The 2023 golf season kicks into high gear this week with the Players teeing off tomorrow, a semi-major followed by the four majors the next four months followed by the FedEx playoffs in August.
It wasn't that long ago that the prize money for taking a title first reached $1 million. Well, the winner of this week's Players Championship will pocket a cool $4.5 million. The skyrocketing prize money on the PGA Tour is a direct response to the challenged presented by the rival LIV tour, which is backed by Saudi billionaires. The PGA appears to have responded effectively recently by dramatically increasing tournament money, having a number of tournaments with limited fields now geared toward inducing the top players to play (some will have no cuts, following LIV's lead), and otherwise is putting a lot more money into the pockets of the big names in order to keep them on the reservation. The European Tour seems to be solidly behind the PGA in its battle with LIV. I see LIV eventually folding, but that may not happen due to all the money behind it as well as some ongoing litigation that has yet to be decided.
The LIV players are excluded from The Players, which means there will be no defending champion present as last year's winner Cam Smith signed with LIV shortly after following his Players win by also winning the British Open and then signing with LIV. Fellow Aussie Greg Norman seems to have influenced Smith to make the move. But after a flurry of signings last year, LIV hasn't induced anyone else who's well known to leave the PGA Tour, and Norman is generally regarded by the Tour and its supporters as a kind of super-villain now.
At any rate the TPC Sawgrass is a great course, a very challenging one that doesn't favor any particular type of player. It always has big and loud galleries, and of course the famous par three 17 island hole is legendary. Bring on the tournament, which also means spring is almost here in the northern part of the country!
It wasn't that long ago that the prize money for taking a title first reached $1 million. Well, the winner of this week's Players Championship will pocket a cool $4.5 million. The skyrocketing prize money on the PGA Tour is a direct response to the challenged presented by the rival LIV tour, which is backed by Saudi billionaires. The PGA appears to have responded effectively recently by dramatically increasing tournament money, having a number of tournaments with limited fields now geared toward inducing the top players to play (some will have no cuts, following LIV's lead), and otherwise is putting a lot more money into the pockets of the big names in order to keep them on the reservation. The European Tour seems to be solidly behind the PGA in its battle with LIV. I see LIV eventually folding, but that may not happen due to all the money behind it as well as some ongoing litigation that has yet to be decided.
The LIV players are excluded from The Players, which means there will be no defending champion present as last year's winner Cam Smith signed with LIV shortly after following his Players win by also winning the British Open and then signing with LIV. Fellow Aussie Greg Norman seems to have influenced Smith to make the move. But after a flurry of signings last year, LIV hasn't induced anyone else who's well known to leave the PGA Tour, and Norman is generally regarded by the Tour and its supporters as a kind of super-villain now.
At any rate the TPC Sawgrass is a great course, a very challenging one that doesn't favor any particular type of player. It always has big and loud galleries, and of course the famous par three 17 island hole is legendary. Bring on the tournament, which also means spring is almost here in the northern part of the country!
