In its most basic form, all sports are entertainment. Past actions matter far less in today’s ever evolving landscape.
Those waiting around to see trends do so at their peril.
Standing pat can mean a quick exit from the relevance lane as all others pass you by.
Longstanding practices cemented in place from years ago can easily become an anchor around one’s neck.
However, should change happen too drastically the very real possibility of an overreaction can impact one’s fan base just as negatively.
Take for example the recent changes enacted by Major League Baseball. The sport was losing interest among a younger generation of fans. Games took far too long. The idea of installing a “pitch clock” was viewed not many years ago as a complete assault on the cherished principle that baseball does not need a clock like the other key sports.
The National Football League did likewise in implementing proactive steps in keeping its games as entertaining as possible while mindful of the inherent violent nature of the sport. A good example is how kick-offs are now implemented.
Professional golf for many years was the singular domain of the PGA Tour. The USA-centered operation had the largest purses, the deepest fields and the best weekly connection to viewers with key network television deals.
To top off matters, the Tour had the global reach of a golfer named Tiger Woods. But the competitive days of Woods are now in the rear-view mirror and the 2022 arrival of LIV Golf meant a serious competitor. One with the deepest of pockets and the wherewithal to remain a constant presence.
Given the new reality, a number of PGA Tour players headed off to greener pastures—no pun intended—with LIV Golf.
Initially, the PGA Tour stated it had no desire to link itself to LIV Golf. Commissioner Jay Monahan took a hard and clear position that anyone associating with LIV Golf had no future with the PGA Tour. However, the hemorrhaging of players did not stop even with that decree.
Then on June 6, 2023, a surprising framework agreement was announced on CNBC by Monahan and Yasir Al-Rumayyan, chairman of LIV Golf. Plans called for the agreement to be finalized by December 2023 but then were pushed beyond that. The two sides still are talking but nothing is resolved to date.
What became clear to those running the PGA Tour was that internal changes to the manner and operation of its events and how fields are structured had to be put in place with even more changes set to start in 2026.
The pressure to do so came from two critical forces. First, television is essential to the success of any sport—no less pro golf. Ratings are not perceptions—the numbers speak to the reality in judging where eyeballs are located. Networks do not pay larger sums of money to televise any sport without the assurance that increasing number of viewers is a certainty.
The other force pushing the PGA Tour remains LIV Golf. Even though the upstart group has no impactful television presence and no world ranking points for its events, the wherewithal to remain in existence poses a continuous threat in luring new players to its operation.
Internal changes within LIV Golf are also being contemplated. Speculation has risen CEO Greg Norman will be pushed out and moved into a new higher corporate position but one with less of a public spotlight. A search for his successor has been reported as already in motion.
LIV Golf has also moved ahead in replacing lower-performing players and providing avenues for new players to now enter the picture. In short, LIV Golf is not sitting still.
Player Impact Program (PIP)
The PIP rewards the 20 golfers who generate the most engagement for the tour each season with a $100 million bonus pool. PIP recipients must play in every elevated event they qualify for the following season.Elevated Events
The PGA Tour introduced “elevated” events, featuring increased prize money and the tour’s best golfers. In 2023, the combined purse for the 13 elevated events was $315 million, which was a 47 percent increase from the previous year.Signature Events
The PGA Tour’s Signature Events have more than doubled the winning prize money in the past three years. For example, the winning prize fund for the 2023 PLAYERS was $4.5 million, which was a significant increase from the previous years.But even more changes are being contemplated.
Just several days ago, the PGA Tour’s Player Advisory Council recommended sweeping changes to field sizes, exemption status and the number of PGA Tour cards that can be obtained each season through the Korn Ferry Tour and Q-school as well as a slight adjustment to the FedEx Cup points allocations for major championships, the Players Championship and signature events.
The changes must be approved by the PGA Tour policy board and wouldn’t take effect until the 2026 season. The next meeting of the board takes place on Nov. 18. The Advisory Council unveiled the proposed changes to golfers in a 23-page executive summary.
What’s clear is that the PGA Tour realizes a decline in television ratings this year is no blip on the radar screen but a clear sign of concern. The ongoing parade of weekly tournaments is now lacking sustained fan interest.
Elite players are setting up schedules with a clear focus on designated events and in getting prepared for the four major championships (Masters, PGA, U.S. Open, Open Championship). Interestingly, the PGA Tour does not own any of the four.
Securing an exempt position on the PGA Tour was never an easy proposition but the proposed actions only increase the intensity for those looking to break through and secure a spot.
The gist of the actions is getting elite players in front of viewers more often and narrowing the available pathways for those aspiring to get to the PGA Tour.
In years past, the PGA Tour favored an egalitarian approach no matter whether you were ranked as the number-one player or in the back of the pack as a journeyman.
The “new” PGA Tour is lining up clearly for the benefit of the existing star players. If your name is Scottie Scheffler or Rory McIlroy the plan is certainly more appealing and their respective accountants will undoubtedly be jumping for joy.
What bears watching is how playing fields will be reduced. For many tournaments, a field of 150+ players was the norm. The proposed plan for 2026 would reduce that number in varying numbers and in different events.
Full yearly exemptions via the FedEx Cup points list would be reduced from the present 125 to 100. Those falling between 101 and 125 would only receive “conditional status.”
In years past, maintaining a presence in the top 125 was not an inordinately difficult task given the size of the purses available. The reduction to 100 is a clear signal that maintaining one’s position will now require a more sustained and consistent effort.
Those seeking PGA Tour membership via the Korn Ferry Tour route could well find a very different reality if the proposed plan is approved.
The Korn Ferry Tour, which has awarded 30 PGA Tour cards per season, would under the proposal award only 20 cards. The DP World Tour would continue to award 10 PGA Tour cards, and Q-school cards would be capped at five.
The Players Advisory Council also has submitted a plan for a different distribution system to account for the strength of field under the new schedule model.
Second-place finishes at the Players Championship and the majors would receive a slight increase (100 more points), while players who finish 11th and beyond would receive a slight decrease (10 points for 11th, 20 points for 12th, and so on) in points won. During signature events, players finishing seventh or worse would receive a slight decrease in points.
As the curtain falls on the 2024 season, the future of professional golf is clearly evolving. The PGA Tour and LIV Golf both realize that until some sort of meaningful formal collaboration is finalized between the two organizations, the landscape each operates under is about to enter a new phase.
Uncertainty still exists, but what is clear is that the shuffling of the deck means new cards will come into view with outcomes, whether foreseen or unknown, about to emerge.
The message coming forward is simple: Stay tuned.
