Those hoping for definitive answers regarding the PGA Tour’s competitive future likely left PGA Tour Headquarters on Wednesday morning will have to wait a little longer.
“No decisions have been made,” PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said as part of his opening remarks in his state-of-the-tour presser that lasted about 40 minutes.
But Rolapp did provide plenty of insight into where the Tour is likely headed as it looks to satisfy this objective: “To build the best version of the PGA Tour.” Rolapp revealed six themes, which have emerged from over 30 meetings between the Future Competition Committee, Player Advisory Council, PGA Tour policy board and various working groups, that will make up the foundation of the new PGA Tour:
1. Two ‘tracks’ of events
The Tour is eyeing a schedule that features 21-26 events running from late January to early September. The idea is also to have a “second track” of events that will “ladder up” to the first track, which would include the four majors, playoff events, The Players and preferably double the amount of signature events the Tour currently has, going from eight to 16.
Rolapp envisions those second-track events being played around the bigger tournaments during the regular season and during the fall.
“I think there’s a bit of a misconception that scarcity means a dramatic cut in the number of events of the PGA Tour as we know it,” Rolapp said. “Scarcity is about making the events we have matter more, so I think there will be a place for most of our events in our new model.”
2. Bigger fields and cuts
As part of expanding the current crop of signature events, the Tour would like to increase fields, ideally to 120 players, and add back meaningful cuts to all tournaments.
“It helps fans know who they will see and showcases who they want to see, the most competitive players,” Rolapp said. “It helps partners know what they’re investing in, and it helps players better understand the competitive landscape in their schedules, all while embracing meritocracy.”
3. The best coast
In recent years, the Tour has always started its season in Hawaii in early January, though this year saw The Sentry get canceled because of uncertainty surrounding Kapalua’s conditioning following a water dispute last year. But Rolapp appears ready to move on from that, saying that he wants to start the new and improved season with a “marquee event at an iconic venue in the west.”
4. Bigger markets
Citing the fact that the Tour only competes in four of the 10 biggest U.S. markets, Rolapp wishes to change that. He said the Tour is evaluating markets such as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Washington D.C. and Boston among others.
5. Promotion and relegation
Rolapp mentioned the promotion-and-relegation of English soccer, and it’s clear the Tour is headed to some form of that between its two tracks, plus the rest of its pathways (Korn Ferry Tour and PGA Tour Americas), which Rolapp says will continue to be priorities.
The question that still remains, per Rolapp, is whether this promotion and relegation will happen at the end of the season, or if there will be some opportunity for in-season movement.
6. Enhanced postseason
Though Rolapp didn’t mention any formalized plans to change venues or the number of events for the FedExCup Playoffs, he did specifically mention potential format tweaks, including implementing match play, be it traditional or medal, at the Tour Championship and/or throughout the postseason. This, according to Rolapp, would bring a “win-or-go-home” conclusion to the season.
“But it has to feel authentic,” Rolapp added. “If it’s not authentic to [the players] … if it is, for lack of a better word, gimmicky, it’s not going to work for anybody, including our fans.”
Those pillars align with what Golf Channel has heard from sources in recent months. Those same sources indicate that it’s unlikely any monumental changes happen in time for the 2027 season, aside from the season potentially starting at The American Express in mid-January instead of Hawaii. There is still the possibility that the Sony Open remains on the calendar for one more year. Moving forward, though, that big, West Coast start appears more likely to come at a place like Torrey Pines, Pebble Beach or TPC Scottsdale.
Another potential change deals with the sixth theme. Tiger Woods, host of the Genesis Invitational, said last month that there’s an option for Riviera to become a playoff venue. Golf Channel has learned that Riviera hosting the Tour Championship is on the table, which could bump East Lake into hosting a regular-season tournament. Rolapp was asked specifically about East Lake and responded, “We certainly want an event in Atlanta. What we do with the postseason, we’re still figuring it out.”
But as Rolapp indicated, “We’re not going to surprise anybody,” seemingly hinting that most of what’s coming down the pipeline won’t arrive until 2028 or later.
Whatever decisions are ultimately made, there is some urgency. The NFL is reportedly looking to renegotiate its media-rights agreements before next season, well ahead of its 2029 opt-outs. Rolapp said the current U.S. sports media-rights pool is about $30 billion, and he expects the NFL, currently at around $12 billion, to look to double that number, leaving the rest for the other sports.
“If you are in the sports business, it behooves you to put your house in order as much as possible,” Rolapp said.
How big a piece of the pie can the PGA Tour expect? It depends on when its house is in order and what it looks like.