September 23 is the start of fall on the calendar, but fall begins on the PGA Tour as early as next week, at the Silverado Resort and Spa on the outskirts of California’s wine metropolis, Napa. The Fortinet Championship held there marks the start of the seven-part FedExCup Fall tournament series, which is worth a total of $56.6 million in prize money and which the PGA Tour now precedes the calendar year-bound main schedule.
Battle for membership in the “luxury league”
And for most of the participants, it’s straight into the middle of a hot autumn. For example, for Justin Thomas. As is well known, the two-time PGA champion missed the FedExCup playoffs and now has to do detention, i.e. fight for membership in the luxury league of Signature Events 2024. In addition to the previous rewards for a win in the off-season – Sentry Tournament of Champions, Majors and Players start – FedExCup Fall also decides on the classification in the top 125 category beyond 50th place and thus on access to regular tour tournaments. In addition, the top ten, if not already eligible, will be issued tickets to the first two $20 million events of the new year.
Existential sporting importance
Thomas could lay the foundation for this at the Fortinet before the autumn series takes a two-week break because of the Ryder Cup in Rome. An unusual situation: where other golf greats can relax and pick a few raisins, the phase ending on November 19 with the final of the RSM Classic is of existential sporting importance for the 30-year-old. As motivating as US skipper Zach Johnson’s appointment to the defending champion’s team, which is extremely controversial in the USA, may be: If Thomas wants to continue to be part of the concert of luminaries, he has to score properly in the FedExCup case.
“It’s nice when you can choose how much you want [im Herbst] wants to play and can do so with absolutely no repercussions for the coming year.”
Rickie Fowler
Lucas Glover would have faced a similar challenge just a few weeks ago. But his high flight in the final phase of the PGA Tour 2022/2023 brought the 43-year-old a carefree time, a joyful Christmas and a New Year at the rendezvous of the winners in Kapalua on the Hawaiian island of Maui – if the tournament is held there at all after the devastating fires can.
In between, the 2009 US Open winner has the start at the Sanderson Farms Championship on the list and otherwise wants to take time for the family. And for American football. Next week also kicks off the 2023-2024 season of the National Football League (NFL). Glover won’t be the only golf star throwing the occasional couch potato at it.
Jason Day: Time for offspring number five
Speaking of family time: Jason Day is also taking it because his heavily pregnant wife Ellie is expecting their fifth child in September. “I’ll be spending some time at home with our new baby and I’d like to take at least two months off.” Sam Burns may not know golf for a while after returning from Rome. The Ryder Cup rookie and reigning WGC Matchplay Champion plans to swap his clubs for his hunting and fishing gear back home in Louisiana for a while. In this regard, he can talk to Brian Harman in the American team room.
“At the moment I don’t have any tournament plans for the fall. I’m going to take a pretty long break and then slowly get back into it. Start all over again. Quite a few guys want to give their bodies a break and completely switch off mentally as well. That will be good for many.
Sam Burns
With the Europeans, of course, there can be no talk of cherry picking, time off, doing nothing and mental relaxation. Rory McIlroy, Viktor Hovland, Jon Rahm and Co. have crossed the Atlantic and are changing stages. The program, however, remains tight. A similarly hot autumn is coming up for the DP World Tour. Next week’s Irish Open is followed directly by the BMW PGA Championship, the circuit’s flagship tournament in Wentworth. Then comes the prestigious Open de France, although certainly none of the continental duel’s combatants will tee up there any more. Instead it says: Focus on Marco Simone.
After the Ryder Cup, things continue to get busy
After the Ryder Cup, things continue in quick succession: the much-loved tradition of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, twice in Spain, Qatar, South Africa and finally the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. And that’s not all: After all, as the host of the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas (November 27 – December 3), “Shadow Commissioner” Tiger Woods expects numerous appearances from his colleagues and comrades-in-arms in the quest for a better PGA Tour.
Fitzpatrick and Rahm want a real break
On the other hand, with this number of strokes, it’s no wonder that a number of cracks want a real break. “Personally, I want everything to be done by mid-September and we’ll have a proper off-season,” says Matt Fitzpatrick, for example. Jon Rahm agrees: “Like any other athlete, we deserve a real break. And as the PGA Tour and DP World Tour get closer together, maybe soon I really won’t have to play tournaments in October, November and December and just be at home and just be a dad.”
2023-08-31 21:46:19
#PGA #Tour #Stars #Fall #Schedule #Detentions #Europe #Trips #Football
