The proposed changes to the PGA Tour that were made public on Tuesday won’t go into effect until 2026, but they already have plenty of people talking. These major tweaks will alter how many golfers will earn tour cards, how many spots are available in tournaments, how you can earn those spots, and how slow play is dealt with. Yeah, it’s a lot.
ROUNDTABLE: What the proposed changes to the PGA Tour really mean
HOLY SHIT. THEY ARE ADJUSTING THE PACE OF PLAY TO GIVE THE PLAYERS….
MORE TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND THE FINES….LESS!!!!!!!!!
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/VvXKAAL298
— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) October 29, 2024
On that last point of slow play, many seemed, understandably, perplexed, because the tour seemed to be loosening restrictions in that area.
How would allowing players more time to play shots and not fining them as much speed up play? Well, one player, Michael Kim, dropped the perfect analogy to explain how the new system will help guys get around the golf course quicker.
“Just because you tell certain drivers to go faster doesn’t mean there isn’t going to be traffic during rush hour,” Kim tweeted.
Touché, Michael. As the 2018 John Deere Classic champ and Golf Twitter favorite explained, the more people on the course, the more potential for there to be a backup—especially when you have players going off both the 1st and 10th holes. Anyway, read his full statement:
The slow play issue on the pgatour is NOT just about a few slow guys.
It’s way more of an issue of too many guys on a golf course issue.
Have you guys ever played in a big shotgun tournament with 3somes or 4somes on every hole? Or even a public muni where tee times are stacked?…— Michael S. Kim (@Mike_kim714) October 30, 2024
Good stuff from Kim, who yesterday had some candid thoughts on the proposed changes regarding the number of PGA Tour cards available.
Thoughts on the proposed field/card changes:
-To be honest, I don’t love the changes but that’s probably because I feel threatened by the number of cards going down from 125 to 100. It’s my job to improve and continue to get better and make sure I’m not in the situation I am this… pic.twitter.com/CDJZXEa0mf— Michael S. Kim (@Mike_kim714) October 29, 2024
Anyway, tough to argue with any of that—especially regarding crowded courses. We’ve all played at places where they send groups out every seven minutes trying to jam as many green fees in as possible and it turns into a total slog.
That being said . . . these guys are good, but they also could pick up the pace a bit. Not all of them, but there are definitely some stragglers out there. And if everyone drove a little faster with less congestion around them? Well, then we could really put the PGA Tour’s slow play problem in the, um, rearview mirror.
RELATED: Michael Kim reveals what it’s like to have an Augusta National gold card
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
