The PGA Tour Finally Borrows A Great Idea From The LPGA

Pro-ams are one of the better ways to raise money for charity. They’re also a great opportunity to meet and play with a talented pro and maybe get a few tips during the day.

However, the rounds take too long, some PGA Tour players openly treat it as a day in jail and it makes for a rough outing if you’re stuck with a bad pro or amateur all day long.

Well, finally the PGA Tour is adopting a genius idea from the LPGA. Amateur groups now will get two pros for the price of one by switching after nine holes. What an epiphany! I can’t believe the guys didn’t steal the idea long ago. The first event to use the nine and nine is next week’s Waste Management Phoenix Open. Golfweek’s Forecaddie provides the details.

According to PGA Tour Chief of Operations Tyler Dennis, the decision was made after assessments of the FedEx St. Jude Classic’s trial pro-am last year. The format was lauded by amateurs and players alike. Seven Tour events have committed to a nine and nine in 2018.

Pros should be in a much better mood for a shorter time window, especially the day before competition begins when they’d like to be saving some energy or making final tweaks. The format also means more players will get to practice on the tournament venue the day before and fans might get to see someone playing who did not make the pro-am field under the 18-hole format.

The Tour even found that the hand-off between players is a fun moment—as it is on the LPGA in The Forecaddie’s experience—with light banter and no awkwardness.

“If we tee off at 6:40 we’ll be done at nine,” Woods said while explaining the policy to caddie Joe LaCava who didn’t seem to actually believe the change had been 

We’ve experienced it with the ladies and loved it. I’ve played in two events and in both instances was most happy to switch from a sullen, boring pro to a bubbly engaging one after nine. I can put up with a lot for nine holes but 18? Not so much.

So congrats PGA Tour officials for finally waking up.