Prime PGA Tour golfers decide to play extra occasions; 12 tournaments to have purses averaging $20 million

ATLANTA — Prime gamers from the PGA Tour are committing to compete in no less than 20 occasions beginning subsequent season, together with 12 elevated tournaments that may have common purses of $20 million, commissioner Jay Monahan introduced Wednesday.

The gamers’ dedication comes on the heels of a players-only assembly that Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy hosted final week on the BMW Championship in an effort to rally the highest gamers across the PGA Tour throughout its ongoing combat towards the rival LIV Golf circuit.

“We have all made a dedication to get collectively extra usually to make the product extra compelling,” McIlroy mentioned on Wednesday. “I haven’t got a crystal ball, however I feel everybody in that room felt this was the easiest way to maneuver ahead.

“I feel in the event you’re making an attempt to promote a product to TV and to sponsors and to attempt to get as many eyeballs on skilled golf as attainable, you could no less than let folks know what they’re tuning in for. Once I tune right into a Tampa Bay Buccaneers sport, I anticipate to see Tom Brady throw a soccer. Once I tune right into a Components 1 race, I anticipate to see Lewis Hamilton in a automobile. Typically what’s occurred on the PGA Tour is all of us act independently and we type of have our personal schedules, and that implies that we by no means actually get collectively all that usually.”

On Wednesday, the PGA Tour introduced the addition of 4 elevated occasions with $20 million purses every, bringing the whole of elevated tournaments to 12 for subsequent season.

In the event that they’re eligible, prime gamers are committing to compete within the 4 new elevated occasions in addition to the 4 majors, the Gamers Championship, three FedEx Cup playoff occasions, Genesis Invitational (Riviera), Arnold Palmer Invitational (Bay Hill), Memorial Event, Sentry Event of Champions (Kapalua) and the WGC-Dell Applied sciences Match Play. Golfers may also commit to a few further PGA Tour tournaments of their selection in the course of the season.

“Our prime gamers are firmly behind the Tour, serving to us ship an unmatched product to our followers, who might be all however assured to see the perfect gamers competing towards one another in 20 occasions or extra all through the season,” Monahan mentioned throughout a information convention forward of this week’s Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Membership.

The PGA Tour can be doubling its Participant Affect Program from $50 million to $100 million in 2022 and 2023. It is going to reward the highest 20 gamers, elevated from 10, based mostly on measurement standards and information to reward gamers “who resonate most with our rising fan base.” Monahan mentioned the highest finisher in PIP would get $15 million.

The PIP standards will get rid of sure social media standards and increase “consciousness standards,” together with web searches, common consciousness, golf fan consciousness, media mentions and broadcast publicity.

The PGA Tour is also launching an Earnings Assurance Program for absolutely exempt members, which ensures a league-minimum wage of $500,000 per participant. Gamers receiving that cash should take part in 15 occasions. Rookies and returning members will obtain the cash firstly of the season.

For non-exempt members, those that had been ranked 126th to a hundred and fiftieth within the FedEx Cup factors standings and under, they’re going to obtain $5,000 for each missed minimize. The tour may also subsidize journey and tournament-related bills to these gamers.

LIV Golf officers responded to the PGA Tour’s adjustments in a press release, saying, “LIV Golf is clearly the perfect factor that is ever occurred to assist the careers {of professional} golfers.”

The PGA Tour had beforehand introduced it was dramatically rising the purses for a number of of its prime occasions, together with the Sentry Event of Champions ($15 million), Genesis Invitational ($20 million), Arnold Palmer Invitational ($20 million), the Gamers ($25 million), Memorial Event ($20 million) and WGC-Dell Applied sciences Match Play ($20 million), in addition to the three FedEx Cup playoff occasions: FedEx St. Jude Championship ($20 million), BMW Championship ($20 million) and Tour Championship ($75 million).