Golf

Honda Classic draws golf’s elite

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — There was a time, not long ago, when the Honda Classic was as transient as the snowbird vacationers from the north who pass through Florida seeking a warm-weather winter respite.

Despite Honda being the longest-standing sponsor of any current PGA Tour event (33 years), the tournament traveled nomadically from one golf course to another — five moves from 1984 to 2003 — and had fields so bereft of top-tier stars it looked more like a Web.com event.

Now, though, the Honda Classic, which begins Thursday at PGA National, has become one of the marquee events of the PGA Tour season, having settled on the stout golf course that played host to the 1983 Ryder Cup and the 1987 PGA Championship. This week’s events mark the Honda’s eighth year at PGA National.

The tournament also now boasts one of the strongest fields of the season with seven of the top 10 players in the world playing (only after Justin Rose withdrew on Tuesday with a shoulder ailment), including Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Adam Scott and Phil Mickelson, who went out of his way to add it to his schedule for the first time since 2002.

“I’m excited about it,’’ Sergio Garcia, playing here for the first time since 2010, said Tuesday. “It’s a great golf course … definitely one of the most sought ‑after golf courses we play all year. It’s good to be back.’’

Since Woods’ commitment to the tournament for the first time in 2012, the Honda Classic has skyrocketed to become one of the power-broker events on the PGA Tour. Woods had a lot to do with bolstering the profile of the tournament when, in 2012, he electrified the place with a final-round 62 that was nearly good enough to run down McIlroy, who went on to win and elevate to No. 1 in the world.

Woods, who tied for 37th at last year’s Honda Classic, is looking to find his form after subpar performances in his first two events this year following five wins in 2013. That makes him — as always — the No. 1 story this week.

McIlroy is subplot No. 2, one year removed from his infamous meltdown when he walked off the course on the ninth hole of his second round, initially saying he withdrew because he was “in a bad place mentally’’ before later saying he walked off because of a toothache and then backtracking from that story.

So PGA National, the place where McIlroy enjoyed one of the most triumphant moments of his career in 2012, represented the low point of 2013.

“Last year, admittedly, I had a tough week; a forgettable week,’’ McIlroy said recently. “I guess I let frustrations get the better of me and perhaps should have adopted a more mature approach.”

McIlroy, who is scheduled to speak to reporters on Wednesday as are Woods and Mickelson, said recently he “can’t wait’’ to return to Honda this year.

“It is one of my favorite events of the year, and winning in 2012 was an important landmark in my career. Having a place in Palm Beach now also gives the tournament a kind of special feeling — nearly like a home event,’’ he said.

Those words from McIlroy speak for a number of the top players in the world who are playing Honda this week. Beginning with Woods and McIlroy and including fellow stars such as Keegan Bradley, Rickie Fowler, Lee Westwood, Luke Donald and Ernie Els, many of the sport’s stars make their homes within 15 minutes of PGA National, so this week represents a home game.