PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said Wednesday that he envisions a future tour with two tracks of tournaments that potentially would relegate and promote golfers based on meritocracy within a revamped schedule, which would include more events in larger markets and a retooled postseason that might feature match play.
Rolapp, speaking to reporters at PGA Tour headquarters ahead of this week’s Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass, warned that the tour’s Future Competition Committee, which is being led by Tiger Woods, is still finalizing the plan and isn’t a “baked cake.”
Rolapp said none of the tour’s player-led boards have approved the plans. He said some changes could be implemented before the 2027 season, while others might have to wait until 2028.
“The committee’s focus has been on a competitive model built on meritocracy,” Rolapp said. “This is not a closed shop. We are aiming to create a more cohesive schedule with a simpler points system, one where the best players compete against one another more frequently.
“Fans know who the best players are. They are the players who perform best on the course. Our competitive model will be built around elevating those who prove themselves to be the top performers inside the ropes.”
Rolapp said six themes had emerged during the committee’s discussions on what the PGA Tour’s future might look like:
• The PGA Tour season would begin in late January and end in early September, before the NFL season kicks off. Future schedules would potentially include 21 to 26 tournaments within the first track of elevated events, in which top golfers would compete for the biggest purses.
The 2026 PGA Tour schedule includes 45 events, when counting the four majors, Players Championship, eight signature events, FedEx Cup playoffs and the FedEx Cup Fall.
• Rolapp said he envisions the number of signature events potentially doubling in future seasons.
• The Future Competition Committee wants to move away from smaller fields and no-cut signature events, which were introduced, in part, to keep top golfers from defecting to the rival LIV Golf League.
Rolapp said the tour’s marquee events in the future would potentially have 120-man fields with a 36-hole cut to provide fans with more consistency. “That consistency matters,” Rolapp said. “It helps fans know who they will see and showcases who they want to see: the most competitive players. It helps partners know what they are investing in, and it helps players better understand the competitive landscape in their schedules, all while embracing meritocracy.”
• Rolapp said the PGA Tour wants to open its season “big” with a marquee tournament on an iconic golf course, preferably on the West Coast, which would allow play to end in prime-time TV on the East Coast.
Traditionally, the PGA Tour has opened its season with two tournaments in Hawaii, but sources have told ESPN that future events there are in doubt because of logistics and rising costs.
This season, the Sentry at Kapalua was canceled because of drought conditions, so the season teed off with the Sony Open in Hawaii in Honolulu on Jan. 15-18.
Future seasons might start with a tournament at Torrey Pines, Riviera Country Club or Pebble Beach Golf Links in California or TPC Scottsdale in Arizona.
• The PGA Tour wants to play more tournaments in the country’s biggest media markets. Rolapp noted that the tour currently stages events in only four of the top 10 largest markets in the U.S.
He mentioned cities such as New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Washington and Boston as potential future sites.
“That is an opportunity,” Rolapp said. “Places where there is a strong fan demand for our sport and a chance to reach new fans.”
Rolapp said going to larger markets doesn’t mean the tour will abandon the smaller cities where it has traditionally played. “That is a misconception,” he said. “There is room for both.”
The second track of tournaments, held in the summer and potentially in the fall, would allow golfers to play their way into the 21 to 26 bigger events through promotion and relegation.
“There has been a lot of discussion about scarcity,” Rolapp said. “Ultimately, scarcity is not about the number of events we have. But rather, scarcity is about making every event we have matter. Applying elements of that approach to the PGA Tour creates real consequences, lifting the competitive standard across the entire platform.
Rolapp compared the potential merit-based system to the one used in English professional soccer, in which clubs move between the Premier and Championship leagues based on their results. He called it an “added element that we would bring to life in the second track of events.”
The relegation system would be a competitive system with standings that are “easy to understand,” Rolapp said.
“When you watch any one of those tournaments, you’ll know exactly what the stakes are,” he said.
“And for our members, the message is pretty simple: Play well and you earn the opportunity to compete in our biggest events and for more money.”
• A revamped FedEx Cup postseason would potentially include match play, perhaps at the season-ending Tour Championship or throughout the three postseason events.
“We have heard from our fans and our partners, they want more drama,” Rolapp said. “Bringing the win-or-go-home moments to the conclusion of our season.”
Rolapp said nothing about whether the postseason format, which the tour has revamped many times in the past, has been finalized, including whether East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta will remain the permanent site of the Tour Championship.
