Once Sentry Insurance became the official title sponsor of the PGA Tour’s event at Torrey Pines in San Diego, it was only a matter of time before it was designated as a stop in the Championship Series that will be inaugurated in 2028.
That time came on Wednesday, as the tour continued its schedule announcements, with the confirmation that The Sentry—formerly played as a signature event in Maui—will be a Championship Series tournament beginning in 2028 after it’s played as a full-field regular tournament in 2027.
After water issues on Maui forced the cancellation of The Sentry in 2026, the tour decided it would end its Hawaiian Swing, and the Sony Open has now become a PGA Tour Champions tournament.
Sentry, a highly valued tour sponsor that already was supporting the $20 million signature purses for the limited field at Kapalua, immediately targeted Torrey Pines for its continued involvement. The timing worked out perfectly, with Farmers Insurance opting out of further sponsorship after 17 years as the title in San Diego.
The Sentry dates for 2027 are for Wednesday through Saturday—Jan. 27-30 because of the NFL conference championship games—but for 2028 the schedule is expected to shift significantly. PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp announced in June that the tour will play an expected 15 Championship Series tournaments—not including majors, the Players Championship and international team events—from February through August.
With that, speculation about Torrey Pines’ place in the schedule has focused on it becoming the season-opening tournament, just as The Sentry was in Maui. The PGA Tour and Marty Gorsich, CEO of The Sentry and Century Club of San Diego, have said they cannot comment at this time on the ’28 schedule.
“It would sure seem that Torrey Pines is set up well,” Gorsich said in June when the deal between the tour, Sentry and Century Club was announced.
San Diego has held a PGA Tour event continuously since 1952 and Torrey Pines has been the host site since 1968.