Colonial jacket among golf’s iconic awards

On the PGA Tour, all winners’ checks are not created equally. Some tournaments offer larger purses, and bigger individual paydays, than others.

The trophies and prizes presented to champions are not look-alike items, either.

Some spoils of victory, such as the Masters green jacket or the Claret Jug presented to the British Open champion, are iconic images steeped in golf history. Other events award more interesting displays of on-course achievement. A prime example is the rooster-topped trophy from the Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Miss.

Trophies are part of the Sunday celebration at all PGA Tour stops, including this week’s Dean & DeLuca Invitational at Colonial Country Club. But the folks in Fort Worth sweeten the winner’s haul with a plaid jacket, a practice that dates to 1952 and has made the “Royal Tartan” garment a more recognized symbol of Colonial success than the Leonard Trophy that bears the name of all tournament champions.

Jordan Spieth, the defending Colonial champ, is a major proponent of the victory jacket tradition. He also earned a green jacket in 2015 as the Masters champion.

“It’s cool. Jackets, to me, the couple that I have, feel like the coolest trophies,” Spieth said. “When you have a jacket on, you feel like you’re part of the club. Every tournament has a trophy. Only a few have a jacket. … When I put it on, I feel like Colonial is a second home. The two jackets that I have are from places that I feel like are a golf home for myself.”

Without question, Colonial’s 12-color jacket ranks among the most memorable awards at PGA Tour stops. Below is a list of the top 10 physical awards presented to winners of tour events:

Masters green jacket: No award in golf is more globally recognized or more revered. The green jacket given annually to the winner of the season’s first major championship at Augusta National Golf Club is presented by the outgoing Masters champion to the incoming one. The recipient keeps the garment in his possession for one year before returning it to the club. The tradition is so revered locally that the Augusta, Ga., minor-league baseball team (Class A, San Francisco Giants organization) is named the GreenJackets in honor of the Masters tradition. The team’s logo is a yellow jacket wearing a Masters blazer.

Claret Jug: The winner’s trophy for the British Open is inscribed with the name of every player who has won golf’s oldest major championship since 1872. Since 1928, each winner has received a replica and the original version has remained in St. Andrews, Scotland. The item is well-suited for holding and consuming celebratory beverages and remains the oldest major championship trophy in professional golf. Without question, all trophies from major championships are coveted by pro golfers. But this one brings the most buzz to the table and will be the only one included on this list.

Genesis G90: From a practicality standpoint, it’s hard to top the four-wheeled prize that Dustin Johnson collected at the 2017 Genesis Open at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. Johnson, the world’s top-ranked golfer, received a G90 automobile along with a winner’s check for taking the title at an event sponsored by a car company.

Conquistador helmet: One of the most unique awards in golf, the helmet made its debut in 1968 at the Tucson Open. Modeled after the logo of the Tucson Conquistadores, the tournament’s organizing group, the original 5-pound steel headpiece was crafted in Toledo, Spain. But it gave way to a lighter helmet made locally in 1994. When Tuscon’s event moved to the Champions Tour, the helmet tradition continued. Tom Lehman, the 1995 Colonial champ, donned the helmet after winning the 2017 Tucson Conquistadores Classic and will be the defending champion in March.

Colonial plaid jacket: It might be impossible to find matching pants, but there is no questioning the history that is behind Fort Worth’s iconic championship garment, first presented to Ben Hogan after his 1952 Colonial triumph. The jacket matches the ones worn by tournament officials, and the “Royal Tartan” plaid was selected in 1952 by tournament chairman S.M. “Bing” Bingham because club officials wanted an identifying garment that would “shine with the same brilliance as our field for the tournament.” The 65-year history of Colonial’s plaid jacket places it at No. 2, behind the Masters’ green blazer, on the list of ceremonial coats given to PGA Tour winners.

Red cardigan sweater: Officials at the Arnold Palmer Invitational switched the ceremonial champion’s garment for this year’s event in Orlando to a red cardigan sweater similar to the one favored by the tournament’s namesake, who died Sept. 25, 2016. The change from a blue blazer to Arnie’s red sweater was well-received by competitors, and Marc Leishman became the first recipient on March 19.

Alligator-skin belt: Winners of the Zurich Classic, a team event in New Orleans, are presented with a wide alligator-skin belt adorned with a large silver buckle. The eye-catching bauble resembles a ceremonial title belt from a professional boxing or wrestling federation.

Cowboy boots: The champion at the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio is presented with a pair of cowboy boots. The black boots bear the tournament logo on the top part of the boot, also called the shaft.

Surfboard: Winners of the Farmers Insurance Open in La Jolla, Calif. collect a full-sized surfboard along with a winner’s check. The board bears the logo of the event, held annually at Torrey Pines Golf Course.

Vintage Coca-Cola vending machine: Winners of the Tour Championship, the PGA Tour’s season-ending event in Atlanta, collect a vintage Coca-Cola vending machine and a year’s supply of inventory along with their prize money. The tournament at East Lake Golf Club is sponsored by Coca-Cola, an Atlanta-based corporation, and the winner also receives a sterling-silver replica of the “Calamity Jane” putter made famous by Bobby Jones, a lifelong amateur who won 13 major championships before World War II. Jones, a co-founder of the Masters Tournament, learned the game at East Lake.　

This story was originally published May 23, 2017 at 11:30 AM with the headline "Colonial jacket among golf’s iconic awards."