The remaining two PGA Tour Asian tournaments learned their fates on Tuesday, with the Zozo Championship coming to California, and the HSBC Champions being canceled. Those two events, along with the CJ Cup, made up an early part of the 2020-2021 schedule.
Ty Votaw, PGA Tour executive vice president of international events, said bringing the Zozo Championship to Southern California for 2021 is necessary because of the COVID-19 global pandemic.
“Following last year’s successful launch, our players will no doubt be disappointed to miss traveling to Japan to play in the Zozo Championship this year,” Votaw said. “But we look forward to returning in 2021.”
The 2019 PGA Tour Asian swing began with the CJ Cup on Oct. 17 at Jeju Island, South Korea. Justin Thomas won the event for the second time in its brief three-year history.
The following week Tiger Woods won the Zozo Championship. The victory gave him 82 career wins, tying the all-time record with Sam Snead.
The HSBC was contested in Shanghai the week after the Zozo, and was won by Rory McIlroy.
PGA Tour Asian Events Come to West Coast
Bringing two of the three PGA Tour Asian events to the West Coast makes sense for two reasons. The first is because of gaps in the schedule. The other is their proximity to other tournaments.
The CJ Cup will be held at Shadow Creek Golf Club in Las Vegas on Oct. 15, a week after the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open is contested at TPC Summerlin.
The Zozo Championship will be at Sherwood Country Club in Thousand Oaks, California, a week after the CJ Cup. The defending champion, Woods, is intimately familiar with Sherwood Country Club — it’s where the 15-time major championship winner hosted his charity tournament from 2000-2013. He won that event five times.
HSBC Championship Odd Event Out
The one PGA Tour Asian Swing event that couldn’t get a date was the WGC-HSBC Champions. The World Golf Championship tournament was scheduled to be the third of the three tournaments, but Votaw said a site for this year couldn’t be found.
“We have worked extensively with all Tours, international officials, the China Golf Association, and other local parties to find a solution to host the WGC-HSBC Champions,†said Ty Votaw, PGA Tour Executive Vice President, International. “In line with Chinese government guidelines, and being mindful of the logistical implications, we collectively made the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 event.â€
PGA Tour Schedule Released
The rest of the new season’s schedule was released on Wednesday. It reflects the new homes for the PGA Tour Asian events, and a couple of other adjustments.
There is a combination of 2019-2020 events intermingled with the new season. The Houston Open was postponed and moved to November, the week before the Masters.
All of last season’s canceled tournaments will return next season. PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said the new schedule should make up for the 2019-2020 season.
“If you’re a golf fan, this is a dream season with more significant events than ever before, including the Olympic Games. Building our schedule is always complicated, but never more so as over the past several months as we continue to navigate challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.â€