The annual announcement of the following year's PGA Tour schedule is sometimes controversial, but this year's unveiling of the 2025 major events was not without controversy.
It certainly doesn't contain any of the major changes we expect from the LPGA Tour's November announcement, but while the women's game is growing in profile, the LPGA's new schedule announcement isn't quite the same. You can read why women's golf isn't as popular as men's in this comprehensive IGN article.
So, what exactly can we expect from the 2025 PGA schedule, and which players should we look out for in major events over the next 12 months?
Calendar Year and Signature Events
Like this year's program, 2025 has the structure of a calendar year, although technically, it begins in the final hours of 2024 on the first day of The Sentry at the Plantation Course in Maui.
The tournament is also the first of eight PGA Signature Events to be played during the first six months of the year. In February, it will be the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, followed by the Genesis Invitational and the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March, and the RBC Heritage in April. There are two Signature Events in May – the Truist Championship and the Memorial Tournament – with the Traveler Championship in June.
The eight Signature Event layout is part of an overall season schedule that includes 39 events, 18 of which are full championships.
Memorial Changes
Perhaps the biggest change to the 2025 schedule relates to the Memorial Tournament. In 2024, it was played just before the US Open, from June 6 to June 9, but in 2025, it will be earlier in the calendar, in the week of May 26. In its place, the RBC Canadian Open will serve as the last event before the second Head of the year.
In fact, this symbolizes a return to the usual place of Memorial, the week after Memorial Day. Ahead of the 2024 event, Jack Nicklaus said he agreed to change it to help the PGA Tour, but wanted to ensure it would return to its regular place on the calendar in 2025.
It seems that this move will be appreciated by many PGA players. Scottie Scheffler was perhaps the most prominent critic of the 2024 event date, suggesting that fatigue was a factor in his US Open performance, as the tournament came directly after the Memorial.
FedEx playoffs and fall final
The second half of the 2025 season will follow the same pattern as the 2024 version. The Wyndham Championship will also be the final event before the start of the FedEx Cup qualifiers. Wyndham will be played the week beginning July 28, and the following week, the playoffs will begin with FedEx St. Jude Championship, which will be followed by the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship in August.
As in 2024, the full season will conclude with the FedEx Cup fall events, which will determine which players enter the top 125 for the 2026 campaign, although the detailed schedule for this final tournament of the 2025 season has not been announced.
Key players of 2025
Scottie Scheffler won seven tournaments in 2024, bookending his reign with a second Masters title and first Tour Championship success, and maintaining his world number one ranking. Scheffler will again be the player to beat in 2025, and a third Masters, and another Major, would not be a big surprise.
His biggest opposition could once again come from Xander Schauffele, who set a championship record when he posted a -21 at the PGA Championship to win his first Major, then followed it up with a win at the Open, exiting the field in style. the last day. He has nine PGA Cups in his collection but is sure to add more to that tally before 2025 ends.
Finally, the 2025 season could see the return of Rory McIlroy as a Major winner. He hasn't won a major since 2014, but next year, the USPGA, which he won twice, will be played at Quail Hollow, where he won the Wells Fargo Championship. Could 2025 be the year he finally gets his fifth Major?
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