Reviewed by: Pat Byington
A day at the Regions Tradition Pro-Am + how you can enjoy this year’s tournament
Reading time: 4 minutes
For a lot of people, the Regions Tradition begins Wednesday with the Celebrity Pro-Am event that brings some of the biggest names in the country to the same golf course in Alabama. But that’s not the week’s only pro-am outing at Greystone Golf & Country Club.
Tuesday morning, I got a chance to play in the first Pro-Am of the week that pairs four amateur golfers with a professional, playing the same course the tournament is played on Thursday-Sunday. Keep reading to find out more about my experience + how you can get out to the course to watch the rest of the week’s events.
Tuesday Pro-Am
I was fortunate enough to get a spot in the event, getting to play with my dad and two people he knew through work. I say fortunate but around 5:45AM when that alarm went off, I was not feeling very fortunate.
That feeling would pass though, getting into the clubhouse and getting served a great breakfast before hitting the range for some practice swings. It really was the closest I’ve ever gotten to being treated like a pro golfer.
Once our tee time of 8:10AM was called, we got to the first tee and got to meet Ricardo Gonzalez. He will be playing in the tournament this weekend, less than three months removed from his first win on the Champions Tour. He’s had four top 10 finishes and has made the cut in 15 of his 18 tournaments.
Even with his success, Gonzalez didn’t waste any time in introducing himself and his caddy (one of his sons). He spent most of the day being patient with the four of us, giving plenty of friendly advice + tips along the way. His son, Santiago, gave me a read on more than half of my putts for the day.
The scoring format was best ball, meaning the whole team would put down just one score from the hole. That was often Ricardo’s but there was also a simple handicap applied, meaning strokes would be taken off for those of us who go through four sleeves of balls every round.
But as a team, we finished with an 11-under 61. It wasn’t enough to win the Pro-Am but it was still plenty of fun. And I like to think I had more good shots than terrible shots, which is always the goal. Check out some highlights from Tuesday from our Twitter account.
2024 Regions Tradition
Hosted at the Greystone Golf & Country Club, the Regions Tradition is an annual golf tournament that draws huge crowds from around the state—in fact, more than 76,000 people attended last year.
- What: The 2024 Regions Tradition
- When: Wednesday, May 8 through Sunday, May 12
- Where: Greystone Golf & Country Club, 4100 Greystone Dr, Birmingham, AL 35242
- Tickets
The tournament is considered a major for the PGA Tour Champions, which is open to golfers over 50 years old. It will be a four-round event with a champion determined Sunday afternoon.
If you’re interested in the Celebrity Pro-Am, that gets started Wednesday at 6:50AM. You can see the full list of pairings and tee times here. Those attending include:
- Condoleezza Rice (7:50AM)
- Trent Dilfer (8AM)
- Hugh Freeze (8:10AM)
- Kirby Smart (8:20AM)
- Patrick Murphy (8:20AM)
- Riley Green (8:30AM)
- Kalen DeBoer (8:40AM)
- Nick Saban (8:50AM)
- Charles Barkley, Jake Peavy, Roman Harper, Gregory McElroy (9AM)
Are you planning on heading out to the Regions Tradition this week? Let us know by tagging The Bama Buzz on Instagram, X + Facebook!
