Circle these tournaments, three per month, on your 2023 competitive golf calendars
As golf fans, we’re spoiled with how much golf there is to watch throughout the year.
At times, it’s often too much. We can’t possibly watch everything. We’re busy with other life stuff – family, work, errands, actually playing golf. You’ll drop everything for the Masters, sure, but are you getting out of a family vacation to the beach with your wife and four kids in early July because you want to catch the weekend rounds of the (insert random tournament here)? Probably not.
With all that in mind, here are the highlights of the 2023 competitive golf calendar – three events per month, all the majors, a little LPGA, amateur and college, and even a Q-School:
January
5-8: Sentry Tournament of Champions (PGA Tour), Kapalua Resort (Plantation), Kapalua, Hawaii
The Tour season restarts in Hawaii. Primetime viewing. A great field – minus Rory McIlroy, of course. And if you like this sort of stuff, lots of red numbers.
12-15: Latin America Amateur (Men’s amateur), Grand Reserve Golf Club, Rio Grande, Puerto Rico
A Masters berth on the line. Some great stories, too. Watch out for my guy Julian Perico this year. It’s his time.
19-22: Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions (LPGA), Lake Nona Golf and Country Club, Orlando, Florida
The LPGA season gets going alongside the celebrities. Always a good time, and this year the entertainment is very solid – Maren Morris, Ellie Goulding and even DJ Paris Hilton.
February
9-12: WM Phoenix Open (PGA Tour), TPC Scottsdale, Scottsdale, Arizona
Already one of the more exciting non-majors on the Tour schedule, the People’s Open has now been tabbed as an elevated event. So, what is usually a strong field – six top-10 players and 10 of the top 15 last season – will surely become much stronger.
16-19: Genesis Invitational (PGA Tour), Riviera Country Club, Los Angeles
The stars will head from Phoenix straight to Los Angeles for another elevated event at one of the best layouts on Tour. Also, there will likely be a Tiger watch in the event’s lead-up.
26-28: Southern Highlands Collegiate (Men’s college), Southern Highlands Golf Club, Las Vegas
It’s not on TV, but there is a PGA Tour exemption up for grabs. And along with the Cabo Collegiate in early March, all the best teams play this.
March
9-12: The Players Championship (PGA Tour), TPC Sawgrass, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida
The gold standard for a reason. Elite field, though missing will be defending champion, Cam Smith. Maybe Gold Boy will get a spot in the tournament in Smith’s place.
29-1: Augusta National Women’s Amateur (Women’s amateur), Augusta National Golf Club/Champions Retreat, Augusta, Georgia
In just three years, this event has delivered some cool moments. The Kupcho-Fassi duel. Japan’s Tsubasa Kajitani holding off several big names. And 16-year-old Anna Davis and her bucket hat getting it done last year. Could this be Rose Zhang’s last chance to win at Augusta National?
30-2: DIO Implant LA Open (LPGA), Palos Verdes Golf Club, Palos Verdes Estates, California
Really enjoyed seeing this course host the pros last year. In my opinion, one of the more underrated stops in professional golf.
April
6-9: Masters Tournament (Men’s major), Augusta National Golf Club, Augusta, Georgia
No explanation needed. It’s the freakin’ Masters!
19-23: SEC Championship (Men’s college), Sea Island Golf Club (Seaside), St. Simons Island, Georgia
The best conference, top to bottom, in men’s college golf. The stars of tomorrow will be playing a PGA Tour course – Gordon Sargent, Sam Bennett, Caleb Surratt. Well worth attending.
20-23: Chevron Championship (Women’s major), The Club at Carlton Woods, The Woodlands, Texas
Carlton Woods, where Patrick Reed, Jhonattan Vegas and a handful of other pros and top amateurs call home, makes its debut hosting the event formerly known as the ANA Inspiration. Big shoes to fill, but this course has hosted championship golf before – in 2014, a high-schooler by the name of Will Zalatoris beat another future Tour pro, Davis Riley, in the final of the U.S. Junior Amateur.
May
4-7: International Crown (LPGA), TPC Harding Park, San Francisco
This event returns to the schedule for the first time since 2018, when South Korea won at home.
18-21: PGA Championship (Men’s major), Oak Hill Country Club, Rochester, New York
Hopefully the weather cooperates because the PGA has delivered some memorable moments and great winners of late – JT, Phil, Morikawa.
19-31: NCAA Championship (Men’s and women’s college), Grayhawk Golf Club (Raptor), Scottsdale, Arizona
The last year at Grayhawk before the championship moves to a Gil Hanse-redesigned La Costa in San Diego. Stanford women will likely be the overwhelming favorites while Vanderbilt and North Carolina lead the current list of men’s contenders.
