The PGA Tour schedule continues to shift dramatically from year to year.
And that's mostly a good thing. The return of the Olympics in 2020 - held in Japan in August - has shaken things up quite a bit in terms of where certain events fall on the calendar this season.
There are also two new international tournaments, in Japan and Bermuda, that expand the total to 51 events. A few highlights include a well-known venue that's never hosted a major before, the PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park outside San Francisco, and two tournaments that hope to make triumphant returns after dropping off the calendar last season. A Military Tribute at the Greenbrier (formerly the Greenbrier Classic) will open the wrap-around schedule in September and the Houston Open returns to the Golf Club of Houston in October for a final time before moving to a completely modernized Memorial Park Golf Course by Tom Doak in 2020.
Perhaps the most exciting news for the viewing public is the number of Tour venues open to every golfer. With the best players in the world teeing it up on 28 different publicly accessible courses at 25 different events, the Tour's venues have never been more "open to the public" than now. Granted, Royal Melbourne (President's Cup), Royal St. George's Golf Club (The Open) and Montreux Golf & Country Club in Reno (Barracuda Championship) are private clubs, but there are ways to get on, unlike Augusta National (The Masters) or Winged Foot (U.S. Open).
Three of these public courses are coming off of major renovations. The South course at Torrey Pines is doing multiple renovation projects - read here - in preparation for the 2021 U.S. Open. Recent Golf Advisor reviews have been poor as golfers have played through the construction. At least two holes will be closed at a time until September.
The Plantation course at Kapalua on Maui will reopen in November after a $10 million renovation/restoration by original architects Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw in plenty of time to host the Sentry Tournament of Champions Dec. 30-Jan. 5. Golf Advisor is hosting a Round Trip Getaway to Maui with Matt Ginella Dec. 1-7, so that could be the perfect time to get a sneak peak of one of the most scenic courses in the world.
The Plantation course at Sea Island - a co-host of the RSM Classic - will also reopen this fall after tweaks made by Davis Love III and his brother, Mark. Ginella reported in March what the duo will accomplish:
"Squared off edges to several greens, some of C.B. Macdonald’s template-hole characteristics, which includes Biarritz (first hole), Redan (third hole), Thumbprint (11th green) and a Punchbowl (13th green). They reference Pete Dye when they point out the railroad ties used as bulkheads fronting several greens. There are flat, grass-faced greenside bunkers throughout. And in the spirit of the Old Course at St. Andrews, installed Principal’s Nose bunkering 40-yards from the 10th green.
Although the routing and corridors have basically stayed the same, they’ve lowered what were elevated tees and greens, removed almost half of the sand and bunkering on or around the course, removed about 40 trees and updated the turf and irrigation. There will be TifEagle Bermudagrass on the greens, TifGrand Bermuda from the front of the greens and 60 yards into the Paspalum fairways and tees."
A number of these courses and destinations are available in packages with Golf Advisor.
2019-20 PGA Tour events featuring public courses
1. Sept. 9-15, A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier, TPC Old White, White Sulphur Springs, W.V.
2. Sept. 23-29, Safeway Open, North course at Silverado Resort and Spa, Napa, Calif.
3. Oct. 7-13, Houston Open, Tournament course at the Golf Club of Houston, Humble, Texas
4. Oct. 28-Nov. 3, Bermuda Championship, Port Royal Golf Club, Bermuda
5. Nov. 11-17, Mayakoba Golf Classic, El Camaleon Golf Club at the Mayakoba Resort, Playa del Carmen, Mexico
6. Nov. 18-24, The RSM Classic, Seaside and Plantation courses at Sea Island Resort, St. Simons Island, Ga.
7. Dec. 9-15, The President's Cup, Royal Melbourne Golf Club, Victoria, Australia
8. Dec. 30-Jan. 5, Sentry Tournament of Champions, Plantation course at Kapalua Resort, Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii
9. Jan. 13-19, Desert Classic, Stadium and Nicklaus Tournament course at PGA WEST and the private La Quinta Country Club, La Quinta, Calif.
10. Jan. 20-26, Farmers Insurance Open, North and South courses at Torrey Pines Golf Course, La Jolla, Calif.
11. Jan. 27-Feb. 2, Waste Management Phoenix Open, Stadium course at TPC Scottsdale, Scottsdale, Ariz.
12. Feb. 3-9, AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill Golf Course and the private Shore course at Monterey Peninsula Country Club, Pebble Beach, Calif.
13. Feb. 17-23, Puerto Rico Open, Coco Beach Golf & Country Club, Rio Grande, Puerto Rico
14. Feb. 24- March 1, The Honda Classic, Champion course at PGA National Resort & Spa, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
15. March 2-8, Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, Bay Hill Club and Lodge, Orlando, Fla.
16. March 9-15, The Players Championship, Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.
17. March 16-22, Valspar Championship, Copperhead course at Innisbrook, a Salamander Golf and Spa Resort, Palm Harbor, Fla.
18. March 23-29, Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship, Corales at the Puntacana Resort & Club, Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
19. March 5-April 5, Valero Texas Open, AT&T Oaks course at TPC San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
20. April 13-19, RBC Heritage, Harbour Town Golf Links at Sea Pines Resort, Hilton Head Island, S.C.
21. April 20-26, Zurich Classic of New Orleans, TPC Louisiana, New Orleans, La.
22. May 11-17, PGA Championship, TPC Harding Park, San Francisco, Calif.
23. June 29-July 5, Barracuda Championship, Montreux Golf & Country Club, Reno, Nev.*
24. July 6-12, John Deere Classic, TPC Deere Run, Silvis, Ill.
25. July 13-19, The Open Championship, Royal St. George's Golf Club, Sandwich, England
* Accessible with a stay at one of several Reno casinos and a tee time reserved by the concierge.
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