By Frank Pingue
June 23 (Reuters) - The PGA Tour announced on Tuesday sweeping changes to its competitive structure, approving a two-tiered system with promotion and relegation to take effect in 2028.
According to the U.S.-based circuit, the PGA Tour Championship Series and the PGA Tour Challenger Series will establish a true meritocracy with a formal structure for promotion and relegation.
The Championship Series will feature the top players competing head-to-head, driving a season narrative that identifies
the best golfer in the world.
The Challenger Series will be the primary pathway to the Championship Series offering players the chance to advance to the top of the sport.
"From day one, the focus of the Future Competition Committee has been to build the best version of the PGA Tour, and to do so in a way that reflects the voice of our players and the expectations of our fans,” PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said in a press release.
"The result is a new competitive model grounded in meritocracy, with clearer pathways, higher stakes and more consistency when the best players compete together."
The Championship Series will run from approximately February through August and feature 23-24 events with minimum purses of $20 million, including the four majors, Players Championship, season-ending events and team events like the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup. The fields will be 120 players, on average.
According to the press release, the PGA Tour said new markets under consideration for the remaining events yet to be filled on the Championship Series include Boston, Denver, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C.
Full eligibility criteria will be finalized by the PGA Tour later this year, including select additional exemptions for categories like tournament winners, medical extensions and career milestones. There will be no sponsor exemptions.
The Challenger Series, which will run concurrently to the Championship Series, will have a minimum of 20 events with $4 million purses and feature emerging talent along with players fighting their way back to the top. Fields will be filled to 144 players.
The new competitive structure introduces true promotion and relegation, with a minimum of 90 players retained on the PGA Tour Championship Series and 20 players promoted from the PGA Tour Challenger Series each season.
In addition, two-time winners on the Challenger Series will earn immediate promotion to the Championship Series. There will also be a “last chance” series of four-to-six events where a limited number of spots on the Championship Series for will be available.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
