PGA TOUR Champions Announces 2019 Tournament Schedule

PGA TOUR Champions announced today the 2019 tournament schedule, featuring 27 events and culminating with the 30^th annual Charles Schwab Cup Championship. The 24-event Regular Season will again highlight the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs, which will be used to determine the season-long champion. The Tour will contest events in four countries and 19 states in its 40^th season, with total prize money of nearly $58 million.

“We are excited to announce the 2019 PGA TOUR Champions schedule as we continue to build unparalleled engagement for our fans and title sponsors who enjoy watching golf’s legends compete on some of the game’s best venues,” said PGA TOUR Champions President Greg McLaughlin.

The 2019 season will begin with the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai the week of January 14-19 (Saturday finish), where 2017 PGA TOUR Champions Rookie of the Year Jerry Kelly will be the defending champion.

The Tour will welcome a handful of new players next year, including two-time U.S. Open champion and 2019 World Golf Hall of Fame inductee Retief Goosen of South Africa, as well as two-time major champion Angel Cabrera of Argentina. World Golf Hall of Fame member Ernie Els, who turns 50 after the conclusion of the regular season, will have to wait until 2020 to make his official debut.

“I am excited to begin this new chapter in my career and eager to compete alongside my peers on PGA TOUR Champions,” said Goosen. “The level of competition on this Tour is incredible and creates great drama for fans around the world each week, and I cannot wait to be a part of it.”

In 2019, PGA TOUR Champions will welcome three new title sponsors to the annual schedule, including Hoag Hospital with the Hoag Classic (March 4-10), Mastercard with the Mastercard Japan Championship (June 3-9) and Bridgestone with the Bridgestone SENIOR PLAYERS Championship (July 8-14), which will be contested at Firestone Country Club’s South Course in Akron, Ohio.

The schedule of five major championships starts in May with the Regions Tradition in Birmingham, Alabama, where Miguel Angel Jimenez (2018) and Langer (2016, 2017) have claimed the three titles since the tournament moved to Greystone Golf & Country Club.

The U.S. Senior Open will be played at The Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame in June, while the season’s other three majors will be played at courses that have hosted PGA TOUR events, including Oak Hill Golf Club (KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship), Firestone Country Club (Bridgestone SENIOR PLAYERS Championship) and Royal Lytham & St. Annes (Senior Open Presented by Rolex).

The 24-event regular season will lead into the fourth-annual Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs, with the three-tournament series concluding at Phoenix Country Club for the third consecutive year.

Since 2001, the Charles Schwab Cup has been awarded to the winner of a season-long, points-based competition. Bernhard Langer is a four-time winner of the Charles Schwab Cup, while Jay Haas, Hale Irwin, Tom Lehman, Loren Roberts and Tom Watson have each won twice.

“The Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs have proven to be a tremendous success for our Tour, and our players have responded by providing incredible drama throughout these season-ending events as they chase the Charles Schwab Cup,” said McLaughlin.

The Tour’s lone Challenge Season event will be the PNC Father Son Challenge, which will return to the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club in Orlando, Florida, the week of December 2-8.

Each event in 2019 will be televised nationally in the United States, with most receiving coverage on Golf Channel, the Tour’s exclusive cable-television partner. Tournament programming is distributed in 190 countries and territories across more than 350 million potential households, with 40+ channels carrying long-form and/or highlights coverage and live coverage distributed in 100+ countries and territories across 120 million potential households. Four events will have broadcast 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).

The complete 2019 schedule for PGA TOUR Champions can be found at PGATOUR.com.

About PGA TOUR Champions: PGA TOUR Champions is a membership organization of professional golfers 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 2019, the PGA TOUR Champions schedule will include 27 tournaments across the United States, Japan, England and Canada, with purses totaling nearly $58 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 in excess of 190 countries and territories, reaching more than 330 million potential households. Follow PGA TOUR Champions online at PGATOUR.com, Facebook, Twitter (@ChampionsTour) and Instagram (@pgatourchampions).