Unless you’ve been living under a rock or just returned from a 5-year expedition to Mars, you’ll know about the controversy surrounding LIV Golf, and the headache it’s caused for Jay Monahan and the PGA Tour.
When LIV was founded in 2021, it was backed by the Saudi’s $700 billion Public Investment Fund. While many golfers initially shunned the idea of joining what was to be ‘the best golf tour in the world’, the money soon started to talk.
And once the tide started to turn, it wasn’t long before some of the top names in the game were swept into the sea of cash.
For reference, it’s believed that Jon Rahm received a whopping upfront fee of $300 million. And while some of the other big names didn’t quite reach that number, they weren’t a mile off:
- Phil Mickelson: $100 million
- Dustin Johnson: $60 million
- Bryson DeChambeau: $60 million
- Brooks Koepka: $50 million
- Cameron Smith: $50 million
Now, until any of us have been in a position to turn down that kind of money, I don’t think we’re at liberty to judge their decisions.
That being said, we were more than capable of speculating how it might affect the wounded PGA Tour and what to maybe expect going forward to keep those who did remain, happy — an injection of cash and incentives.
So it didn’t come as a surprise to see the PGA Tour ‘revamp’ its model for the 2024 season in an attempt to deter further big names from leaving.
But what’s changed for 2025? Well, to be honest, not much.
The most notable change is the Jack Nicklaus Memorial Tournament, which has moved back to its traditional date in the build-up to the US Open. At the same time, the RBC Canadian Open has swapped dates again, moving to the week after the Memorial.
The season will include 36 regular-season events, including the 51st PLAYERS Championship, the four majors, eight Signature Events, 18 full-field, and five additional events.
The FedExCup Playoffs, comprising three events in August, will then culminate with the crowning of the FedExCup Champion at the TOUR Championship.
The schedule has also continued to attract full sponsorship, including a new seven-year partnership with Truist, renaming the Charlotte event in May the Truist Championship.
PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan commented on the success of the new schedule and competitive changes introduced in 2024, which resulted in stronger fields and more head-to-head competition among top players.
“The new schedule and competitive changes introduced in 2024 were significant steps toward creating the best version of the PGA Tour for our fans and players,” Monahan said.
“As we enter the second year of this reimagined schedule, one thing remains a constant — winning on the PGA Tour continues to rank among the most difficult and rewarding accomplishments in sport.”
The new Signature events will continue to offer increased FedExCup points for the winner (700, up from 500 for a standard PGA Tour event), while also including a larger percentage cut of 20% for the winners of The Genesis Invitational, The Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Memorial (set at 18% in the other five Signatures).
The signature events will include:
- The Sentry (Dec 30-Jan 5)
- AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (Jan 27-Feb 2)
- The Genesis Invitational (Feb 10-16)
- Arnold Palmer Invitational (Mar 3-9)
- RBC Heritage (Apr 14-20)
- Truist Championship (May 5-11)
- Memorial Tournament (May 26-Jun 1)
- Travelers Championship (Jun 16-22)
Eligibility for the events — starting after The Sentry — will include the top 50 players from the 2024 FedExCup standings, with additional pathways available throughout the season, such as the Aon Next 10 and Aon Swing 5, which provide opportunities for other top performers to qualify.
In 2024, 48 players — who didn’t finish in the top 50 of the previous year’s FedExCup Playoffs and Eligibility Points List — earned spots in at least one Signature Event through the pathways, highlighting the Tour’s desire to develop the inclusive and competitive nature of the new schedule.
So, although improvements were made to the schedule for 2024, it’s hardly been a myriad of changes for 2025. And with conversations still ongoing between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), it doesn’t look like we’ll see any major developments for at least another couple of years.
Dates for the 2025 FedExCup Regular Season and Playoffs:
January-February:
- The Sentry: December 30-January 5
- Sony Open in Hawaii: January 6-12
- The American Express: January 13-19
- Farmers Insurance Open: January 20-25
- AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am: January 27-February 2
- WM Phoenix Open: February 3-9
- The Genesis Invitational: February 10-16
- Mexico Open at VidantaWorld: February 17-23
- Cognizant Classic: February 24-March 2
March-April:
- Arnold Palmer Invitational: March 3-9
- Puerto Rico Open: March 3-9
- THE PLAYERS Championship: March 10-16
- Valspar Championship: March 17-23
- Texas Children’s Houston Open: March 24-30
- Valero Texas Open: March 31-April 6
- Masters Tournament: April 7-13
- RBC Heritage: April 14-20
- Corales Puntacana Championship: April 14-20
- Zurich Classic of New Orleans: April 21-27
May-July:
- THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson: April 28-May 4
- Truist Championship: May 5-11
- Myrtle Beach Classic: May 5-11
- PGA Championship: May 12-18
- Charles Schwab Challenge: May 19-25
- Memorial Tournament: May 26-June 1
- RBC Canadian Open: June 2-8
- U.S. Open: June 9-15
- Travelers Championship: June 16-22
- Rocket Mortgage Classic: June 23-29
- John Deere Classic: June 30-July 6
- Genesis Scottish Open: July 7-13
- ISCO Championship: July 7-13
- The Open Championship: July 14-20
- Barracuda Championship: July 14-20
- 3M Open: July 21-27
- Wyndham Championship: July 28-August 3
2025 FedExCup Playoffs:
- FedEx St. Jude Championship: August 4-10
- BMW Championship: August 11-17
- TOUR Championship: August 18-24
