New PGA Tour Schedule Mostly Back to Normal; Some Events Moved

We’ve already been though nine weeks of the 2022 PGA Tour Schedule, but until a couple of days ago, no one knew what the rest of the season would look like.

After two years of COVID influenced scheduling, things have finally settled down in the world of men’s professional golf.  Well, except for the HSBC WGC event which was supposed to be held in October. And the 3M and Rocket Mortgage move closer to the end, the better to increase the suspense of FedEx points.

The new year starts right away, January 3rd, with the Sentry Tournament of Champions at Kapalua, followed by the Sony Open.  Both tournaments are prime time golf from Hawaii.  Popcorn and flop shots.  What could be better? Then it’s back to the mainland for the West Coast swing, which is mostly in California.

Kicking things off is the American Express, where Phil Mickelson is the host of the event, bringing what Larry Bohannan, golf writer for the Palm Springs Desert Sun called a “big personality” to the tournament.  For certain, it has been difficult to fill the shoes of Bob Hope since his death, but Mickelson shows promise there, in a golfing sense at least.

Then, it’s a slam dunk over the Santa Rosa mountains to San Diego for the Farmer’s Insurance Open.  In an interesting twist, the tournament will finish on a Saturday so as not to conflict with the NFL AFC Championship on Sunday.

However, the golf will basically float into early prime time on the east coast for all rounds. Get your snacks ready. CBS will broadcast the tournament on Friday and Saturday, while Golf Channel will have it Wednesday and Thursday.

The final three west coast events are AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Waste Management Phoenix Open ( finishing same day as the Superbowl) and, finally, the Genesis Invitational at historic Riviera CC in Pacific Palisades, although everybody says Los Angeles.

In 2022, there is no WGC event to break up the West Coast and Florida Swing portions of the calendar.  That means immediately after the Genesis Invitational, hosted by Tiger Woods, it’s on to Florida and the Honda Classic which is chaired by Barbara Nicklaus. (You have to have been under a rock not to know that her husband happens to be Jack Nicklaus. And if you don’t know who he is, you were born on Mars or new to the country.)

It’s a legendary three weeks in a row, with the next Florida event being the Arnold Palmer Invitational.  Because it’s an invitational, it’s not a super large field, and so those who can’t get into the API or don’t qualify for it, can play in the Puerto Rico Open.

Immediately following is the Players, which last year was won by Justin Thomas. The eye-popping news of that event is the purse, which is now $20 million. Twenty.  It wasn’t so long ago that the entire purse for The Players was under $2 million.  That was in 1992, in case you are wondering.  Davis Love III won that year and took home $324,000. This year’s winner will rake in $3.6 million.  Wow, more than a ten-fold increase in 30 years.

Valspar follows Players, and then it’s on to Texas for two weeks to play the Dell Match play, one of the few WGC’s remaining on the calendar, and then the Valero Texas Open.  Last spring, that was won by Jordan Spieth, notching his first win since the 2017 British Open.

Now, trumpets please, it’s the second major of the season, the Masters. (Really, when a purse is $20 million and the winner gets $3.6 million, and all the big names have won it, how can The Players NOT be a major? If it’s not a major it’s major-league serious money, at least. $20 million?)

We know one big name probably will not play in the Masters.  That’s Tiger Woods. But there’s always 2023 or 2024, if he’s able to negotiate the hills.

The RBC Heritage annual coastal party at Hilton Head is always the week after the Masters, and they love hosting golfers who have had their brains fried by Augusta National.   Where the Masters is hilly, Harbour Town Golf Links is flat, flat, flat. The only hill on that course is the one created by railroad ties around the 13th green. Hilton Head is followed by the team event in New Orleans, the Zurich Classic.

Then the PGA Tour debuts a new event called simply the Mexico Open.  It will be held at Vidanta Vallarta in Vallarta, Mexico, which is on the western coast of the country, near Puerto Vallarta.

Then, it’s a quick hop to Charlotte for the Wells Fargo Championship where Rory McIlroy will defend.  His victory there last year broke an 18-month victory drought.  If he and his wife have any more children, one of them should be named Charlotte or at least Charl ( as in Schwartzel).

Sadly, there really is no Texas swing these days.  All the Texas events are broken up by other geography. There’s the ATT Byron Nelson in Dallas, then the PGA Championship at Southern Hills in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where the defending champ is Phil Michelson, followed by the final Texas tournament, the Charles Schwab Challenge at Ben Hogan’s favorite course, Colonial CC in Fort Worth.

The cool season grasses take over after Texas is done with The Memorial hosted by Jack Nicklaus and then Canadian Open, followed by the U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline, Massachusetts. At that point, there are only seven weeks before the FedEx Playoffs begin.

The Travelers is immediately after the U.S. Open, followed by the John Deere.  Many of those who are playing in the British Open take a charter, some to Scotland for their Open,  now sponsored by Genesis and a PGA Tour event, and those who aren’t, go to the Barbasol in Nicholasville, Kentucky. (If you can’t guess the kind of grass on the course in Kentucky, please call your local superintendent.  It should be a no brainer.)

Those who don’t play in Europe can get out of the summer heat by going to the Barracuda Championship just north of Lake Tahoe.

Then it’s the mad dash for FedEx points with only three regular season tournaments remaining, the 3M Open in Minneapolis, the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit and the Wyndham Championship in Greensboro. The 3M and Rocket Mortgage moved from July to August, but their position, closer to the end of the season will, no doubt, get the attention of FedEx point chasers.

At last, we reach the final three weeks, building to the Tour Championship.  First is the FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis, then the BMW Championship, this year in Wilmington, Delaware, where the purse is $15 million for each tournament.  Finally, it’s the Tour Championship presented by Coca Cola where someone backs up a bank vault and pays the winner of the FedEx Cup $18 million.