10 Things to Know About the PGA Tour’s Rumored Elite Series

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Rory McIlroy reacts to his shot from the 12th tee as Justin Thomas and Tiger Woods on during the second round of the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park on Aug 7, 2020 in San Francisco, Calif. Photo by Harry How/Getty Images

For now, they are just rumors and scenarios, but the PGA Tour’s new plan to compensate the circuit’s marquee players with guaranteed paydays for an elite fall series, contested across the globe, has seemingly been embraced by media and players alike.

Here are 10 things to know about the new series.

1. Why: Fans want to watch (and bet on) the stars, not the no names who fill out about 80-percent of PGA Tour fields. These same superstars think they deserve a bigger slice of the pie. It would seem events with limited fields, guaranteed money, and appearance fees would be the easiest solution.

2. Start Date: These series of events are expected to begin in the fall of 2023, but could launch in the 2024 season.

3. Number of Events: They are reportedly planning between “four and six events, annually.”

4. Locations: They will be contested outside of the United States, internationally – in Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

5. Current Fall Events: They will not be part of, nor replace, the existing fall schedule, which run from September through mid-November.

6. Alternate Events: With the stars off the table, the current fall events such as the Sanderson Farms, Shriners, and RSM will essentially become opposite-field events with lower purses and a lesser allocation of FedEx Cup points.

7. Field Size: The tournaments will be limited to fields of 40 or 50 (or 60) with no 36-hole cut.

8. Qualifications: Fields will be comprised by only top-ranked players. It hasn’t been decided if they will use the Official World Golf Rankings or FedEx Cup standings. A team component (similar to F1) is also being considered.

9. FedEx Cup Protection: A system is being discussed which will provide elite players with some kind of built-in protection so they don’t show up in January sitting in 100th place in the points standings.

10. Made for TV: With all the superstars in the field (DJ, JT, Rory, Brooks, Bryson, et al) these will be easy to sell sponsorships, and should be TV ratings bonanzas.

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