PGA Tour overhauls schedule, player compensation amid LIV threat

The PGA Tour's top golfers have committed to playing against each other 20 times next year while the bonus pool for players who positively impact the game was doubled to US$100 million, Commissioner Jay Monahan said on Wednesday.

The changes represent the PGA Tour's most serious response to the threat posed by the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf series that launched in June and has lured some big-name players away from the US-based circuit with staggering sums of money.

In announcing the changes, Monahan said he was inspired by the PGA Tour members and singled out those who held a players-only meeting last week to discuss a number of proposals in the face of the LIV Golf threat.

"It's important to understand that this process represents a remarkable moment for the PGA Tour and showcases the essence of what being a membership organisation is all about," Monahan said ahead of the season-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta.

"Those players rallied together to strengthen the tour platform, recognising that if fans are going to invest in the PGA Tour it means a hell of a lot more if they know the players are investing right back."

Monahan said the top players, assuming they qualify, have agreed to at least a 20-event schedule consisting of the four majors, The Players Championship, three FedExCup events and 12 "elevated events".

An additional four "elevated events" that will have an average purse of $20 million are still to be announced.

For the 2022-23 season, a "top player" will be defined as those who finish in the top 20 under the current Player Impact Program as well as those who finish in the top 20 under the revised criteria for the bonus pool.

The PGA Tour's Player Impact Program, which was implemented in 2021 as way to