The PGA Tour announced on Tuesday a new season-ending structure and postseason format that will span three weeks and be implemented at the conclusion of the 2028 campaign. It is highlighted by a two-week Tour Championship contested among the top 32 players in match play at a pair of renowned venues that will rotate annually.
The regular season will conclude with the PGA Tour Championship Series Finale, the year’s final stroke-play event, a 72-hole tournament featuring the top 90 players on the season-long points list, all of whom will retain their cards for the following year. Bonuses and awards from the regular season will be determined at the conclusion of the Series Finale.
The top 32 finishers from the season-long points list will advance to the postseason, a newly structured Tour Championship that will utilize two weeks of match play across two distinct courses to determine a year-end champion for the first time.
Week 1 will feature a group stage in a round-robin format with players competing in eight sets of four. The top two finishers from each group will advance.
Week 2 will feature a 16-man bracket with the last two undefeated players after three matches competing for the Tour Championship. All 16 players will play four matches and advance based on win-loss records to determine the final championship standings.
This is a substantial change from the current three-week postseason model, which cuts down the field from 70 players at the St. Jude Championship to 50 at the BMW Championship to 30 at the Tour Championship. All three tournaments are 72-hole stroke play with the St. Jude and Tour Championships contested at the same venues each year.
The new Tour Championship will operate as a standalone event, rotating through two venues annually. The PGA Tour believes the smaller-footprint events will create an opportunity for the Tour Championship to visit renowned, historic golf courses that would not otherwise host an event of this caliber.
“From the beginning, the goal of the Future Competition Committee was to create an easier-to-follow competitive model for our fans with greater consequence and a stronger season-long narrative,” PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said. “Throughout this process, we listened carefully to our fans, players and partners. One message came through clearly: The culmination of our season should be worthy of the journey it takes to get there.
“The result is a season-ending structure that rewards excellence over the course of the year while building toward a reimagined Tour Championship. We are creating something different, something distinct within professional golf that can resonate far beyond it.”
Rolapp announced in June that the PGA Tour would move to a two-series structure in 2028 with approximately 120 players competing in the Championship Series for the entire season. The Challenger Series will serve as a secondary group of more than 140 players with promotion and relegation procedures that will allow golfers to move between the leagues.
The PGA Tour will announce the dates and sites of the first PGA Tour Championship Series Finale, the reformatted Tour Championship and the entire 2028 PGA Tour season on Feb. 22, 2027.
2028 PGA Tour season-ending schedule
PGA Tour Championship Series Finale
- 90-man field (all retain PGA Tour cards for 2029)
- Final 72-hole stroke play tournament of the season
- Season-long points list finalized, bonuses awarded
- Top 32 players on points list advance to Tour Championship
Tour Championship (Week 1)
- 32-man field separated into eight groups of four
- Group stage round-robin format (each player competes against other three in his group)
- Top two players from each group (16 total) advance to Tour Championship
- In the event of a tie, a playoff will determine who advances to Week 2
Tour Championship (Week 2)
- 16-man field
- Match-play format with a four-round bracket
- Seedings by win-loss records
- Final two undefeated players square off for Tour Championship
- Records across all four rounds determine final championship standings