton, is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 9,357 in the 2020 United States census. Located in the Blackstone Valley, the town was design ...

Tournament highlights

*1975:

Roger Maltbie Roger Lin Maltbie (born June 30, 1951) is an American professional golfer and on-course analyst for NBC Sports. Early life Maltbie was born in Modesto, California and grew up in San Jose. He attended James Lick High School where he was a teamm ...

wins for the second consecutive week on the PGA Tour. He beats

Mac McLendon Benson Rayfield McLendon Jr. (August 10, 1945 – July 4, 2022) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1960s and 1970s. McLendon was born in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Louisiana State University in Baton ...

by one shot. Afterwards, Maltbie left his $40,000 winner's check behind in a bar. *1977: Due to the PGA Tour labeling it a 'designated event', Jack Nicklaus plays in the tournament for the first and only time. He finishes in second place two shots behind winner

Raymond Floyd Raymond Loran Floyd (born September 4, 1942) is an American retired professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments on both the PGA Tour and Senior PGA Tour, including four majors and four senior majors. He was inducted into the World ...

. *1978: One week after winning the

PGA Championship The PGA Championship (often referred to as the US PGA Championship or USPGA outside the United States) is an annual golf tournament conducted by the Professional Golfers' Association of America. The PGA is one of the four men's major golf champi ...

John Mahaffey John Drayton Mahaffey Jr. (born May 9, 1948) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments including 10 PGA Tour events. Early life Mahaffey was born in Kerrville, Texas. He attended the University of Houston in Houston, ...

also takes home the American Optical Classic title. He beats defending champion Raymond Floyd and the PGA Tour's only

optometrist Optometry is the healthcare practice concerned with examining the eyes for visual defects, prescribing corrective lenses, and detecting eye abnormalities. In the United States and Canada, optometrists are those that hold a post-baccalaureate f ...

Gil Morgan Gilmer Bryan Morgan II, OD (born September 25, 1946) is an American professional golfer. Early life Morgan was born in Wewoka, Oklahoma. He graduated from East Central State College in Ada, Oklahoma in 1968. Professional career In 1972, ...

, by two shots. *1986:

Gene Sauers Gene Craig Sauers (born August 22, 1962) is an American professional golfer, currently playing on the PGA Tour Champions. He had three wins on the PGA Tour and overcame a potentially fatal skin condition that kept him off the golf course for five ...

defeats

Blaine McCallister Blaine McCallister (born October 17, 1958) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour, Nationwide Tour and Champions Tour. Early life and amateur career McCallister was born in Fort Stockton, Texas. McCallister is natura ...

on the third hole of a sudden death playoff for his first ever PGA Tour title after having to hole a par chip on the first playoff hole to avoid elimination. *1989: Three years after suffering a tough luck playoff loss at Pleasant Valley, Blaine McCallister birdies the final two holes to win the 21st edition of the tournament by one shot over

Brad Faxon Bradford John Faxon Jr. (born August 1, 1961) is an American professional golfer. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour. Early life and amateur career Faxon was born in Oceanport, New Jersey and raised in Barrington, Rhode Island. He attended F ...

. *1998:

Steve Pate Stephen Robert Pate (born May 26, 1961) is an American professional golfer who has played on both the PGA Tour, the Nationwide Tour and Champions Tour. Career Pate was born in Ventura, California. He attended UCLA and was a member of the golf te ...

wins the last edition of the tournament. He beat

Scott Hoch Scott Mabon Hoch ( ; born November 24, 1955) is an American professional golfer, who represented his country in the Ryder Cup in 1997 and 2002. Early life Hoch was born in Raleigh, North Carolina. While attending Needham B. Broughton High Scho ...

and Bradley Hughes by one shot.Car crash, bad hole can't stop Steve Pate
/ref> For Pate it was his first victory since a 1996 car accident.

Winners

Notes

References

External links

Pleasant Valley Country Club official site
{{CVS Health Former PGA Tour events Golf tournaments in Massachusetts Sports in Worcester County, Massachusetts History of Worcester County, Massachusetts Sutton, Massachusetts Recurring sporting events established in 1969 Recurring sporting events disestablished in 1998 1969 establishments in Massachusetts 1998 disestablishments in Massachusetts

Tournament highlights

Winners

See also

Notes

References

External links