The PGA Tour is altering dramatically in 2024.
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Change is horrifying. It’s often uncomfortable. Sometimes it’s very, very unhealthy. And generally it just appears that manner at first.
Maybe that helps clarify the public’s preliminary response — which has felt combined, at finest — to the PGA Tour’s introduced modifications for the 2024 season. The Designated Events at the moment are capitalized. They’re even extra Designated! They have fewer gamers. And a number of occasions that at present have cuts will remove them going ahead.
How do you have to really feel about this? That’s as much as you, as at all times. But I’ve learn your considerations. I believe they’ve some advantage, too! But I additionally assume most of the big-picture negativity misses the mark. The good outweighs the unhealthy right here, by fairly a bit. Let’s undergo it, main with the unhealthy information (three issues that just grew to become worse on the PGA Tour) earlier than attending to the good (5 issues that just got better).
You can learn extra about the modifications right here.
WHAT’S WORSE?
1. We’ll miss the cuts.
The elimination of cuts is the greatest objection I’ve seen, and I perceive why: Cuts make lots of sense! They’re part of skilled golf’s identification. Plus, the worst a part of World Golf Championship occasions was at all times watching gamers who have been nicely out of rivalry slap it round on the weekend. Their meaningless presence appeared to take some juice out of the whole factor. Cuts add urgency to Thursday and Friday they usually successfully trim the area to those that nonetheless have an opportunity at contending.
Tour execs preserve utilizing an analogy about turning on a Bucs recreation and anticipating to see Tom Brady. That is smart; followers ought to know when the prime execs are enjoying and these structural modifications have executed different stuff to deal with that. But when the Bucs get knocked out of the playoffs they don’t preserve scheduling video games. And if Rafa Nadal loses in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open he doesn’t preserve enjoying meaningless matches. Tournament organizers would like he was nonetheless in the event, certain, for TV viewers and followers and sponsors. But that’s sports activities! Carrying lifeless weight at the again of the area waters down the aggressive product.
Plus, is the change actually value it? Most of the time the must-see gamers make the weekend, anyway. Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy have missed just 5 cuts mixed since the starting of 2022. Changing the product to ensure their look on the weekend appears like a call made to appease sponsors slightly than enhance the aggressive product. I don’t assume it makes a large distinction — we’re solely speaking a couple of handful of further no-cut occasions per yr right here — however given these are the Tour’s flagship occasions, I nonetheless assume it’s a miss.
2. It appears to be like like a LIV response
There’s little doubt in my thoughts that the PGA Tour’s product has improved because of LIV’s entrance into the market. To quote Patrick Cantlay: “If a product or company doesn’t have competition, the incentive to innovate is low.” Well, the PGA Tour has discovered its competitors. And they’ve accelerated innovation in consequence.
This explicit innovation ought to have come on the PGA Tour’s phrases. But as a result of it is available in the wake of LIV introducing a tour constructed on limited-field, no-cut occasions, it’s simple for the Tour’s detractors to say this as some type of gotcha second. Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and even LIV’s official Twitter account came sniping on Wednesday.
Are their gripes professional? Not notably! This new slate of occasions is radically totally different from LIV’s product. The Designated Events can have dynamic fields with gamers which have performed their manner there. The occasions sit atop a large meritocracy that begins at Q-School and stretches via the Korn Ferry Tour into membership on the PGA Tour the place, if you happen to play nicely, you’ll get into the prime occasions. It’s one lengthy line of play better. That’s truly a big-time benefit of this construction (extra on that in a second) over LIV’s closed-loop setup, however due to the Tour’s timing, it appears like the reverse.
3. Less-competitive weekends
Fewer gamers in the area means it’s extra probably we’ll have blowouts or runaway victories. How more likely? It’s not a large quantity; the 40-50 gamers that will be added to the backside of a area would theoretically be the gamers least prone to contend or win. But golf followers relish thrilling Sundays, they usually relish Cinderella tales. We’ll nonetheless get each, however they’ll are available a barely totally different package deal.
