PGA Should Hit Pause On Frisco Events
The PGA of America ought to postpone scheduled future events at its new HQ until the course, surrounding development and fan experience improves.
Proposed rule: any development-driven project must complete all of its new home construction along fairways before getting awarded a major. Then players won’t have to battle construction dust or noise with history on the line.
While we’re at it, how about no majors at new housing developments?
After last weekend’s hellish KMPG Women’s PGA Championship was beamed around the world, it feels like PGA National all over again. The south Florida home of the disastrous 1987 PGA seemed destined to never host anything again after inflicting high heat, half-alive greens, and another Fazio redesign misfire on the game. But no six-hour rounds in West Palm back then! Nor were there airborne particles causing players to cover their eyes during a gust.
A West Palm facility also hosted the 1971 PGA Championship in February and the area has other things going for it: no planes on approach to DFW, and no hum of bugs sounding like a rattlesnake convention.
The PGA of America first revealed its headquarters move to Frisco, Texas in 2018. The city of Frisco provided the farmland and other portions of the property. In return the PGA of America awarded 24 championships and a move of its 50-plus year headquarters from Florida. Among the committed events: two Senior PGA Championships (2023, 2029), two KPMG Women’s PGA Championships (2025, 2031), and two PGA Championships (2027, 2034).
There is also an understanding that a future Ryder Cup (or two) will come to the land Mother Nature left off her to-do list. All of this before a shot had been struck on a Gil Hanse design (East) that’s accompanied by a Beau Welling layout (West), a par 3 course, putting course, and Omni Hotel.
Sweeping declarations were made about how the place would change the game.
Recent analysis of the PGA of America’s finances by Money in Sport suggests the net book value of PGA of America’s fixed assets increased from $5.1 million in March 2020 to $55.5 million in March 2022 indicating a total capital expenditure of $50 million around the time of the move to the new headquarters in Frisco TX. This, despite a November, 2023 reports reiterating to anxious PGA of America members that Omni was covering costs and the organization in the midst of layoffs would not be putting money into the facility.
The Fields Ranch East course opened for play with the 2023 Senior PGA Championship. Won by Steve Stricker in a low-scoring duel with Padraig Harrington, the course looked good but still understandably new.
Fields Ranch East next welcomed the 2024 PGA Professional Championship and played tougher. Ben Polland won with a two-under-par total and banked $60,000, making it one of the few events in golf to see its purse decline. Pollard’s winning check was $15,000 less than the winner received from 2006-2015.
Then there was last weekend. A lightly-attended, uncomfortable-to-watch, KPMG Women’s PGA Championship embarrassed one of golf’s most generous and forward-looking sponsors. Next up, the 2027 PGA Championship is scheduled to start in 694 days.
Unless the PGA of America can waive a wand to mature the course and complete surrounding construction, the 2027 PGA needs to be played somewhere else. Going forward at Frisco in less than two years risk massive damage to the reputation of one of golf’s four major championships.
The PGA of America can justify the move by pointing to Kiawah Island’s prematurely-opened Ocean Course for the 1991 Ryder Cup. Despite the wild finish and what it meant for the recent rise of the cup, the Ocean Course took a reputation hit. Time, renovations, and agronomic changes have led to Pete Dye’s South Carolina course becoming the PGA Championship’s best venue since the move to May.
Fields Ranch East is not yet looking or playing like a mature course capable of hosting majors. Three years in and the PGA of America setup team is still getting accustomed to its quirks. Many issues need to be addressed based on last week’s most rational-sounding player observations.
Settle on a routing. The KPMG Women’s PGA switched the original 9th and 18th holes switched. This led to long walks from the 8th and 17th greens. For the 2027 PGA Championship, the daily play nines will be flipped thanks to better hospitality space according to Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols. Nothing warms the major championship heart like a third re-routing in the name of corporate chalet space.
Tweak the new 18th hole. The original par-5 18th has few fans and the new finishing hole appears to need massaging as well. A centerline bunker had players insisting a successful tee shot over the sand would run toward into the hazard (even if ShotLink says otherwise and all but one birdie was made from the fairway). Most players bailed out right where the rough was light and they could avoid the fairway bunker or running through the landing area. Men playing the 2027 PGA seem likely take a similar bomb-and-gouge route regardless of the existing trees. The addition of a new back tee or an obstacle to discourage avoiding the fairway might be options, as might a repositioning of the bunker.
Flatten the primary tournament tees. The fairway-style tee strips are much easier to maintain than box-shaped tees and provide setup flexibility that was taken advantage of during the Women’s PGA. The non-box approach should be an inspiration given the massive reduction in labor and costs. But the seniors and women noted a struggle to find a flat spot for teeing off. This exchange with Steve Flesch came after the third round of the Senior PGA:
Q. What do you think of the golf course and the test?
STEVE FLESCH: It's pretty good. I don't get the tees, but that's another, I mean, I'm sure you've heard that.
Q. It's a common refrain.
STEVE FLESCH: Game's hard enough. At least give us a flat spot. Especially to tee a driver up on, right?