Five Things to Know about the new season

The PGA TOUR schedule is about to change dramatically, with four new Elevated Events and the top players making an unprecedented commitment to square off more often.

The pathway to the PGA TOUR will be different, too.

There will also be an expanded Player Impact Program and a new Earnings Assurance Program to guarantee fully exempt PGA TOUR members earnings of at least $500,000 per year.

“Every single member of the PGA TOUR is going to benefit from the changes that we’re going to be making,” PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan said. “The TOUR is going to continue to grow by having the best players in the world committed to it, by us continuing to lean into and invest in our ethos, which is the single-best competitive platform.”

Here are 5 Things to Know About the New Season:

Top players will square off more often

The best players in the game have made a commitment to play against one another more often.

That means teeing it up at not just THE PLAYERS Championship and the majors – the PGA Championship will be at Oak Hill C.C. in Rochester, New York; the U.S. Open at L.A. Country Club; the Open Championship at Royal Liverpool (Hoylake) – but also the TOUR’s Elevated Events, of which there will be 12, up from eight.

The additional elevated Events, which will be named later and will have purses of at least $20 million, will join the Sentry Tournament of Champions, The Genesis Invitational, Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play and the three FedExCup Playoffs events – the FedEx St. Jude Championship, BMW Championship and TOUR Championship.

The increase in Elevated Events, and players’ commitment to play in them, will give fans more clarity about when the TOUR’s best will be competing. “We’ve all made a commitment to get together more often to make the product more compelling,” said Rory McIlroy, Player Director on the PGA TOUR’s Policy Board and the only three-time FedExCup champion.

The top players will also commit to three additional FedExCup events of their choosing.

Only 70 will make the FedExCup Playoffs

The PGA TOUR is already the most competitive platform in the game, but it’s about to get even tougher at the top. Reducing the field from 125 to 70 for the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the first stop in the three-week FedExCup Playoffs, will add a new layer of urgency and drama to the final weeks of the regular season, culminating with the Wyndham Championship.

Those top 70 players will also be fully exempt for the following year’s PGA TOUR season.

The BMW Championship, which will be played at Olympia Fields Country Club (North Course) outside Chicago, will feature only 50 players (from 70), and the season-ending TOUR Championship at East Lake in Atlanta will have a 30-man field, as per tradition.

This will be the last wraparound season

The wraparound season – beginning at the Fortinet Championship in September and ending at the TOUR Championship in August – began with the 2013-14 campaign. After a decade-long run it will end with The RSM Classic, Nov. 17-20, the last of a nine-week slate of tournaments that will take players from coast to coast and even overseas.

Fall action will begin with the Fortinet Championship at Silverado Resort & Spa in Napa, California. After a one-week pause for the Presidents Cup, the PGA TOUR moves to the Sanderson Farms Championship; Shriners Children’s Open; ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP in Japan; THE CJ CUP in South Carolina; Butterfield Bermuda Championship; World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba; Cadence Bank Houston Open; and The RSM Classic.

The PGA TOUR will return to a calendar-year schedule in 2024.

The pathway to the PGA TOUR is changing

For the first time in over a decade, TOUR cards will be available at Q School as the top five finishers and ties at Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament will go straight to the PGA TOUR.

“Bringing back the awarding of PGA TOUR cards at Q-School will be exciting for our fans, membership and potential new membership,” said Korn Ferry Tour President Alex Baldwin.

And that’s not all. The top 10 finishers on DP World Tour will get PGA TOUR cards, a product of the strategic alliance between the PGA TOUR and DP World Tour. And the top 30 in the season-long Korn Ferry Tour points race, not just the top 25, will be awarded PGA TOUR cards.

The Korn Ferry Tour season will end differently

The Korn Ferry Tour Finals will no longer be a competition between the top 75 players on the Korn Ferry Tour and Nos. 126-200 in the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup. Instead, the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, the last four events of the season, will feature increased money and points.

Also, the Korn Ferry Tour’s 26-event season will stretch into October to allow for more natural breaks and peak course conditions and give graduates time to prepare for the PGA TOUR.

“The additional TOUR cards available and reimagined Korn Ferry Tour Finals will more properly reward players for season-long success,” Baldwin said.