PGA TOUR Champions announced the 2018 tournament schedule, featuring 27 official tournaments and two "Challenge Season" events. The 24-event Regular Season will again give way to the third annual Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs, which will be used to determine the season-long Charles Schwab Cup champion. The Tour will contest events in three countries and 20 states, with total prize money of $56.6 million.
The 2018 season will feature two new events, with The Ally Challenge marking the PGA TOUR's return to Warwick Hills Golf & Country Club in Grand Blanc, Mich., the week of September 10-16, and the Sanford International contested the following week (September 17-23) at Minnehaha Country Club in Sioux Falls, S.D.
In addition to the new tournaments in Grand Blanc and Sioux Falls, the Tour will welcome two new title sponsors to the 2018 schedule – Exact Sciences and Rapiscan Systems, Inc.
“We are excited to welcome Ally Financial, Sanford Health, Exact Sciences and Rapiscan Systems to the PGA TOUR family, beginning in the 2018 season,” said PGA TOUR Champions President Greg McLaughlin. “PGA TOUR Champions benefits greatly from our many corporate partners and stakeholders, and through their engagement and accessibility, our players deliver tremendous value for our titles sponsors and fans during tournament week.”
Exact Sciences announced its title sponsorship of the PGA TOUR’s longtime stop in Tucson, which began with the Tucson Open from 1945 through 2006 before becoming an official PGA TOUR Champions event in 2015. The Cologuard Classic will be held at Omni Tucson Resort the week of February 26-March 4, which is two weeks earlier than the tournament’s traditional mid-March date.
Rapiscan Systems, Inc., will assume the title sponsorship of the annual stop at Fallen Oak Golf Club in Biloxi, Miss. The Rapiscan Systems Classic will be contested in late March.
In addition to the new tournaments and title sponsors, seven PGA TOUR winners will turn 50 in 2018 and begin play on PGA TOUR Champions, highlighted by 2011 Open Championship winner Darren Clarke. Clarke, who competed in five Ryder Cups and captained the 2016 European Team to victory, will turn 50 on August 14. The three-time TOUR winner headlines a rookie class that also includes Chris DiMarco, Dudley Hart, Robert Gamez and Brent Geiberger.
The season will begin with the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai, set for the week of January 15-20 in Ka’upulehu-Kona, Hawaii. The Toshiba Classic returns to the Tour’s calendar next year with a move from October back to March. The event, which will again be held at Newport Beach Country Club, will be played March 5-11.
The Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs will highlight the 2018 season, featuring a 72-player field for the Dominion Energy Charity Classic at The Country Club of Virginia’s James River Course (Oct. 15-21), a 54-player field for the PowerShares QQQ Championship at Sherwood Country Club (Oct. 22-28) and a 36-player field for the season finale at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, which returns to Phoenix Country Club (Nov. 5-11) for a second consecutive year.
DATE | PLAYOFF EVENT | HOST COURSE | LOCATION |
Oct. 15-21 | Dominion Energy Charity Classic | The C.C. of Virginia | Richmond, Va. |
Oct. 22-28 | PowerShares QQQ Championship | Sherwood C.C. | Thousand Oaks, Calif. |
Nov. 5-11 | Charles Schwab Cup Championship | Phoenix C.C. | Phoenix, Ariz. |
In 2016, World Golf Hall of Fame member Bernhard Langer claimed an unprecedented fourth Charles Schwab Cup title after putting forth a dominant four-win season on PGA TOUR Champions. Langer enters this week’s Charles Schwab Cup Championship at No. 1 in the standings, thanks to seven victories, including three major championship titles.
“The Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs have been a great success through two years, and we are looking forward to building on that foundation in 2018,” said McLaughlin. “Our players understand the importance of the regular season while continuing to focus their efforts around winning the Charles Schwab Cup.”
The five major championships on PGA TOUR Champions will kick off with the Regions Tradition, which returns to Greystone Golf & Country Club in Birmingham, Ala., the week of May 14-20. The KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship will be contested the following week at Harbor Shores Golf Club in Benton Harbor, Mich., for the fourth time in the last seven years.
The final three major championships of 2018 will again be held during a five-week stretch in the summer, beginning with the U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor Resort in Colorado Springs, Colo., the week of June 25-July 1. The Constellation SENIOR PLAYERS Championship will move to Illinois for the first time the week of July 9-15, with Exmoor Country Club outside of Chicago set to host the year’s fourth major.
The Senior Open Championship presented by Rolex will be held on the Old Course at St. Andrews for the first time the week of July 23-29. The Old Course has hosted The Open Championship 29 times, including in 2015 when Zach Johnson earned his second major championship title.
DATE | MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP | HOST COURSE | LOCATION |
May 14-20 | Regions Tradition | Greystone Golf & C.C. | Birmingham, Ala. |
May 21-27 | KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship | Harbor Shores G.C. | Benton Harbor, Mich. |
June 25-1 | U.S. Senior Open | The Broadmoor Resort | Colorado Springs, Colo. |
July 9-15 | Constellation SENIOR PLAYERS Championship | Exmoor C.C. | Highland Park, Ill. |
July 23-29 | Senior Open Championship p/b Rolex | St. Andrews (Old Course) | Fife, Scotland |
The schedule will feature two “Challenge Season” events, beginning with the Diamond Resorts Invitational the week of January 12-14, with the PNC Father Son Challenge contested December 15-16.
Each event in 2018 will be televised nationally in the United States, with most receiving coverage on Golf Channel, the Tour’s exclusive cable-television partner that reaches some 80 million homes in the United States. Four events will have network coverage on the weekend (NBC: KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, Senior Open Championship presented by Rolex, PNC Father Son Challenge; FOX: U.S. Senior Open).
For more information on PGA TOUR Champions, please visit PGATOUR.com.
ABOUT PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS: PGA TOUR Champions is a membership organization of golf’s most recognizable and accomplished players, age 50 and older, including 35 members of the World Golf Hall of Fame. The Tour’s mission is to provide financial opportunities for its players, entertain and inspire its fans, deliver substantial value to its partners, create outlets for volunteers to give back and generate significant charitable and economic impact in tournament communities. In 2017, the PGA TOUR Champions schedule includes 26 tournaments in 18 states, Japan, Wales and Canada, with purses totaling more than $55 million. The Charles Schwab Cup, which includes the Regular Season and the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs, is used to determine the season-long champion. All events are televised in the United States, with most receiving complete coverage on Golf Channel, the exclusive cable-television partner of PGA TOUR Champions. Internationally, telecasts air live, tape-delayed or in a highlights-package format in excess of 190 countries and territories, reaching more than 330 million potential households. The PGA TOUR's web site is PGATOUR.COM, the No. 1 site in golf, and the organization is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Follow PGA TOUR Champions at facebook.com/PGATOURChampions, on Twitter @ChampionsTour and on Instagram @pgatourchampions.
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