PGA TOUR Canada: A timeline of events

TORONTO, Canada—At PGA TOUR Canada headquarters in November 2019, it was seemingly business as usual. After finishing its season two months earlier, the Tour had secured six Qualifying Tournament sites and was ready to announce its Q-School schedule in advance of the 2020 regular season—anticipated to be the eighth in Tour history. The looming coronavirus pandemic was on executives’ respective radars, as Tour officials stayed in constant contact with PGA TOUR headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Still, the Tour moved ahead with its 2020 plans until the global pandemic eventually forced PGA TOUR Canada to cancel its 2020 season and greatly change the makeup of its 2021 campaign because of travel issues at the Canada-U.S. border. As PGA TOUR Canada prepares to resume play in 2022—the Tour very much looking like it did between 2013 and 2019, here is a timeline of what has transpired since the coronavirus known as COVID-19 changed the world’s landscape and significantly affected PGA TOUR Canada.

November 14, 2019

PGA TOUR Canada announces its 2020 Qualifying Tournament schedule, featuring six tournaments in four states plus British Columbia, with the first tournament set for February.

February 21, 2020

Blake Elliott wins PGA TOUR Canada’s first Qualifying Tournament, capturing a one-shot victory at the 72-hole event at TPC San Antonio’s AT&T Canyons Course. Thirty-nine additional players earn PGA TOUR Canada membership.

March 6, 2020

PGA TOUR Canada holds its second Qualifying Tournament, with American Isaiah Salinda winning at Mission Inn Resort and Club in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida. Thirty-nine other players pick up PGA TOUR Canada status.

March 12, 2020

After the first round of the PGA TOUR’s flagship tournament, THE PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass, Commissioner Jay Monahan cancels the tournament due to concern surrounding the spread of COVID-19.

March 14, 2020

With three rounds already played at the PGA TOUR Canada Qualifying Tournament in Dothan, Alabama, the Tour completes the final round at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at Highland Oaks, with Cameron Young taking medalist honors. No fans are allowed on the course. An additional 40 players also earn membership coming out of Dothan, but the status of play in Canada is immediately called into question. 

March 15, 2020

PGA TOUR Canada postpones the remaining four Qualifying Tournaments and notifies players about potential makeup dates. 

March 17, 2020

PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan announces the TOUR is canceling four additional tournaments—the RBC Heritage, the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, the Wells Fargo Championship and the AT&T Byron Nelson. 

April 24, 2020

The PGA TOUR announces that PGA TOUR Canada Executive Director Todd Rhinehart accepted an identical position overseeing PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, with Scott Pritchard replacing Rhinehart and taking over as PGA TOUR Canada’s new Executive Director. 

May 29, 2020

With continued concern about the worldwide pandemic and travel restrictions into Canada, PGA TOUR Canada cancels its 2020 season. “With growing uncertainty surrounding the border and the 14-day quarantine regulations, among other factors, we’ve weighed all of our options and concluded that it is not feasible to play this summer,” said Executive Director Scott Pritchard.

July 10, 2020

PGA TOUR Canada announces the four-tournament Canada Life Series for players already living in Canada.

July 14, 2020

The PGA TOUR creates the LOCALiQ Series, a set of eight 72-hole tournaments in the Southeastern U.S. designed as competitive and money-making opportunities for PGA TOUR Canada, PGA TOUR Latinoamérica and PGA TOUR Series-China members unable to play on their home tours. The tournaments are held in Georgia (four), Florida (three) and Alabama (one).

August 5, 2020

The LOCALiQ Series makes its debut with the Alpharetta Classic at The Golf Club of Georgia in the Atlanta suburb. It’s the first of two tournaments in Alpharetta, with eventual Player of the Year Bryson Nimmer winning both events. 

August 12, 2020

Evan Holmes wins the first Canada Life Series tournament, at Bear Mountain Resort, a two-shot win over Zach Anderson.

September 11, 2020

Canadian amateur Laurent Desmarchais wins the final Canada Life Series tournament at TPC Toronto, while China’s Yi Cao wins the overall points title and with it a berth in the 2021 RBC Canadian Open.

