FedEx St Jude Championship is being demoted.

Seinfeld

All-American
Nov 30, 2006
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Well, it’s technically not dead, but it won’t be part of the PGA tour’s championship series beginning in 2028, so it’s pretty much over for it.

Big hit for the city of Memphis and all involved
 

ckDOG

All-American
Dec 11, 2007
10,288
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Sucks. Probably out kicked our coverage recently having that spot. Hopefully where it lands on the lower tour will be on a weekend where the upper level tour doesn't overlap and during decent weather. Maybe we can still get decent purse and TV coverage if so.

ETA: I also wonder if FedEx is backing out of the tour sponsorship when their current deal expires in 2027. Surely yes otherwise the local tournament wouldn't have been dropped.
 
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SoJxnVol

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Nov 30, 2025
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Not to crash the thread but will the Sanderson still take place at CCJ?
 

John Deaux VII

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Jun 7, 2024
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That really is a shame. My first time going to a PGA event was this one in the early 90's. I got to go to the Pro Am, plus several tournament days. I remember it was the first tournament since Danny Thomas died. Dan Quayle, Micheal Jordan, and Penny Hardaway played in the Pro-Am. I saw a spectator get hit by a Phil Donahue errant tee shot. Freddie Couples won that year.
 
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dog99walker

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Jul 16, 2021
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There is no Jackson Cc tournament.

The St. Jude Classic has been unpopular with the pros for years. Rory won’t show. It’s very hot in the second week of August. I go every year and it’s always ‘smokin’ hot’.
 

Dawgzilla2

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Oct 9, 2022
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15 event Championship Series? I thought they original announcement said 23 events? Of course, the original announcement said there were still details to work out.
 

jethreauxdawg

Heisman
Dec 20, 2010
11,454
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There is no Jackson Cc tournament.

The St. Jude Classic has been unpopular with the pros for years. Rory won’t show. It’s very hot in the second week of August. I go every year and it’s always ‘smokin’ hot’.
Anything that’s not a major or played in greater than 75 degree weather is unpopular with the pros
 

patdog

Heisman
May 28, 2007
59,530
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So no fed ex cup 20 mil payout after 27. Ill take a stab at who will replace it
UPS
JPMorgan
Chase
I don’t see any of those sponsoring a 2nd division event. It’s going to be hard for those events to survive. And depending on when the new tour structure is effective it could void the last year of the FedEx sponsorship.
 

champdawg.sixpack

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Aug 25, 2012
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I don’t see any of those sponsoring a 2nd division event. It’s going to be hard for those events to survive. And depending on when the new tour structure is effective it could void the last year of the FedEx sponsorship.
I’m referring to the fed ex cup. The playoffs. Is fed ex dropping that too? If not, Mea culpa
 

patdog

Heisman
May 28, 2007
59,530
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There is no Jackson Cc tournament.

The St. Jude Classic has been unpopular with the pros for years. Rory won’t show. It’s very hot in the second week of August. I go every year and it’s always ‘smokin’ hot’.
Memphis in the summer is no picnic. There’s a new WTA team is tournament that played last week for the 1st time. They had to move matches to night sessions the 1st 2 days & one player got heat stroke & had to retire. It may survive because it’s a 250 event (the lowest tier to be a real tour event) & those players who can’t get into the 500 event in Washington that have nowhere else to go. But I can’t imagine many of these women are looking at the tour schedule & thinking I’d like to play in Memphis the last week of July.
 

Dawgzilla2

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I’m referring to the fed ex cup. The playoffs. Is fed ex dropping that too? If not, Mea culpa
There will still be a Tour Championship, but I didnt see if it was Fed Ex Cup. The Championship is changing to match play, but thats all it said.
 

RocketDawg

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Oct 21, 2011
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15 event Championship Series? I thought they original announcement said 23 events? Of course, the original announcement said there were still details to work out.
How many are on the tour now? I've not counted, but it seems like more than 15. The LIV must've hit the PGA tour harder than I thought. The LPGA seems to be suffering as well - they don't play every week, and most players are Asian.
 

Dawg1976

All-Conference
Aug 22, 2012
8,278
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Memphis in August was always a terrible idea. I hate Mississippi has no tour event. I remember back in the 70’s Hattiesburg had an opposite field event with the Masters. One year I went to it and Faldo was playing. He didn’t win but later that Summer he won his first major…..the British Open. I hope we can at least get a Korn Ferry tour event one day.
 
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TrueMaroonGrind

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Jan 6, 2017
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How many are on the tour now? I've not counted, but it seems like more than 15. The LIV must've hit the PGA tour harder than I thought. The LPGA seems to be suffering as well - they don't play every week, and most players are Asian.
It killed most of my interest in golf. I wasn’t a die hard but I did enjoy turning it on for the majors and the FedEx Cup. Now i really don’t turn it on at all.

