- PGA Tour elevated events were established in 2023.
- The best players have agreed to play in all of them, with increased purses.
- There are a total of 17, including the four majors.
The PGA Tour has made some big changes over the past year, one of the most significant being increasing the prize money payouts for tournaments.
In the process, the PGA Tour has a new classification system for their tournaments, and with that comes a new term, “designated events.”
What Are PGA Tour Designated Events?
PGA Tour designated, or elevated, events are 17 tournaments throughout the year that will have all of the best players competing for increased purses.
Players who finished in the top 20 of the 2022 Player Impact Program (PIP) are required to play in the elevated events they are eligible to play in, although players are allowed to skip one over the course of the year.
Purses for these events have dramatically increased from a year ago to $20 million for most of them.
The change was made to have more tournaments where all of the top PGA Tour players are competing at the same time.
Designated events will still have their standard fields; the only difference is the top players are required to play.
PGA Tour Designated Events 2023
| Date | Designated Event | Purse | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan. 5-8 | Sentry Tournament of Champions | $15 million | Jon Rahm |
| Feb. 9-12 | Waste Management Phoenix Open | $20 million | |
| Feb. 16-19 | The Genesis Invitational | $20 million | |
| Mar. 2-5 | Arnold Palmer Invitational | $20 million | |
| Mar. 9-12 | The Players Championship | $25 million | |
| Mar. 23-26 | WGC Dell Technologies Match Play | $20 million | |
| Apr. 6-9 | Masters Tournament | TBD | |
| Apr. 13-16 | RBC Heritage | $20 million | |
| May 4-7 | Wells Fargo Championship | $20 million | |
| May 18-21 | PGA Championship | TBD | |
| June 1-4 | the Memorial Tournament | $20 million | |
| June 15-18 | U.S. Open | TBD | |
| June 22-25 | Travelers Championship | $20 million | |
| July 20-23 | Open Championship | TBD | |
| Aug. 10-13 | Fed Ex St. Jude Championship | $20 million | |
| Aug. 17-20 | BMW Championship | $20 million | |
| Aug. 24-27 | Tour Championship | TBD |
It is worth noting that the WM Phoenix Open, RBC Heritage, Wells Fargo Championship and Travelers Championship are designated events for 2023 only. These tournaments are not guaranteed to be designated events in 2024, as there’s a thought there could be a rotation.
Interestingly, two designated events — RBC Heritage and Travelers Championship — are the week following a major.
The schedule is set up so there will be plenty of meaningful golf played for eight straight months, and not just limited to the majors.
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