NASSAU, Bahamas — As a member of the PGA Tour Policy Board that voted on the sweeping changes coming to the PGA Tour, Tiger Woods spoke for the first time about “redefining what a Tour pro is.”
“I think the entire — I’ll say the majority of the Tour felt the same way,” Woods said of the changes approved in a recent board meeting last month during his Tuesday press conference ahead of the Hero World Challenge, the tournament that he serves as host and benefits his foundation. “The PAC was involved, the subcommittees on the PAC were involved and it was unanimous across the board what we need to do to present a better product and something better for our fans, for our events, our sponsors. Redefining what a Tour pro is, streamlining that.”
Among the changes that go into effect in 2026 include reducing field sizes from as large as 156 down to in some cases 120, shrinking the number of Tour cards available (125 to 100) and players promoted from the Korn Ferry Tour (30 down to 20), reducing or eliminating Monday qualifiers at some tournaments as well as a tweak to the FedEx Cup point distribution (which goes into effect in 2025).
Fellow Tour police board member Patrick Cantlay echoed Woods’ sentiment.
“We listened to the PAC really closely all year,” Cantlay said. “There are 16 guys on the PAC, they’re representative of each part of the membership, that’s how they’re selected. So I know that those changes have widespread support among a lot of members. As policy board members, it’s important for us to do what the membership’s telling us and listen to the PAC so that’s how that decision came about.”
But Woods choice of the word “unanimous” may have been a stretch. One member of the Tour’s Player Advisory Council expressed his disappointment to Golfweek with the process involved, noting that he wasn’t involved in the sub-committee that reshaped the pathways to the Tour.
“The changes in terms of gutting the Tour, I didn’t even spend a minute of my time on the PAC discussing that,” said a member of the PAC. “And then, you know, I got an email saying, thank you to the PAC for discussing these difficult topics and making the Tour change for hopefully the better. And like, my name’s on it, and it was hard for me because I’m getting this email thanking me for all my hard work and I don’t even know about this stuff.”
This PAC member requested anonymity because he was elected by his peers and hopes to continue to make a difference for them through his role serving but wanted his experience to be known. Several other players, including current and former PAC members and some of the smartest and most thoughtful speakers on the Tour’s inner workings, have commented to Golfweek and other media outlets to express their concerns about some of the changes that will be implemented. Here are some of the responses to know.