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PGA Tour Announces Major Change This Week in Latest Golf News

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Jonathan D Adams | Last updated May 28, 2025 12:28 PM ET

The PGA Tour is making a major change in how a champion is crowned each year. These changes will take place in 2025 when the Tour Championship tees off at East Lake in Atlanta, Ga., on Aug. 21.

Fans may remember that the Tour Championship previously had a unique format. Golfers entered the final tournament assigned a certain score based on where they were in the standings.

For example, Scottie Scheffler entered the Tour Championship at 10 under par with the next golfer in the standings at eight under in 2024. This format is no more as the PGA Tour announced the elimination of the starting-strokes idea.

Instead, all golfers will enter the Tour Championship at even par, just like any other tournament.

"The Tour Championship will be played as a 72-hole stroke-play event, with all players starting the tournament at even par," the PGA Tour announced on Tuesday. "The best performer over the course of four rounds at the Tour Championship will win the FedExCup."

The PGA Tour also revealed that the field will remain at 30 golfers for this year's tournament, but the goal is to make the Tour Championship become the "hardest tournament to qualify for."

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler appears to be in favor of ditching the previous format to make the Tour Championship have a more traditional feel.

“We want the Tour Championship to be the hardest tournament to qualify for and the FedExCup trophy the most difficult to win,” Scheffler said in a statement released by the PGA Tour. “Shifting the Tour Championship to a more straight-up format with a tougher course setup makes it easier for fans to follow and provides a more challenging test for players – which brings out the best competition.”

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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