Tiger Woods' Policy Board inclusion makes immediate impact on PGA Tour 'Signature Events'
Just days after being named to the position, Tiger Woods is making waves as a Player Director for the PGA Tour. The legendary golfer has already influenced commissioner Jay Monahan to reverse course on a few things.
The Tour had planned to implement a few no-cut events, but Woods pushed back. Now, at least two of those events will once again have cuts. The Genesis Invitational, hosted by Woods, and the Memorial, which is hosted by Jack Nicklaus, will have cuts in 2024.
This echoes a sentiment Woods expressed when the news first broke of the no-cut events. He said, via Bellingham Herald:
“I certainly am pushing for my event to have a cut. I think that maybe the player-hosted events may have cuts. These are things that Jack and I are still in discussion with Jay and the board and the Tour and the rest of the guys. That still is in flux."
He continued, saying that he believes that there should be a penalty for playing poorly. He also believes that not every event needs to have a guaranteed 72 holes for all players:
“I think that there should be a cut there. But we are trying to figure that out. And you know, what designated events those are going to be, how many are there going to be, that’s still ongoing. But that conversation is still being had.”
Clearly, the Tour is listening to Woods in his new role. He said he didn't like something, and within days of being a member of the board, he's been able to change it.
Tiger Woods' changes sure to please Tour members
Tiger Woods was successfully able to change the PGA Tour's mind on a few events. They had planned to remove cuts and make it so that all golfers played all four days.
Aside from Tiger Woods, other golfers pushed back on this. Rory McIlroy, another Tour Player Director, said he didn't like the idea of removing cuts:
“There’s precedent for no-cut events. But I think the – like cuts that you have to make to get into those events, so making the playoffs, getting into the top 50, so there’s certain things that you have to do to qualify for those events. I think that’s more than fair to warrant eight events a year that are guaranteeing the players four days.”
Patrick Cantlay disagreed with that sentiment. He believes that golf is at its best when the best players are the ones who stick around all four days, no matter if they're in top form or not:
“With it being a limited field, I don’t think it makes sense to have a cut. I think there’s real power in knowing that the best players are going to be there all four days no matter what.”
Regardless, there will be some no-cut events at the PGA Tour next year. A few that were going to remove cuts are now no longer going to, thanks in large part to Tiger Woods' influence.