PGA Tour Update: Why Are There 2 Events This Week?

Two events going head-to-head from the same circuit might not be common practice, but it is happening, courtesy, PGA Tour. This weekend, the American Tour will see two of its events clash for four days: the Puerto Rico Open at the Grand Reserve Golf Club and the fourth signature event of the season, the Arnold Palmer Invitational at the Bay Hill Club, which is the second stop in the PGA Tour’s Florida swing after the Cognizant Classic.

These two events have historically been played side by side as the PGA Tour pros are divided. But the division is not done based on luck; the higher-ranked players tee up at the Bay Hill GC, whereas the uprising players play at the Puerto Rico Open. But why do these two events follow the same schedule?

The reason behind the PGA Tour’s schedule clash 

The events that go head-to-head with an elevated on the PGA Tour have been known as an alternate event. The Puerto Rico Open is one of the four alternate events. The three others are the Corales Puntacana Championship (RBC Heritage) in April, the Myrtle Beach Classic (Wells Fargo Championship) in May, and lastly, the Barracuda Championship (The Open Championship) in July.

With these events starting simultaneously, the PGA Tour has been giving the players who are usually at the bottom of the scoreboard a chance to claim the victory. Players who are making a return after a medical hiatus, veterans, rookies, and/or anyone who cannot qualify for the elevated events may tee up there.

However, with a weak field, the reward is also significantly less. For the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the prize money has been set at $20 million, and the winner will get $4 million and 700 FedExCup points. Contrarily, the winner of the Puerto Rico Open will bag $720,000 from the $4 million prize pool and 300 FedExCup points.

Nonetheless, there are many other benefits as well, such as a two-year exemption on the Tour, making them eligible to play the elevated event in the next season. The prime example of alternate events befitting pros is Viktor Hovland, who won the Puerto Rico Open in 2020, and in 2021, he was among the Arnold Palmer Field.

What is the field difference between the two events? 

There will be a huge field strength difference at the Puerto Rico Open from that of Arnold Palmer Invitational! The latter, however, is a limited field event. There will only be 69 players at the Invitational, whereas the Puerto Rico Open will have 132 players on the field. Moreover, there will be a whopping 42 players from the top 50 ranked in the world at Bay Hill GC.

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The top players at the Invitational are Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Viktor Hovland, Xander Schauffele, Max Homa, and many more. At the Puerto Rico Open, the highest-ranked players are Robert MacIntyre (68th), Rasmus Hojgaard (75th), Aaron Rai (78th), and Ryo Hisatsune (84th). The events will start on March 7th and conclude on March 10th.

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