LIV didn’t take every good player but they took a lot of big names.
 
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Dawgzilla2

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How many are on the tour now? I've not counted, but it seems like more than 15. The LIV must've hit the PGA tour harder than I thought. The LPGA seems to be suffering as well - they don't play every week, and most players are Asian.
Currently, there are over 30 PGA tournament events, PLUS the 4 Majors, the 3 tournament Fed Ex Cup playoffs, and the annual team event....then you have the Fall Season.

They are already trimming the schedule down for 2027. They are dumping the 2 Hawaii tournaments to open the year, and dropping a few others.

I found the current info for 2028. They ARE playing 23 or 24 events, but that INCLUDES the 4 majors, the TPC, the annual team event, and whatever playoff they come up with.

So, it does sound like there will only be about 15 Championship Series tournaments, with the other events open to other players.

 
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jethreauxdawg

Heisman
Dec 20, 2010
11,454
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Currently, there are over 30 PGA tournament events, PLUS the 4 Majors, the 3 tournament Fed Ex Cup playoffs, and the annual team event....then you have the Fall Season.

They are already trimming the schedule down for 2027. They are dumping the 2 Hawaii tournaments to open the year, and dropping a few others.

I found the current info for 2028. They ARE playing 23 or 24 events, but that INCLUDES the 4 majors, the TPC, the annual team event, and whatever playoff they come up with.

So, it does sound like there will only be about 15 Championship Series tournaments, with the other events open to other players.

I guess the guys going to LIV got the Tour’s attention.
 

leeinator

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Feb 24, 2014
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Wouldn't mind seeing the creation of a new world golf tour to compete with the PGA. Call it the GGA (Global Golf Association). Every decent sized country that wants in can pick one of their cities as the representative. Let Memphis be the stop in the U.S. Sort of like merging the LIV into the GGA. I think a global golf tour could be as powerful as World Cup Soccer. Since the PGA has basically kicked Memphis to the curb, it might be poetic justice. And then have their own final championship and call it......yep, you guessed it......The Fedex Cup Playoffs.
 

jethreauxdawg

Heisman
Dec 20, 2010
11,454
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So is Southwind no longer owned by the PGA Tour? Has the whole TPC thing died out?
Still owned by the tour or pga members. They just spent a bunch of money renovating the course sometime since covid. They had plans to renovate the clubhouse to make it easier for the press/office type stuff during the tournament, but they backed off those plans a couple years ago. Maybe the tour was already planning to scale things back in Memphis at that time. Maybe the change in plans was completely unrelated.
 
Nov 16, 2005
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The money is too good now. The players don’t need to work full time.
I think there’s been some frustration with the way the point system works for the season in that you have to really grind to make it work for you unless you’re a top ten player in the world. They’re going to less events but also making the prize money bigger.
 

jethreauxdawg

Heisman
Dec 20, 2010
11,454
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I think there’s been some frustration with the way the point system works for the season in that you have to really grind to make it work for you unless you’re a top ten player in the world. They’re going to less events but also making the prize money bigger.
Don’t get me wrong. If I was making $4 million per year, I’d be a little upset having to work 30 weekends a year just to be allowed to go to the end of the year party as well.
 
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Dawgzilla2

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I think the Tour's biggest issue was lack of consistency week to week. Outside of the "signature events" (which are going away) you never knew who was going to show up.

No offense to Koivun, who earned his victory at the 3M Open, but Scottie Sheffler was the only player in the Top 30 in the tournament.

The Top 30 can still probably afford to skip an event or two, but with relegation hanging in the balance and only 20 or so opportunities for points, guys are gonna play.

They said the minimum total purse for events will be $20 MM, but a guy on the golf channel said it will really be more like $35 MM.
 
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leeinator

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Still owned by the tour or pga members. They just spent a bunch of money renovating the course sometime since covid. They had plans to renovate the clubhouse to make it easier for the press/office type stuff during the tournament, but they backed off those plans a couple years ago. Maybe the tour was already planning to scale things back in Memphis at that time. Maybe the change in plans was completely unrelated.
When Fred Smith died, the new mgt. didn't really have any interest in spending the kind of money on it like Fred did. Contract ends in 2027 anyway, so I guess a good point for everyone to part ways. I imagine some players nudged the PGA to go somewhere a little cooler. Fred Couples never played Southwind. He liked Colonial better and would have stayed there if up to him. Tiger never played there because he just couldn't handle the hot humid weather. Tourney should have been played in April/May or September.....but of course, the bigger tourneys wanted those time slots too. Yankee tourneys hated the heat. Us southerners were kind of used to it.
 
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thatsbaseball

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May 29, 2007
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My list of professional sports that I like had already gotten very small so ..........
 
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