WHAT’S BETTER?
1. The entire system makes extra sense now
For the longest time, the PGA Tour was an incoherent mishmash of tournaments that ran year-round and worldwide and have been all type of equally vital. It was robust to find out who would play the place and the way a lot any of it mattered.
But now? It truly is smart! There are full-field occasions. The finest gamers from these play in the Designated Events. They reap the rewards of their success. The season now has a starting, center and finish. And at that finish, the factors reset and the checklist of finest gamers does, too.
2. The Tour discovered a manner for giant and small occasions to coexist
For years I’ve been banging the drum that the PGA Tour must have fewer occasions … or not less than fewer “important” occasions. Not each event will be above common. But each event is vital, on some stage — to gamers and communities and charities and rather more. The Tour didn’t wish to ditch its lesser occasions altogether.
Today, it appears like we’ve discovered a contented compromise. Even although final week’s Honda Classic was a terrific end, the area didn’t have anybody notably excited going into the week. This system ought to defend in opposition to that by lowering area sizes, thus forcing gamers exterior the prime 50 (the Tour’s upper-middle class, say) to play the full-field occasions.
The Tour’s new scheduling will probably be essential right here, too. The purpose is to place Designated Events again to again and to not jam a full-field occasion between two Designated Events. (We may want a shortened identify for this stuff. Dezzies? Some kinks to nonetheless work out.) That means prime execs who wish to add in-between occasions can achieve this freely. The Honda’s Designated sandwich gained’t occur.
3. We’ll see the prime gamers collectively extra typically.
This is form of the whole level — getting the finest gamers to play in opposition to one another in the greatest occasions. It’s robust for informal followers to maintain monitor of everybody on the PGA Tour, so presenting a top-tier product the place these prime execs play in opposition to one another extra typically is a win, with out query. That was the level of the Designated Events once they have been launched final yr and that is still the best argument of their favor.
4. The drama of qualifying will probably be unbelievable.
Context and stakes are each big-time winners right here. Last week’s Honda Classic would’ve been much more enjoyable understanding that winner Chris Kirk was enjoying his manner into the greatest occasions (and paydays). And understanding that Eric Cole was battling for a berth in the subsequent Designated Event would have added a layer of drama. There’s a dynamic component of promotion and relegation that appears promising for the whole system. It will preserve these full-field occasions must-watch down the stretch on Sunday, monitoring the battle whereas understanding the stakes.
5. The chase for Top 50 will get intense.
There was already loads of drama at the Wyndham Championship, the last occasion of the PGA Tour’s common season, as we waited to see who would crack the Top 125 and regain full Tour standing for the following season. Now? Turn that dial as much as 11. Players will probably be determined to get into the prime 70 in the FedEx Cup — the cutoff to make the playoffs — and the depth will solely ratchet up as execs vie for the prime 50 spots at the FedEx St. Jude Championship. Memphis’ playoff occasion turns into a big-time winner right here.
(Sidenote: As I perceive it, FedEx Cup factors will regulate subsequent yr to better signify energy of area in several occasions. But in the meantime, there will probably be some actual alternatives for what I’ll name “FedEx Cup Bandits” to pillage weaker fields. It’s a lot simpler to complete T20 at the Mexico Open than the elevated Wells Fargo Championship, for instance, however you’ll get the identical variety of FedEx Cup factors both manner. Interesting incentives to comply with!)
BAY HILL WINNERS
The column’s over — that is just the bonus part the place I’m providing you with picks for the week.
The stakes: $500,000 web {dollars} per week.
The format: One winner, one “lock”
The reminder: I’m not good at this.
The Winner: Patrick Cantlay, +2500 odds ($100k to return $2.6m).
Lock of the Week: Corey Conners to complete prime 20, +200 odds ($400k to return $1.2m)
Season whole: +$220,000.
The creator (cautiously) welcomes your suggestions at dylan_dethier@golf.com.
