It’s no secret that the PGA Tour is divided. Since the establishment of LIV Golf, Jay Monahan & Co. created the Signature event format to give the best players on Tour the opportunity to earn big paychecks. The likes of Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, & Co. may have benefited from it. But a former PGA Tour pro believes this is causing disparity among the pros.
Arron Oberholser joined the 5 Clubs podcast to say, “When you have so much disparity in purses on the PGA Tour, and you’re creating levels to levels… It was kind of created back in the day when I was playing with Tiger. There was some disparity because of the World Golf Championships, but not like there is today.”
“We nicknamed it the ‘Tiger Tour’. There was the regular Tour, and then there was the Tiger Tour. If you were the top-50 player in the world, you would play on the Tiger Tour. You would play all the events that Tiger played in. Now, there is a distinct delineation between the haves and the have-nots.”
During Tiger Woods‘ prime, everyone wanted to play with him. Especially those who can at least compete with him. That included Oberhosler, who has one PGA Tour win to his name, the 2006 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. That’s what created the divide between the players. However, the current setup is not reliant on any player’s ability or skills. Monahan & Co. have created a disparity between ranks by creating the Signature events.
Unlike in the past, where the Tiger Tour motivated players to perform better, now it’s causing a lot of unrest among the players. Those who aren’t able to crack the ranks feel like they have been mistreated. And that not only reflects negatively on the setup, but also promotes an unhealthy mindset for players who aren’t able to make the cut consistently.
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In fact, a few big stars have already spoken against the Signature events.
PGA Tour pros are unhappy with the lack of opportunities to play against Scottie Scheffler & Co. due to the disparity
But not everyone has that choice. Some golfers don’t win as often as the two best players on the Tour. And they want to get every opportunity they can get to sustain their career. Some of them have even raised their concerns over the Signature events because that limits their opportunities to play with Scheffler, McIlroy, & Co.
Lucas Glover told the media, “We’re the only sport that decreased the number of teams or players. Every other sport has expanded their playoffs or expanded their fields.”
He has never been in favor of Monahan’s plans regarding the Signature events. The veteran pro has constantly shared his despair over the new system and how it’s causing a divide among the PGA Tour players.
Even Erik Van Rooyen was unhappy with the format, as he told the reporters, “I hate it. I strongly believe that the strongest fields are the ones with the most players in them. The guys on the PGA Tour are so good. It’s so deep. I get that you’ve got the Scotties of the world, the Rorys of the world, and people want to see them, it’s entertaining. That’s part of why the PGA Tour is the greatest tour in the world. It’s so deep, it’s so strong.”
He said it after he had qualified for a Signature event in 2025. Just goes to show that even those who make the limited field tournaments aren’t happy playing only the top-75 PGA Tour pros.
