The International Federation of PGA Tours have announced that the trophy created for the inaugural World Golf Championships event - the Andersen Consulting Match Play Championship - would be named after Walter Hagen.
The Federation commissioned Wedgewood of England, a sister company of Waterford Crystal, to design and produce the award. Josiah Wedgewood’s outstanding invention in 1774 of Jasper is exquisitely interpreted in the trophy. The champion each year will receive a replica of the trophy.
Hagen is widely recognised as one of the most successful match play golfers in history. Also remembered as golf’s most flamboyant and charismatic personalities, he is credited by many for modernising the game.
His major titles included five US PGA Championships (1921, 1924, 1925, 1926 and 1927) which were contested as match play competitions; four Open Championships (1922, 1924, 1928 and 1929) and two US Opens (1914 and 1919).
Hagen was also the captain of the first six United States Ryder Cup teams and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974.
The Walter Hagen Cup is a hand-crafted rendition of the sportsmanship and camaraderie of golf. The magnificent trophy is completed with precious metal components and embellishments.
The new trophy was unveiled on the first tee at La Costa Resort and Spa minutes before Nick Price struck the historic first shot in the Andersen Consulting Match Play Championship.
