Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship: How to watch, pre-tournament notes, storylines, more

The Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship returns to Ohio State University Golf Club's Scarlet Course in Columbus, Ohio, as one of the premier events on the Korn Ferry Tour. The tournament was named the 2025 Tournament of the Year, while Nationwide Children's Hospital was recognized as the 2024 Charity of the Year at the annual Korn Ferry Tour Tournament Awards.

John VanDerLaan will return as the defending champion after his victory in 2025. VanDerLaan's winning total of 267 tied the tournament's 72-hole scoring record, which was also set by David Lingmerth in 2022 and Adam Svensson in 2021.

The Scarlet Course has consistently ranked among the most challenging venues on the Korn Ferry Tour, finishing among the top five toughest courses nine times since the tournament's inception in 2007. The course has proven to be a launching pad for future PGA Tour success, with nine past champions going on to earn PGA Tour titles.

Notables in the field

• Two-time Korn Ferry Tour winner Ian Holt stands No. 3 on the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour Points List and has secured his PGA Tour card for the 2027 season. The Stow, Ohio, native played four seasons at Kent State University (2014-18), earning a 2018 All-America Second Team laurel and back-to-back Mid-American Conference Golfer of the Year awards in 2017 and 2018.
• Maxwell Moldovan, a Uniontown, Ohio, native, finished No. 20 in the PGA Tour University Class of 2024 after four seasons at Ohio State University (2020-24), earning All-America honors in 2022 (Third Team) and 2023 (Second Team). Moldovan stands No. 74 on the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, following his second-best finish of the season at the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation (T15).
• Alvaro Ortiz captured his second victory of the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour season at last week's Simmons Bank Open, becoming the fifth player to be declared TourBound and assured of PGA Tour membership for the 2027 season. The Guadalajara, Mexico, native earned his first career victory earlier this season at the UNC Health Championship, defeating Ross Steelman in a playoff.
• Sandy Scott climbed to No. 13 on the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour Points List after his runner-up finish at the Simmons Bank Open, marking the best result of his career. Scott's runner-up marked his second consecutive top-five finish, following his T4 at the AdventHealth Championship. In total, Scott owns three top-10 finishes in 16 starts this season with one missed cut.
• Yuta Sugiura stands No. 18 on the 2026 Korn Ferry Tour Points List. Sugiura birdied his final three holes (Nos. 16-18) of the AdventHealth Championship to claim a one-stroke victory over Austin Hitt and his first Korn Ferry Tour title. The Aichi, Japan native followed up his breakthrough win with a T6 finish at the Simmons Bank Open. Prior to the Korn Ferry Tour, Sugiura was a three-time winner on the Japan Golf Tour.

How to follow (all times ET)

Television:

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

Tournament history

• The Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship is one of the premier Korn Ferry Tour events, as it was named the 2025 Tournament of the Year, and Nationwide Children's Hospital was recognized as the 2024 Charity of the Year at the annual Korn Ferry Tour Tournament Awards.
• Ohio State University Golf Club's Scarlet Course has ranked among the top five toughest courses on Tour (measured by scoring average relative to par) nine times since 2007, the first playing of the event: 2007 (No. 3), 2008 (No. 5), 2009 (No. 5), 2010 (No. 5), 2013 (No. 4), 2014 (No. 1), 2015 (No. 3), 2023 (No. 2), 2025 (No. 4).
• Nine past champions have gone on to earn PGA Tour titles: Bill Lunde (2008), Derek Lamely (2009), Harris English (2011), S.Y. Noh (2013), Justin Thomas (2014), Grayson Murray (2016), Robert Streb (2018), Scottie Scheffler (2019) and Adam Svensson (2021).
• Justin Thomas and Scottie Scheffler, the 2014 and 2019 winners of the Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship, both went on to win THE PLAYERS Championship, with Thomas winning in 2021 and Scheffler capturing back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024.
• Daniel Summerhays (2007) and Harris English (2011) are two of the three amateurs to win a Korn Ferry Tour event since the Tour's inaugural season in 1990.

Tournament facts

• Course: Ohio State University Golf Club (Scarlet Course)
• Scoring records:
  • 18-hole: 62, David Lingmerth (2022/Round 1), John VanDerLaan (2025/Round 1)
  • 72-hole: 267, Adam Svensson (2021), David Lingmerth (2022), John VanDerLaan (2025)
• Defending champion: John VanDerLaan

Note: Using player performance data from ShotLink powered by CDW, the PGA Tour has created this story using AWS Gen AI technology. While we strive for accuracy and quality, please note that the information provided may not be entirely error-free.