The PGA Tour made its boldest response yet to the rival Saudi-funded league Tuesday with a plan for the best players to commit to a 20-tournament schedule in which they will compete against each other up to 17 times.
The schedule includes the four majors and features $20 million US purses, except for the smallest field at the Sentry Tournament of Champions at Kapalua to start the year.
Most of the key tournaments already were in place — the Genesis Invitational at Riviera, Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill and the Memorial; Kapalua and Match Play; the three FedEx Cup playoff events; the four majors and The Players Championship.
Still to be announced are four tournaments that would be “elevated events.” PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan hopes to announce those in the next two months.
Players also would be required to play three regular PGA Tour events.
The changes stem from several meetings among top players that began at the J.P. McManus Pro-Am in Ireland last month and culminated with a players-only meeting involving 23 top players at the BMW Championship last week.
Players who take part next year will be determined by the Player Impact Program, which has been revised. The tour said 20 would come from this year’s PIP program and from another list that involves the new criteria.
The tour is moving away from a system geared toward Q-rating and social media and moving more toward television exposure, media mentions and fan awareness.
The PIP bonus pool goes from $50 million to $100 million next year, with the leading player getting a $15 million bonus.
The announcement comes at the season-ending Tour Championship, where the winner of the FedEx Cup gets $18 million. The LIV Golf series is expected to announce a new batch of PGA Tour players that is likely to include as many as six players.
WATCH | Canada’s Corey Conners finishes strong at BMW Championship:
The Listowel, Ont. native shot 2-under 69 during the final round in Wilmington, Del., securing a top-30 position in the FedExCup Playoffs standings and a spot at the Tour Championship.
Woods, McIlroy to play in Monday virtual league
Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy have agreed to participate in a Monday night “tech-infused golf league” featuring six teams of three PGA Tour players competing at a custom-built venue starting in January 2024, TMRW Sports announced Wednesday.
The league, which will be run in partnership with the PGA Tour, was billed as a first-of-its-kind experience for golf as each two-hour event will be held on “a data-rich, virtual course complete with a tech-infused, short-game complex.
The announcement of TGL comes a day after Woods and McIlroy, two of the game’s biggest stars, announced the launch of TMRW Sports as a company that will aim to use technology as a way to cultivate a younger golf audience.
Organizers promise a high-energy, greenside fan experience for the short-form version of golf in a coliseum environment with every shot to be shown live on primetime television.
“We all know what it’s like to be in a football stadium or a basketball arena where you can watch every play, every minute of action unfold right in front of you,” Woods, a 15-times major champion, said in a news release.
“It’s something that inherently isn’t possible in traditional golf — and an aspect of TGL that will set it apart and appeal to a new generation of fans.”
No other players have yet been announced as participants for the inaugural season, which will consist of a 15-match regular season followed by semi-finals and finals matches.
“TGL will tap into the appeal of team golf within an exciting, fan-friendly environment, comparable to sitting courtside at an NBA game,” said four-times major winner and world number four McIlroy.
“TGL will widen the appeal of golf to younger and more diverse fans and serve as another avenue to introduce people to the game I love.”
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