PGA TOUR READY TO CUT NEW PATH
The PGA Tour is moving toward an elite schedule in 2024 with 16 designated events — half of them with no more than 80-man fields and no cuts — along with a chance for players on the outside to play their way in.
Still to be finalized are which events get the $20 million prize funds and details for how players can earn a spot in the field.
Players were apprised of the changes in a memo Wednesday from PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan in which he wrote, “There is no doubt in my mind that we made decisions that will transform and set the future.”
The Associated Press obtained a copy of the memo, which also indicated the Player Impact Program bonus pool will be cut in half to $50 million to 10 players (instead of 20 players), with the other $50 million going to bonus pools for the FedEx Cup and the Comcast Business Tour Top 10 for leading players in the regular season.
The part likely to cause the most divide among players is the no-cut policy for the designated events (except for the four majors and The Players Championship). One criticism of Saudi-funded LIV Golf has been its 54-hole events do not have a cut.
Eight of the 16 designated events — the exceptions are the majors, The Players and three FedEx Cup playoff events — are guaranteed to have the best players for the entire week.
Monahan had said at the start of the year at Kapalua that he thought a cut “is an important element to this tour” and he felt it was “absolutely an important consideration.”
Rory McIlroy, the primary voice in player meetings geared toward reshaping the PGA Tour’s future, said precedent has been set for no-cut events such as the former World Golf Championships and events like the CJ Cup and Zozo Championship.
“The only reason no-cut events are a big deal is because LIV has come along,” McIlroy said. “So there is precedent for no-cut events. Is there maybe going to be a few more of them? Maybe . ... You ask Mastercard or whoever it is to pay $20 million for a golf event, they want to see the stars at the weekend. They want a guarantee that the stars are there.
“So if that’s what needs to happen, then that’s what happens.”
Ian Poulter immediately took to Twitter with a George Bernard Shaw quote: “Imitation is not just the sincerest form of flattery — it’s the sincerest form of learning.”
The elite events would comprise the top 50 from the FedEx Cup the previous year, 10 players who performed the best in the fall for the early part of 2024, five leading players in points from standard tournaments, players who win PGA Tour events that year and four sponsor exemptions. They also will take anyone from the top 30 in the world if they are not already eligible.
Bay Hill
Scottie Scheffler returned to No. 1 in the world by winning in Phoenix with Jon Rahm on his heels. A week later, Rahm was back to No. 1 by winning at Riviera in a tense battle with Max Homa.
Now it’s Bay Hill’s turn. One aspect of these elevated events on the PGA Tour — those are here to stay based on a PGA Tour memo Wednesday outlining the future — is its tendency to bring out the star power in a chase for the $3.6 million prize.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational might be the next chapter in this remarkable tussle at the top of the world ranking. Not since the Official World Golf Ranking began in 1986 have three players traded turns at No. 1 before the calendar turned to March.
“I’m just happy to be in that conversation,” McIlroy said.
He began the year at No. 1, and while he has yet to get into contention in his two PGA Tour starts in 2023, McIlroy did begin his year by winning in Dubai.
All three face various scenarios to stay or get back to No. 1.
“If I was purely a fan of the game and I see what’s going on, especially at the top, I think it’s a pretty cool thing,” McIlroy said.
Odds are whoever wins will have earned it in a big way at Bay Hill.
The field is so strong that the only players missing from the top 50 in the world are the seven players who have been suspended for signing with Saudifunded LIV Golf.
Throw in a forecast for strong wind, on a course that is a brute in any conditions, and this figures to be another tough test.