The tournament's predecessor, the
National Airlines Open Invitational, ran for three seasons from
1969 through
1971, all in late March at the Country Club of Miami in
Hialeah. The Gleason tournament replaced it on the schedule a month earlier in 1972 at the
Inverrary Country Club (East course) in
Lauderhill and was among the richest events on tour with an inaugural purse of $260,000 and a $52,000 winner's share. Gleason hosted a popular TV variety show with many friends in the entertainment industry and was well known on the PGA Tour at the Doral stop. He was eager to put his name on the new tournament. The
1976 tournament was billed as the
Tournament Players Championship held in late February (as the early editions of the tournament were held as established tournaments with an increased purse and qualifications), won by
Jack Nicklaus. Gleason's nine-year affiliation ended after 1980 when PGA Tour officials removed him from Tournament Players Championship promotions and focused on commercialization to provide more revenue. The 1981 event was renamed "American Motors Inverrary Classic" as
American Motors Corporation sponsored it. The following two years, it was known as the "Honda Inverrary Classic" after a switch in sponsor to
American Honda Motor Company. then to the Champion Course at
PGA National Resort and Spa in
2007. Since 2007, the tournament's primary beneficiary is the Nicklaus Children's Health Care Foundation, chaired by Barbara Nicklaus, wife of
hall of fame golfer
Jack Nicklaus.
IMG bought the tournament's management company in 2013. The event grew in attendance and charitable contributions under IMG, but the player field suffered primarily because of the schedule that was set by the
PGA Tour. By late 2023, Honda ended sponsorship and there was concern about the demise of the biggest sporting event held in Palm Beach County. However, control of the event was moved to PGA Tour's Championship Management Division, a six-year sponsorship was signed with Cognizant, and the event was renamed.
Player participation Some celebrated players have won this tournament, including Nicklaus in three consecutive years, from
1976 (TPC) to
1978, the only consecutive winner in its history. However, the Honda Classic had acquired a reputation for struggling to attract the top players as it moved from course to course in South Florida. Since
2007, tournament has seen an improved player field, largely due to the decision to make PGA National the tournament's permanent home. The prize money is comparable to other regular PGA Tour events. The total purse was in
2017, with a top prize of $1.152 million (this can be contrasted to the total purse in
1981 of $300,000 (the equivalent of only $ in dollars). The original winner's share of $52,000 in
1972 made it one of the richest stops on tour, greater than for any of the four
majors; it was more than double that of the
Masters, which had a first prize of $25,000 ==Tournament highlights==