The PGA Tour announced Wednesday the 2023 Travelers Championship will have an elevated status on Tour with a $20 million purse and guaranteed appearances by the Tour's top players.
It's part of the PGA Tour's strategy to keep top players from bolting for the Saudi-backed LIV Tour.
Joining the Travelers Championship as newly-elevated tournaments in 2023 are The WM Phoenix Open, RBC Heritage, and Wells Fargo Championship.
The four new tournaments are in addition to nine other tournaments that had been previously announced as having elevated status in 2023. They are:
Get Connecticut local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Connecticut newsletters.
- The four majors and THE PLAYERS
- Three FedExCup Playoffs events (FedEx St. Jude Championship, BMW Championship, TOUR Championship)
- Three player-hosted invitationals (Genesis Invitational, Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, Memorial Tournament presented by Workday)
- Sentry Tournament of Champions
- WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play
The evelvated tournaments will have a $20 million purse. Players who finished in the top 20 in the PGA Tour's Player Impact Program will be required to play in the tournaments as well. The Player Impact Program was launched in 2021 and is a way for the Tour to reward some of the most popular players financially. The program not only takes account of a player's on-course performance, but other popularity factors as well, including Google searches.
“Since Travelers became title sponsor in 2007, we have always focused on building a strong partnership with the PGA TOUR and delivering a world-class tournament. We’re honored to have this opportunity, and we’re looking forward to hosting another great event and continuing our meaningful support of our community and charitable beneficiaries,” said Andy Bessette, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at Travelers.
Local
“We are proud that the Travelers Championship is one of the PGA TOUR’s elevated events in 2023. We’re appreciative that Travelers, our title sponsor, was able to secure this opportunity with the PGA TOUR,” said Nathan Grube, Travelers Championship Tournament Director.
The Travelers Championship and the other newly-announced tours will hold the elevated status for 2023 only. Four new tournaments could be given elevated status in 2024, according to the PGA Tour.
The 2023 Travelers Championship will be held June 19-25 at the TPC River Highlands in Cromwell.
