The First Look: Biltmore Championship Asheville

This week marks the inaugural Biltmore Championship Asheville, set to be played in a stunning setting of Asheville, North Carolina, near the Blue Ridge Mountains, where it’s the kick off to the FedExCup Fall underway – along with some important competitive-rep work for plenty who are set to head to Chicago for the Presidents Cup.

Here’s everything you need to know as the PGA Tour returns to Asheville for the first time since 1942.

FIELD NOTES: It’s Presidents Cup prep time for many this week as the PGA Tour returns to Asheville. Two on the American side – including 21-year-old Jackson Koivun and Jacob Bridgeman – are teeing it up along with five on the International side (along with Captains' Assistants Taylor Pendrith and Camilo Villegas). …Bridgeman is the top-ranked golfer in the field teeing it up while J.T. Poston is the second-highest on the OWGR. Poston, who won the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, has a special connection to the area, as he went to Western Carolina – less than an hour away from The Cliffs at Walnut Cove. … This weeks also marks the beginning of the FedExCup Fall, where the players who are inside the top 100 in the FedExCup standings after the next eight events will earn full PGA Tour status for 2027. Some notable around the bubble who are in the field include Tony Finau (No. 98), Billy Horschel (No. 100) and Lucas Glover (No. 101). … A pair of notable returns from injury are set for this week as David Ford will tee it up on the PGA Tour for the first time since April after navigating an ankle injury. Marco Penge is also back in action after detailing his “nightmare” season, he said this summer, going through both family and medical setbacks. Penge has one top-10 finish on the PGA Tour this season.

SPONSOR EXEMPTIONS: Brendan Valdes will tee it up this week after battling cancer for the last nine months. In January he was diagnosed with primary mediastinal lymphoma, but a PET scan determined he was cancer-free in early June. Valdes made all three cuts at the PGA Tour events he played last season after finishing second in the 2024 PGA Tour University class. … Carson Bertagnole is set to play his second Tour event this season after teeing it up at the Puerto Rico Open earlier this year. Bertagnole is a sophomore at the University of North Carolina and earned a spot by finishing second on the points list in the 2026 Elite Amateur Cup. He was the Ben Hogan Award Player of the Month in July and has one collegiate victory. … Tyler Jones,the reigning Southern Conference Men’s Golfer of the Year, will make his PGA Tour debut. Jones, a senior at Western Carolina, will become the first active men’s golfer from the school to ever compete in a Tour event. Jones had three wins in 2025-26, including at the J.T. Poston Invitational. He will share the field with the namesake of the aforementioned event. … Tyler Watts is back in action on the PGA Tour after making both cuts in events he played last season. Watts, who won the Northeast Amateur this summer, was part of the American side at the Walker Cup and is currently the second-ranked amateur in the world.

SIGNATURE EVENT STORYLINES: The Biltmore Championship Asheville marks the start of the FedExCup Fall. … With that, players are already set to jockey for position in the standings as Nos. 51-60 in the FedExCup Fall standings will make up the Aon Next 10 for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Genesis Invitational. … Pierceson Coody (No. 55) and Corey Conners (No. 59)are the two golfers inside the Nos. 51-60 standings who are teeing it up this week in North Carolina.

FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 FedExCup points

COURSE: The Cliffs at Walnut Cove, par 71, 7,249 yards. … This Jack Nicklaus design is routed through a valley of the Blue Ridge Mountains and sits at 2,000 feet above elevation. … It opened in 2005 beside the Pisgah National Forest and boasts rolling slopes surrounded by mountain ridges that creates natural amphitheatres. … Interestingly enough, look for the par 3s to tell the story this week as there are five of them on the scorecard.

72-HOLE RECORD: N/A (Inaugural event)

18-HOLE RECORD: N/A (Inaugural event)

How to follow (all times ET)

Special programming:

• "Road to the Presidents Cup": Get ready for the 2026 Presidents Cup with "Road to the Presidents Cup," a three-part series offering an inside look at everything leading into this year’s competition at Medinah Country Club. The series features unprecedented access to U.S. Team Captain Brandt Snedeker and International Team Captain Geoff Ogilvy, plus stories on the established stars, emerging faces and unique challenges shaping both teams — including Ogilvy’s role in reimagining this year’s host course.
  • Saturday, Sept. 19: 4 p.m. (NBC)
  • Sunday, Sept. 20: 2 p.m. (NBC)

Television:

• Thursday-Friday: 3-6 p.m. (Golf Channel)
• Saturday-Sunday:1-4 p.m. (Golf Channel)

PGA TOUR LIVE on ESPN App:

• Thursday-Friday: 7 a.m.-6 p.m.

PGA TOUR LIVE is available exclusively on ESPN App and consists of four streams

• Main feed (Stream 1): Primary tournament-coverage featuring the best action from across the course
• Marquee group (Stream 2):New "marquee group" showcasing every shot from each player in the group
• Featured groups (Stream 3):Traditional PGA TOUR LIVE coverage of two concurrent featured groups
• Featured holes (Stream 4):Combination of par 3s and iconic or pivotal holes

PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and free at PGATOUR.com/liveaudio:

• Thursday-Friday: noon-6 p.m.
• Saturday-Sunday:11 a.m.-4 p.m.