PGA Tour

The PGA Tour is a nonprofit organization that organizes professional golf in North America. It manages several different levels of competition for professional players. The flagship series is the PGA Tour itself. There is also the PGA Tour Champions for players aged 50 and older. The Korn Ferry Tour serves players who are not yet qualified for the main tour. Additionally, PGA Tour Americas provides another level of professional play. The organization is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

To keep the season exciting, the tour uses a specific points system. This system is called the FedEx Cup. It began in 2007 to prevent the season from becoming dull. From January until mid-August, players compete in regular season events. During these events, they earn prize money and FedEx Cup points. The top 125 points winners then qualify for the playoffs. These playoffs consist of four specific events. The field of players shrinks from 125 to 100, then to 70, and finally to 30. The player with the most points at the final Tour Championship is the season champion.

Professional golf has a long history that connects to the modern tour. The roots of the tour date back to April 10, 1916. This was when the Professional Golfers' Association of America was formed. Many prestigious tournaments existed even before the formal tour was established. These included the U.S. Open and the Canadian Open. The Open Championship in the UK is the oldest tournament in the world. It was founded in 1860. In 2002, the tour retroactively recognized all Open Championship wins since 1860 as PGA Tour victories.

In the 1920s and 1930s, the professional circuit became more organized. In 1929, a tournament committee was formed to manage the game. Bob Harlow was hired in 1930 to formalize a year-round schedule. During the 1960s, the tour underwent a major change. Television coverage brought more revenue to the sport. This created a dispute between touring professionals and the PGA of America. The players wanted larger purses for their tournaments. The PGA of America wanted the money to help grow the game locally. This friction led players to form their own group in 1968. This group eventually became the independent PGA Tour we know today.

Many legendary players have achieved incredible records on the tour. In 1945, Byron Nelson won 18 tournaments in one year. He won 11 of those tournaments in a row. This remains a record that has not been beaten. Sam Snead holds the record for the most career victories with 82 wins. During the 1960s, Jack Nicklaus won 30 titles and Arnold Palmer won 43. Later, Tiger Woods became a dominant force in the sport. He won 57 of his 82 career titles. These athletes helped increase television ratings and revenue for the organization.

Tournament structures have also evolved to include international elements. The tour manages events like the biennial Presidents Cup. This is an international team event. The tour also competes for top golfers through the Official World Golf Ranking. This system was introduced in 1986. It allows the PGA Tour to compete with the European Tour for the world's number one players. Some tournaments, like the World Golf Championships, were also introduced to expand the reach of the sport.

The tour also manages specific rules for tournament participation. A "cut" is used to decide which players continue in a tournament. The policy board sets rules for these cuts. For example, the cut might be set at the top 70 professionals. If too many players tie, the field is adjusted to stay near 70 or 78 players. In some cases, a second cut is used after 54 holes of play. This ensures that only the most consistent players reach the final stages of a competition. These rules help maintain the high standard of professional play.