In recent weeks, some have suggested several ways to “fix” or “reboot” or “save” the PGA Championship, and I'm unsure why this topic continues to be a thing on various golf websites and podcasts.
As a PGA Professional, this is my championship. Save for a few extremely rare scenarios in the past, professionals are the only contestants in the field – no amateurs.
By the numbers, it is the strongest field of the year, and its May date serves as somewhat of an "unofficial" start of summer. There have been many fan-oriented initiatives over the years, like all-inclusive food and beverage this year at Quail Hollow, and fan voting on a Sunday hole location.
So, what is all the fuss about?
For starters, The Masters is an event steeped in tradition and carries a certain status. But it is not the championship of anything, and there is no qualifying.
The U.S. Open is known for its extremely difficult course setup, sometimes going too far, but is our national championship.
The Open Championship is known for its linksland courses and, on many occasions, its extreme weather conditions. The courses, conditions, and sometimes the difference in time zones create a bit of a disconnect with a U.S.-based audience, but it is a championship.
What about the PGA?
Just like the U.S. Open and the British, it's the championship of the PGA of America. Like the amateur component to The Masters and the players who navigate qualifying for the U.S. Open and The Open, there are the 20 club pros competing, having qualified via the PGA Professional Championship. Many PGA venues have also hosted U.S. Opens.
Let us look at some of the "fixes" suggested by my fellow pundits.
Change the format back to match play
This idea might seem decent, as it would be a different than the other three majors. And it actually was the format until 1957.
But I have a hard time seeing it happen. The PGA of America owns the PGA Championship, the U.S. side of the Ryder Cup, and several other events, with the PGA Championship being its main source of revenue.
If there were only eight, four, two, or whatever number of groups on the course, they realistically could only allow for so many spectators on the grounds, which could severely limit ticket sales, an issue the PGA Tour is wrestling with as it pertains to the Tour Championship format.
Thursdays and Fridays having 156 players, and Saturdays and Sundays having 60-plus players on the course allows for a larger ticketed attendance.
Play the PGA Championship outside the U.S.
As a fan, this is an idea I could get behind.
I would thoroughly look forward to seeing Royal Melbourne, Valderrama, or Fancourt Links with a major field on a major championship setup, as it seems we only truly see it during the match-play format of the Ryder Cup or President’s Cup.
Realistically, it will not happen, as all PGA of America events MUST be played at a facility with a PGA of America member affiliated with the club. For example, you may have heard of the bureaucratic nightmare the PGA of America had getting a PGA Professional role created and a member hired at Bethpage ahead of the 2019 PGA Championship.
Logically though, outside the U.S., the PGA of America would struggle to find a suitable venue with a PGA of America member affiliated.
There are some scattered across the world, but most are either at golf courses on U.S. military bases, not venues that could be opened to large numbers of spectators or at facilities immediately outside U.S. borders, like the Caribbean, Canada, or Mexico.
While those venues might be interesting, and would technically be international, I cannot imagine it would be well-received to be so close. Remember when the International Team hosted the Presidents Cup at Royal Montreal? Playing a five-hour drive from Syracuse, New York, whose home game was it?
Move the date back to August
Again, as a golf fan, I could reasonably understand this one.
The Open in mid-July seems a bit early for the majors to be done for the year, unless it is an Olympic year. As a PGA Professional, however, the PGA Championship telecast is a wonderful advertisement for the PGA Junior League, various programming, camps, clinics, instruction, and anything else I do to grow the game.
If the dates are in May, registration is ongoing or just starting. If the dates are in August, everything is pretty much done, unless I can manage to do something in the fall after school starts back.
I wrote more about this here, but I personally like the May dates. In addition to what I just wrote, there is a potential likelihood we could see a host venue in the Southeast or Southwest before the summer heat truly kicks in.
August is too hot for the vast majority of the country, and September can also be too hot. Remember the oppressive heat on the rescheduled dates for the Chevron Championship at Mission Hills in 2020?
On the other hand, “Glory’s Last Shot” and “The Season’s Final Major” were taglines surrounding the August dates, and ones that made sense. Being at the end of the summer and near the start of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, there was a sense of finality to what we were watching, but it loses that feel in May. It does feel, to me, that there is a lack of identity currently in May.
I read someone suggested playing in September or October. As a golfer, I could understand that thinking as the summer heat has definitely broken by then. Northern venues are almost completely out of the picture, either due to temperatures or lack of daylight.
As for more southern venues, could an event really compete against high school or college football or the NFL? Doubtful. To me, players would like it, but that is about it.
No more PGA Tour venues hosting majors
This one is tricky, and one I wrote more about here.
For me, and apart from Augusta, part of the allure of a major championship is seeing an unfamiliar venue. Quail Hollow’s normal date on the Tour schedule was one week earlier than this year's PGA Championship’s date.
It was a bit different in 2017 when Quail Hollow made its appearance three months later at the old August date, but we still saw a recognizable venue. If we make such a declaration about not using Tour venues, we also cannot use Riviera (host of the 2031 U.S. Open), Torrey Pines, Pebble Beach, or any other Tour venues.
As mentioned, the PGA of America is looking for a venue that will generate revenue. The recent Championships at Quail Hollow and Valhalla were well attended and, as tacky as it might sound, generated plenty of revenue.
They seem to have success in the venues they have found. Will that translate to the future sites of Aronomink, Fields Ranch at PGA Frisco, Olympic, Baltusrol, and Congressional remains to be seen.
The tournament lacks consistency
As both a fan and a PGA Professional, I can agree with this sentiment.
Xander Schauffele finishing at 21-under in 2024 and Jason Day finishing at 20-under in 2015 seem to lack a major feel about it compared to Justin Thomas finishing at 5-under in 2022 and Phil Mickelson finishing at 6-under in 2021.
How venues are decided is complex, and something I wrote about here, but the setup itself follows a basic formula: “down, back, and up.” That is mow the greens down, move the tees back, and grow the rough up.
Unlike the U.S. Open, the PGA is generally satisfied at this stage. If the players go low, they go low, and it's often said the PGA gets setups “right” when compared to the U.S. Open.
What are more realistic improvements?
I would like to see the PGA Championship visit venues that are interesting to a television viewer, not just those on-site.
Florida is vastly underrepresented in hosting majors, as is the entire Southeast, except for Atlanta. A number of “trendy” golf courses have opened or been renovated in the last decade or so, and I would like to see the PGA visit those at least once in a while. Some are The Keep at McLemore, Bandon Dunes, Streamsong, and Pinehurst courses not named No. 2
We have a solid, and somewhat unfamiliar, venue in Aronimink in 2026 that should be fun to watch.
I am deeply concerned about the 2027 event at Fields Ranch at PGA Frisco, but I am hopeful I am wrong. The par-5 18th is not a great hole, much less to be a finisher. For all eyes, cameras, and players to have that as a lasting memory feels a bit like playing with fire.
Steve Stricker won the 2023 Senior PGA hitting a hybrid off the 18th tee all four days, and when Ben Polland won the 2024 PGA Professional Championship, he hit an iron off the tee on the 72nd hole. Not a great look. If the telecast can focus on the facility itself, it would do wonders; if the entire focus is on the finisher, I will be concerned.
In the end, the PGA Championship does what the PGA of America wants. It stages its championship, promotes the Association and its upcoming summer programming, and is a major revenue generator. Players play a course with a challenging setup, but with an opportunity for someone to get hot.
Other than discussing venues, leave it as it is.