November 20, 2020

David Pastore wins the season-ending LOCALiQ Series Championship at TPC Sugarloaf in Duluth, Georgia. The victory earns Pastore a playing spot in the PGA TOUR’s 2021 Barbasol Championship, while Carson Young, No. 2 on the overall Points List, is invited to the 2021 Puerto Rico Classic and overall points leader Bryson Nimmer accepts an invitation to the RBC Canadian Open. 

December 14, 2020

The Chief Public Health Officer of Canada issues an official statement that reads, in part, “we are tracking a range of epidemiological indicators to monitor where the disease is most active, where it is spreading and how it is impacting the health of Canadians and public health, laboratory and healthcare capacity.” The office also reports the number of COVID-19 cases in the country (460,743) and deaths (13,431). 

January 8, 2021

Optimistic at the prospects of conducting a business-as-usual season after a one-year hiatus, the Tour announces its 2021 Qualifying Tournament schedule, in six U.S. cities and a seventh in British Columbia.

February 26, 2021

PGA TOUR Canada conducts the first of seven proposed Qualifying Tournaments for prospective members, with Colombia’s Camilo Aguado taking medalist honors at The Club at Weston Hills in South Florida. It will visit six more states, holding Qualifying Tournaments between March 2 and June 11. Medalists are Luis Gagne (Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida); Keenan Huskey (Dothan, Alabama); Jeffrey Kang (San Jacinto, California); Clay Feagler (Litchfield Park, Arizona); Patrick Cover (Pine Mountain, Georgia); Callum Davison (DuPont, Washington).

March 9, 2021

The PGA TOUR and Golf Canada jointly announce the RBC Canadian Open is canceled for a second consecutive year. “We’ve worked so incredibly hard to work through every challenge and every obstacle that COVID-19 has thrown at us for hosting a major event and unfortunately we’ve just run out of time,” said Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum.

April 22, 2021

The PGA TOUR announces the cancellation of PGA TOUR Canada but creates the U.S.-based Forme Tour for 2021 PGA TOUR Canada members. All 2019 PGA TOUR Canada members who retained their playing privileges and all players who earned status at the 2021 Qualifying Tournaments will make up the Forme Tour membership. 

June 10, 2021

PGA TOUR Canada announces it will conduct an eight-tournament season for players already living in Canada and not affected by the crossing-the-border issues related to COVID-19. It will be known as the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada.

June 13, 2021

The PGA TOUR conducts the Palmetto Championship at Congaree in South Carolina as a replacement tournament for the canceled RBC Canadian Open. Unable to play in Canada’s national open, Bryson Nimmer, who qualified to play via his LOCALiQ Series performance, plays at Congaree and ties for 35th. Yi Cao’s RBC Canadian Open 2021 invitation is held in abeyance until the tournament returns to the PGA TOUR schedule.

June 26, 2021

The Forme Tour debuts with the L&J Golf Championship at Jennings Mill Country Club outside Athens, Georgia. Samuel Saunders wins the inaugural title.

July 29, 2021

The first event of the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season, the Mackenzie Investments Open, takes place in Blainville, Quebec. Brendan Leonard holds on for a two-shot win over Sudarshan Yellamaraju.

September 10, 2021

The Forme Tour completes its first and only year, with Brad Miller winning the Forme Tour Championship near Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and Trevor Werbylo taking the overall points title to earn 2022 Korn Ferry Tour membership along with nine others. The top-60 players from the Points List are exempt to play on PGA TOUR Canada in 2022.

October 3, 2021

After a disappointing summer performance on the Forme Tour, Callum Davison returns to Canada to finish his year playing on the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada. Davison wins twice to secure the Points List title and an exemption on 2022 PGA TOUR Canada. The season-ending Reliance Properties DCBank Open presented by Times Colonist belonged to Blair Bursey, who secured the Points List second spot.

December 28, 2021

PGA TOUR Canada announces its seven-tournament Qualifying Tournament schedule to establish membership beyond the 60 players who earned status playing on the 2021 Forme Tour. The U.S.-based Qualifying Tournaments will run from February 15 to April 22, with the Canada-based qualifier at Crowne Isle Resort and Golf Club in Courtenay, British Columbia.