Power Rankings: Rocket Classic - PGA Tour

What the report says

PGATOUR.com’s Rob Bolton reports that this week’s Rocket Classic at Detroit Golf Club will be played on a substantially revised version of the historic venue, giving returning players a familiar setting with a much different competitive feel. The tournament field is listed at 147 players, and Bolton frames the event as a fresh test shortly before the FedExCup Playoffs.

According to PGATOUR.com, architect Tyler Rae led work on the North Course after last year’s event, with drainage improvements as the initial driver. The project also raised and enlarged greens, reshaped bunkers and replaced the pond in front of the par-5 14th with fescue, a feature now used more broadly around the course. The routing remains a composite layout that includes the South Course’s first hole as the tournament’s par-4 third.

The changes are intended in part to make Detroit Golf Club play tougher for PGA TOUR fields. Holes 7 and 17 have been changed from par 5s to par 4s, while still capable of playing beyond 500 yards, lowering the overall par to 70. The scorecard now lists the course at 7,328 yards, only slightly shorter than before, with bentgrass greens expected to run around 12.5 feet on the Stimpmeter.

Bolton suggests strong ball-strikers may have an early advantage as players adjust to new targets and sightlines, though better putters could become more prominent as the week progresses. Weather may also shape scoring, with heat early, a possible storm front around Thursday and more favorable conditions expected later in the tournament.