The Memorial Tournament, founded and hosted by golf legend Jack Nicklaus since 1976, recently moved off its traditional date closer to Memorial Day. Nicklaus has indicated that he would prefer the tournament to be held two weeks before the U.S. Open, as it had been for decades before the switch this year. However, the PGA Tour requested the move in order to help with scheduling around major championships, and the top players also expressed a desire for a change in the tournament lineup. The Memorial now precedes the U.S. Open, while the Travelers Championship follows immediately after the national championship.
While Nicklaus understands the reasoning behind the schedule change, he is not completely on board with the result, particularly when it comes to the Memorial Tournament. He finds it somewhat hypocritical to expect top players to show up the week before a major championship when he seldom did so during his playing days. Nicklaus stressed that he would rarely play a week before a major championship, so he feels conflicted about hosting a tournament in that position.
In addition to his concerns about player participation, Nicklaus also pointed out that the change in schedule has affected attendance at the Memorial Tournament. The Monday attendance, which was decent when the event was held the week of Memorial Day, dropped this year. However, tournament director Dan Sullivan noted that Tuesday’s attendance remained steady compared to the previous year. Despite the schedule change, Nicklaus is confident that the Memorial Tournament will continue to thrive.
From a sponsorship standpoint, moving the tournament away from Memorial Day has raised some challenges. The name of the tournament is closely tied to the holiday, and hosting it a week later in June clashes with high school graduations. Nicklaus emphasized that while the Memorial Tournament will always support the PGA Tour and its initiatives, they also want to ensure that the event is successful and aligns with the best interests of the tournament itself.
Looking ahead, Nicklaus indicated that discussions with the PGA Tour about the tournament’s schedule are ongoing. While the tournament agreed to the schedule change this year as a favor to the tour, they plan to review the decision after this year’s event. Ultimately, the goal is to find a balance that benefits both the PGA Tour and the Memorial Tournament. Nicklaus remains committed to ensuring that the tournament continues to thrive and maintain its position as one of the premier events on the tour.
