DUBLIN, Ohio – Putting together the pieces of next year’s reimagined schedule is turning out to be as challenging as many imagined as evidenced by a “sample” of the 2024 lineup the PGA Tour is circulating to players and managers.
The sample schedule is a broad outline of what next year might look like as the circuit transitions back to a calendar year lineup and a better flow to the new designated-event structure.
According to the schedule that’s being circulated, the season begins with the Sentry Tournament of Champions (Jan. 4-7), followed by three full-field events (likely the Sony Open, The American Express and the Farmers Insurance Open). The Feb. 1-4 slot on the schedule is noted as a designated event and, according to various sources, will be the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, followed by the Genesis Invitational (Feb. 8-11), which is also a designated event.
In this Golf Channel Podcast, Rex and Lav break down the many pros and cons of the Tour’s proposed 2024 schedule.
Commissioner Jay Monahan told reporters earlier this month that the goal is to avoid leaving non-designated events isolated between designated events, like this year’s Honda Classic, and the three-week, elevated break after the Genesis Invitational would likely include the West Palm Beach, Florida, event (which has not named a replacement sponsor for Honda), an event in Mexico and a third tournament.
As was the case this year, the Arnold Palmer Invitational (March 7-10) and The Players Championship (March 14-17), both designated events, are followed by another three-week full-field swing (which would likely be the Valspar Championship, Houston Open and Texas Open) before the Masters (April 11-14). The week after the year’s first major (April 18-21) will be a designated event and will likely be the RBC Heritage.
The sample schedule features two weeks of full-field events before a designated event, May 9-12 (which is currently the Wells Fargo Championship), followed by the PGA Championship (May 16-19).
Perhaps one of the more dramatic changes to the current schedule would be the run up to the U.S. Open, which includes the Memorial, played June 6-9. Jack Nicklaus’ tournament has been played the week after Memorial Day (the last Monday of May) since the mid-1990s. The sample schedule features three consecutive designated events – Memorial, U.S. Open (June 13-16) and the Travelers Championship (June 20-23).
“Where we exactly are going to fit on the schedule, I’m not exactly sure,” Nicklaus said Tuesday at Muirfield Village. “I think there’s a method in the madness, you might say, that I think they know where they’re going and what they’re trying to do and what they’re trying to accomplish.”
The remainder of the schedule includes The Open Championship (July 18-21) sandwiched between a pair of three-event, non-designated-tournament swings before the playoffs begin with the FedEx St. Jude Championship (Aug. 15-18). The BMW Championship is scheduled for Aug. 22-25 followed by the season-ending Tour Championship (Aug. 20-Sept. 1).
Here’s a look at the sample schedule’s skeleton, with only majors and select designated events specifically listed.