\n\t\t\t\t\t\tTiger Woods said the objective was to create the best version of the PGA Tour. The answer Tuesday was a major shakeup to its model that effectively creates two tours, expanding the field for the elite tier and cutting in half prize money for the secondary tier.The new system is to start in 2028, and the Future Competition Committee that Woods leads still has work left on key details. Chief among them is which of the roughly 15 tournaments will be part of the \u201cChampionship Series,\u201d and the 20 events on the lesser \u201cChallenger Series.\u201dOther details involve bringing a form of match play to the postseason and creating a rotation of prestigious courses instead of going to East Lake in Atlanta every year.\u201cThis work was never about any one player or person,\u201d Woods said in his first public appearance since his arrest on a DUI charges on March 27. \u201cIt was about bringing together different perspectives, having honest, hard conversations, and thinking boldly about what is best for the game that we all love.\u201dThe PGA Tour boards on Monday afternoon approved the recommendations. Woods jumped back into his role as chairman the last several weeks upon his return from seeking treatment out of the country since his arrest.\u201cIt\u2019s great to see him back,\u201d PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said. \u201cTiger has been involved throughout the process. He\u2019s contributed meaningfully. It\u2019s awesome to see him back and in great form.\u201dRolapp preached \u201cscarcity, simplicity and parity\u201d when he took over last summer, and those pillars have become more clear. The season will be shorter \u2014 approximately February through August with some scheduled weeks off \u2014 without taking away playing opportunities.The $20 million signature events for 72 players now will be part of the Championship Series and expanded to 120 players on average. Players are not required to play them all and those tournaments will not have sponsor invitations or an alternate list. There will be a 36-hole cut.\u201cWhen fans tune into the PGA Tour Championship Series, they know they will see the best players in the world competing head-to-head,\u201d Rolapp said. He said it was important to credibility not to have sponsor exemptions because sponsors in other sports don\u2019t determine who plays. Steve Worthy, CEO of the Fore!Kids Foundation, producer of the tournament, made the following statement in response to the announcement today from the PGA Tour:\u201cWe obviously watched the Tour press conference, and the structure going forward was in line with what we\u2019d been told. We have a great title sponsor in Zurich, and we have been in conversations exploring all our options. We are proud of the success we\u2019ve had with our event, and we expect to match or exceed last year’s $3,600,000 in contributions to children\u2019s charities. We have dedicated Fore!Kids Foundation members and volunteers who have driven those record charitable dollars, a great fan base, and our team competition includes a great list of champions. Our record is strong and we are working hard with Zurich and the PGA Tour to be positioned in the best place possible for our future.\u201dAbout Fore!Kids Foundation: Since 1958, the Fore!Kids Foundation has raised money to fund children’s service organizations through golf events like the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and several charitable golf tournaments. In 2025, the Fore!Kids Foundation generated a record $3.6 million in charitable giving for children\u2019s charities in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge metro areas. Charitable contributions have been rising in recent years:\u00b7 $3.6 million in 2025\u00b7 Over $24.6 million to charities in last 10 years\u00b7 Over $55 million to charities since inceptionThe Challenger Series will be a path for players to earn their way to the top level. Those fields will be about 144 players, and Rolapp said purses would be at least $4 million. This year, all but three regular non-signature events had prize funds of at least $9 million.Except for about seven times during the season, the Championship and Challenger Series tournaments will be held the same week. Rolapp said on the occasion of a week off for the elite circuit, the Challenger Series event would be elevated.Rory McIlroy last week referred to the secondary tier as a \u201cglorified Korn Ferry event,\u201d referring to the tour\u2019s developmental circuit.\u201cI just think there\u2019s going to be certain events that might lose their status if a sponsor doesn\u2019t pony up $30 million,\u201d McIlroy said.Rolapp said he spoke to McIlroy on Tuesday \u2014 the Masters champion is skipping the Travelers Championship, the third signature event he has missed this year \u2014 and said the new model will serve the same player and offer a similar number of tournaments. Korn Ferry purses are $1 million.\u201cWe\u2019ve just organized the same tour into a much more interesting and competitive system,\u201d Rolapp said. \u201cIf you look at the Challenger Series events, they\u2019ll be at venues you recognize. They\u2019ll be for healthy purses. They\u2019ll include a subset of the same 200 and change players that we have today. That is much different than what the Korn Ferry Tour is today.\u201dEach tour will have a separate points standings and there is no plan for players to move up to the Championship Series during the season unless they were to win twice.The Championship Series eligibility would be determined by the top 90 players from the previous year, the top 20 players from the Challenger Series and other exemption categories for tournament winners, injuries or career milestones.Missing from the announcement was any mention of the FedEx Corp., the financial muscle behind the PGA Tour\u2019s postseason since it began in 2007. The most recent FedEx deal ends in 2027.\u201cOur hope is to create more value for FedEx and everybody else. We\u2019re in an existing contract, and we\u2019re going to honor that,\u201d Rolapp said.As for the fall, the PGA Tour is moving toward a separate series of four to six tournaments in which top performers can earn their way back to the Championship Series. The tour said it still has plans for the Korn Ferry Tour, PGA Tour Americas and the PGA Tour University ranking system that creates places for top college players.Finishing in August would give the elite players time to consider playing overseas, such as premier European tour events or the Australian Open. The PGA Tour recently became partners with Golf Australia without co-sanctioning the century-old event.\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tCROMWELL, Conn. \u2014 \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Tiger Woods said the objective was to create the best version of the PGA Tour. The answer Tuesday was a major shakeup to its model that effectively creates two tours<\/a>, expanding the field for the elite tier and cutting in half prize money for the secondary tier.<\/p>\n The new system is to start in 2028, and the Future Competition Committee that Woods leads<\/a> still has work left on key details. Chief among them is which of the roughly 15 tournaments will be part of the \u201cChampionship Series,\u201d and the 20 events on the lesser \u201cChallenger Series.\u201d<\/p>\n Other details involve bringing a form of match play to the postseason and creating a rotation of prestigious courses instead of going to East Lake in Atlanta every year.<\/p>\n