Rory McIlroy is to miss the Sentry Tournament of Champions despite it being one of the PGA Tour's new elevated purse events.
The 13 new 'elevated' events were brought in to combat the threat of LIV Golf and require the tour's top players to all play - although an unknown rule revealed by Golfweek is that players are allowed to skip one of them. McIlroy is choosing to skip Hawaii, with his 2023 set to get underway on the DP World Tour at the end of January in the Dubai Desert Classic.
Another event McIlroy is missing in January is the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, which he started his 2022 with, finishing T12th.
The Sentry Tournament of Champions' purse of $15m is the lowest prize pool of the elevated events, with all the other tournaments carrying $20m purses aside from the Players Championship, which will offer $25m.
The Tournament of Champions invites all of 2022's PGA Tour winners as well as all 30 players to make the Tour Championship. The field will be headlined by the likes of Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Collin Morikawa and Matt Fitzpatrick among others.
Will Zalatoris is also set to make his return from injury after being sidelined with a back problem since August. The 39-man field features 17 of the world's top 20.
With the Tournament of Champions being elevated, its huge $15m purse has risen from $8.2m in 2022. The winner will take home $2.7m, up from $1.476m last year.
The PGA Tour's elevated events include the Phoenix Open, RBC Heritage, Wells Fargo Championship and Travelers Championship, with these four potentially set to change next year. The other nine events will remain elevated next year, which are the Players Championship, the three FedExCup Playoff tournaments, the three invitationals (Genesis Invitational, Arnold Palmer Invitational, Memorial Tournament), the WGC-Match Play and the year-opening Tournament of Champions.
The 2022-23 PGA TOUR Season resumes at next week’s Sentry Tournament of Champions.39 players, including 17 of the top 20 in the Official World Golf Ranking, are set to compete: pic.twitter.com/vxq9YAjN0PDecember 30, 2022
-
6 Big-Name Professional Golfers Who Use A 7-Wood. If It Works For Them...The 7-wood is becoming more of a part of the professional game. Here, we highlight some of the leading players who use this club
-
‘There’s No Question In My Mind About It’ - Lee Trevino Calls For The Players To Become Major ChampionshipLee Trevino says he can't see any reason why the Players Championship should not become the fifth men's Major
-
College Golfer Apologizes After Being Removed From TPC Sawgrass For Heckling Rory McIlroyUniversity of Texas golfer, Luke Potter made a comment to McIlroy during Tuesday's practice round which caused the World No.2 to take his phone
-
Big Names Struggle Early On At Players ChampionshipViktor Hovland, Max Homa and Justin Thomas all struggled badly in the early stages of the first round at the Players Championship
-
'Something Went Terribly Wrong If I Have To Compete At 50' - Rory McIlroy Categorically Rules Out Playing Senior Tour GolfAsked about his long-term plans, the Northern Irishman insisted he would not be visiting the Champions Tour once he's retired from pro golf
-
How Much The Winning Caddie Makes At The Arnold Palmer InvitationalThe bumper prize funds at Signature Events like the Arnold Palmer Invitational also mean bumper bonus checks for the winner's caddie
-
'One Of The Great Things About Golf Is I Can Go Out With A Guy Who Is Going To Shoot 90 And I Can Give Him Enough Strokes To Where We'll Have A Good Competition' - Scottie Scheffler On Losing To 10-Handicap FriendScottie Scheffler insists "one of the great things about golf" is the handicap system, even if it did cost him money and an embarrassing loss to a 10 handicapper
-
Jon Rahm's Legion XIII Signs Landmark LIV Equipment Deal With CallawayCallaway is the first manufacturer to sign up with a LIV Golf team after partnering with Jon Rahm and his Legion XIII side
-
Rory McIlroy Reveals Multiple Equipment Changes At Arnold Palmer InvitationalThe Northern Irishman has made a number of tweaks to his gear setup ahead of this week's Arnold Palmer Invitational
-
'I Don't Think The PGA Tour Needs A Deal. I Think The Momentum Is Pretty Strong' - Rory McIlroy On PGA Tour-PIF Deal And Why He's Adding An Extra Tournament To His ScheduleThe four-time Major winner had plenty to say on a range of subjects affecting the men's elite game - here are six of the key talking points
