PGA Tour cancel two events with immediate effect as 73-year-old tournament axed
The PGA Tour has confirmed that two regular events will no longer go ahead.
The Sentry, traditionally the curtain-raiser for the PGA Tour season from Maui, will no longer feature on the schedule going forward. It emerged on Monday that two regular Hawaii-based tournaments will not take place, less than four months after The Sentry was cancelled due to drought conditions and other environmental issues.
Meanwhile, the Sony Open in Honolulu could be incorporated into the PGA Tour Champions calendar, though no final decision has been reached. The development follows PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp expressing his preference for the season to begin with a marquee West Coast tournament during a press conference at The Players Championship last month.
"We are grateful to The Plantation Course at Kapalua, Kapalua Resort, Maui County and the State of Hawaii for their longtime support of our season-opening PGA Tour event, as well as the fans, partners and volunteers across Maui who have supported the event throughout the years," the tour said in a statement to the Sports Business Journal.
"The PGA Tour will share more details regarding its 2027 schedule at a later date."
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Sentry, a Wisconsin-based insurance firm that had backed the opener since 2018, added: "We are proud to have sponsored The Sentry in Kapalua for eight years. We have said from the beginning, we love Maui and Maui is a Sentry community not unlike our hometown of Stevens Point, Wisconsin. We cherish the friends and partnerships we have formed over the past several years.
"Our commitment to the island runs deep, and we remain committed to being active in the community."
The Sentry, initially known as the Tournament of Champions, has been staged annually since 1953, relocating to Maui in 1999. The tournament traditionally featured all victors from the preceding tour season and served as the season-opening fixture for much of its existence.
In an update on his plans to restructure the PGA Tour, Rolapp outlined his vision for how the season should commence.
"We want to open big with a marquee event at an iconic venue in the west, among other things, allowing us to finish on network television in primetime on the East Coast," Rolapp said in March.
As for what lies ahead, SBJ suggested that Torrey Pines could prove a suitable alternative, though it remains unclear where the tour would position the tournament. Concerning the Sony Open, the tour confirmed to SBJ that discussions have taken place to transform the tournament into a PGA Tour Champions event.
There is no indication of when the 2027 season will commence, as the decision to relocate events away from Hawaii has currently disrupted the traditional schedule.
It has also been suggested that the year will begin in California. For now, it remains to be seen what Rolapp will announce regarding the Sentry and Sony Open.
This article first appeared on Mirror US.
