The PGA Tour season is almost underway.
We’re getting started a week later this year because the Sentry Tournament of Champions had to be canceled due to irrigation issues at Kapalua. Bummer. I love that event.
The first tournament will instead be the Sony Open in Hawaii, starting next Thursday, Jan. 15.
Dramatic changes could be coming to the Tour in future years but the 2026 calendar, through the Tour Championship, is set in stone.
The schedule and how the Tour operates will look familiar but there are a handful of tweaks beyond the year-opening event being axed. A few of those changes could be signals for what might be coming in future years.
The 2026 PGA Tour schedule
The signature events, majors and the Players Championship are in bold.
What will be looking different this year?
1. Miami is back on the menu
The facts: The Tour is headed back to Trump Doral. The Miami Championship, being played after the Zurich Classic, is a signature event that takes the place of the Mexico Open. It’s the first time the Tour has been back in Miami since 2016 when sponsorship issues drove them out.
Sean’s Take: It was only a matter of time before the Tour got back into the South Florida market (beyond its struggling Cognizant Classic at PGA National). Floridians know there aren’t a ton of suitable hosts for Tour events in the area so Trump Doral is the only obvious solution. It helps to have another signature event in between the Masters and PGA Championship, given how that has been a dead spot on the calendar.
2. Field sizes continue to be limited
The facts: Beginning in 2026, the maximum number of players in a full-field event will be 144, down from 156. There are two exceptions to that rule as The American Express (three-course host) and Genesis Scottish Open (co-sanctioned with DP World Tour) are keeping 156-player fields. Due to circumstances such as limited daylight, some events will have field sizes of 120 or 132. The Players Championship will be 120 players beginning in 2026—down from 144 last year.
Sean’s Take: There are some clear benefits here with pace of play. It’s ridiculous when the 36-hole cut doesn’t take place until Saturday because there is just too much traffic on the course. At the same time, I’m worried that continued reduction of fields will result in more no-cut events moving forward. Cuts are a great (and unique) part of golf. Also, this trend of limited fields speaks to the larger trend of cutting out middle-class Tour players.
3. Monday qualifying is being reduced
The facts: Three tournaments that have previously held Monday qualifying will no longer do so: the Sony Open, WM Phoenix Open and Cognizant Classic. Another three events—the Valspar Championship, Texas Children’s Houston Open and the Valero Texas Open—will see a reduction in available Monday qualifying spots. In total, 17 Monday qualifying spots are being taken away.
Sean’s Take: As the Tour’s middle class gets squeezed, giving members slightly better access to events makes sense. Reducing Monday qualifier spots—which could easily go to someone with no status—helps those who have conditional status and might get into the tournament as an alternate instead of having to battle it out against mini-tour pros. At the same time, Monday qualifiers are terrific and the storytelling around them is some of the best in golf. Look no further than the Monday Q Info Twitter account that has nearly 200,000 followers.
4. The Rocket Classic is shifting back to late July
The facts: The Rocket Classic, normally played in late June, is moving back one month to late July.
Sean’s Take: This could be helpful for both the Rocket Classic and the Tour. The post-Travelers Championship lull of previous years has been tough as the John Deere and Rocket events tend to be when everyone takes a couple of weeks off before the Scottish Open and Open Championship. Now the spacing is a little better. The Rocket Classic, now prior to the Wyndham Championship, might get a better field with players desperate to make the playoffs.
5. There is a big shakeup for the fall
The facts: There are a couple of new events sliding into the fall for next year as the Good Good Championship in Austin, Texas, and the Biltmore Championship in Asheville, N.C., are being added to the slate. The aforementioned Mexico Open is moving from February to the fall.
Sean’s Take: The fall season is still an afterthought for most golf fans but it’s great to see some new courses in the rotation. I’m excited to see the branding for the Good Good event.
So that is what is in store for 2026. Any thoughts? Let me know below in the comments.
Sam
6 months ago
Yes let’s make YouTube golfers think they are important and gimmick golf companies get more exposure.
Also, cutting the field to get rid of middle field golfers some of the bigger name golfers will moslty play in bigger tournaments and refuse to play 13+ tournaments a season.