June
1-4: Memorial Tournament (PGA Tour), Muirfield Village, Dublin, Ohio
Rory McIlroy might not like the milkshakes at Jack’s Place, but this is annually one of the better non-major events on the schedule. And we also get our yearly visit from Nicklaus in booth.
15-18: U.S. Open (Men’s major), Los Angeles Country Club
Max Homa shot 61 here to win the 2013 Pac-12 Championship. A loaded U.S. team captured a Walker Cup here in 2017. And this should be an incredible test for a U.S. Open this summer.
22-25: KPMG Women’s PGA Championship (Women’s major), Baltusrol Golf Club (Lower), Springfield, New Jersey
Selfishly, I wish this was being played on the Upper Course, but love how the profiles of the women’s major venues are increasing.
July
6-9: U.S. Women’s Open (Women’s major), Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach, California
Another historic major layout for the women, and like the U.S. Open 2019, hopefully there is more beautiful weather.
17-19: U.S. Adaptive Open (USGA), Pinehurst Resort (No. 2), Pinehurst, North Carolina
It was a smashing debut for the new USGA championship, and the encore should be even better.
20-23: Open Championship (Men’s major), Royal Liverpool, Hoylake, England
Tiger Woods hit driver just once all week en route to winning here in 2006. Will someone else employ a similar strategy this time? Also, Liverpool may be my favorite English city.
August
10-13: AIG Women’s Open (Women’s major), Walton Heath (Old), Surrey, England
OK, so it’s going to be hard to top Muirfield, but still, there’s nothing like morning majors on TV in the States. I’ll be tuning in.
14-20: U.S. Amateur (Men’s amateur), Cherry Hills Country Club, Cherry Hills Village, Colorado
If you’ve never watched the U.S. Amateur, you need to. Actually, if you’ve never attended, I highly recommend. Hands down my favorite event of the year, and this year we return to Cherry Hills, where Steven Fox pulled off one of the biggest upsets in championship history.
24-27: Tour Championship (PGA Tour), East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta
The staggered start is growing on me, especially after last year’s battle between Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler. I also tend to like East Lake more than most.
September
2-3: Walker Cup (Men’s amateur), St. Andrews Links (Old), St. Andrews, Scotland
You know how I said the U.S. Amateur was my favorite event of the year? Well, in terms of biennial events, it’s the Walker Cup. The match-play event between the U.S. and GB&I is on a great run of venues – LACC (2017), Royal Liverpool (2019), Seminole (2021) and now the Home of Golf. Oh, and in 2025, we’ll be headed to Cypress Point.
22-24: Solheim Cup (LPGA), Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, Andalucia, Spain
I still have goosebumps from watching Suzann Pettersen’s winning putt from 2019 in person. Admittedly, I don’t know much about the golf course, but Spain is pretty cool.
29-1: Ryder Cup (PGA of America), Marco Simone Golf and Country Club, Rome
Something tells me the Euros will be more competitive than people think. Last time I checked, they’ll still have Rory, Rahm, Hovland and Fitz.
October
5-8: Alfred Dunhill Links Championship (DP World Tour), St. Andrews (Old)/Carnoustie/Kingsbarns, Scotland
The PGA Tour’s elevated-event requirement will probably keep a few stars away, but how often do we get coffee golf on three great venues?
5-8: Korn Ferry Tour Championship (Korn Ferry Tour), Victoria National, Newburgh, Indiana
A revamped schedule sees the KFT finale moving from early September to October and the Finals format going away. What remains, though, is easily the hardest golf course on a tour that mostly plays on gettable layouts, plus the guarantee of some great stories of success and heartbreak.
TBD: We don’t know what the fall will look like on the PGA Tour or what the college schedule is, but the third event to watch will come from one of those two pools.
November
11-13: The Annika (LPGA), Pelican Golf Club, Belleair, Florida
Will be interested to see what kind of impact Annika Sorenstam now sponsoring the event will have.
16-19: CME Group Tour Championship (LPGA), Tiburon Golf Club, Naples, Florida
The most lucrative first-place prize in women’s golf has added to what was already a great event.
16-19: DP World Tour Championship (DP World Tour), Jumeirah Golf Estates (Earth), Dubai, United Arab Emirates
The DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai finale usually delivers.
December
TBD: Hero World Challenge (PGA Tour), Albany, New Providence, Bahamas
A first week of December staple. Maybe Tiger finally plays again.
14-17: PNC Championship (PGA Tour Champions), The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Orlando, Florida
Assuming Tiger and Charlie play for a fourth straight year, this is must-watch TV.
TBD: PGA Tour Qualifying School (PGA Tour/Korn Ferry Tour), final stage, TBD
For the first time since 2012, PGA Tour cards will be up for grabs at final stage, which does not have a date or host site yet, though a December date is a certainty.