It was pending member approval and now it's official: Pete Dye's Austin Country Club will host the next for WGC [Dell] Match Plays.

And as hoped, the nines will be flipped to have the "lakeside" holes on the back nine. (Photo right.)

For Immediate Release:

Austin Country Club to host 2016 World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play



Four-year agreement with International Federation of PGA Tours brings event to one of Texas’ oldest existing clubs



Austin, Texas – The International Federation of PGA Tours today announced a four-year agreement with Austin Country Club to serve as host venue for the World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play, beginning in 2016, after receiving approval from the club’s membership. Founded in 1899, Austin Country Club is one of the oldest existing clubs in Texas. The club’s current property is located on a challenging Pete Dye-designed golf course built in 1984 with breathtaking views of Lake Austin.



This course is the third home for Austin Country Club since its founding in 1899. With its deep pot bunkers, undulating turf and dramatic fairway falls, the course includes Texas accents added by extensive use of massive limestone slabs, quarried on site, to build revetments for tees, greens and fairways. The club has served as home to several of the game’s greats, including World Golf Hall of Famers Harvey Penick, Tom Kite and Ben Crenshaw.



The 2015 Cadillac Match Play is being played this week at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco. Dell and the International Federation of PGA Tours announced Dell as the future title sponsor for the event in February. Previously, the Cadillac Match Play has been held in Marana, Ariz., since 2007 and at La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., from 1999-2000 and 2002-2006; in 2001 it was held at The Metropolitan Club in Victoria, Australia.



“In my recent visit to Austin Country Club, it became obvious to me that this first-class venue will be a spectacular host for our players, sponsors and spectators for the Dell Match Play,” said PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem. “On behalf of the International Federation of PGA Tours, we first thank TPC Harding Park for their hospitality and Cadillac for their contributions to this year’s event. We also thank the membership at Austin Country Club for their support, and we look forward to bringing the best 64 players in the world to Austin and a club that has such rich tradition at a course that will be a challenging, but fair test for the field. Between the membership at Austin Country Club, the partnership we have with Dell and the excitement throughout the Austin community, we believe that this event will become one of the most popular stops on our schedule.”



“It is a fantastic opportunity for Austin Country Club and the city of Austin to host World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play,” said James Cahill, current Austin Country Club president. “The economic and charitable impact will benefit the community, as well as give great exposure to Austin as one of the best places to host world-wide events. Teaming up with Dell as a title sponsor and the PGA TOUR will make this a first-class experience for all attendees and highlight the rich history of Austin Country Club and golf in Austin.”



“The Austin Country Club is a special venue and we’re excited to partner with its membership and the PGA TOUR to bring the Dell Match Play to our hometown,” said Karen Quintos, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for Dell. “We’re looking forward to working with ACC and the PGA TOUR to create a world-class event and to extend both Dell’s and the PGA TOUR’s tradition of philanthropy.”



Dell, which is making its first foray into a major golf sponsorship, has a presence during this week’s Cadillac Match Play at TPC Harding Park with a customer engagement program and a fan-facing Dell technology experience, as well as a digital media campaign across the 2015 World Golf Championships series. Moving forward, Dell looks to create a world-class, business-to-business event in Austin and integrate its various technology solutions into the Dell Match Play.



“I couldn’t be more excited and proud that my second home, Austin, Texas, is going to host the World Golf Championships-Dell Match Play at the great Austin Country Club,” said recent Masters champion and University of Texas standout Jordan Spieth. “I know that my peers -- the Americans and the international players -- are going to love the Austin feel, the crowds and Austin Country Club itself.”



Holes that will serve as the tournament’s back-nine border on Lake Austin with spectacular views from what is known as the “lowlands nine.” The rest of the course is higher and more typical of the Texas Hill Country. The

course embodies the principle of playing to restricted targets. Indiscriminate play simply to the close-mown area of the fairway will only by accident provide the comfortable approach.



Austin, the nation’s 11th largest city by population, last hosted a regular TOUR event from 2003-2009 on the Champions Tour. Austin also was the original site of the Legends of Golf from 1978-1994.