The Memorial Event is returning to its unique spot on the PGA Tour calendar.
After putting an settlement with the PGA Tour to stage its occasion the week earlier than the U.S. Open in 2024, Jack Nicklaus introduced Monday that his Memorial Event will happen in the course of the first weekend of June.
Meaning the match will start on Memorial Day Monday, two weeks earlier than the U.S. Open.
“The connection the Memorial Event offered by Workday has loved with the PGA Tour is extra like a partnership. The Tour has acted in one of the best curiosity of the Memorial Event, and we, in flip, have at all times supported the Tour and its initiatives. That’s the reason a 12 months in the past when the Tour offered us its new enterprise mannequin, we have been keen to work with them and transfer the 2024 date to every week earlier than the U.S. Open,” Nicklaus mentioned in an announcement.
“Over current months, we’ve got had a lot of conversations with Jay Monahan and his group—ones which have included our presenting sponsor Workday and Co-Founder and Government Chair Aneel Bhusri—and collectively we decided that in one of the best curiosity of the Memorial Event, the Tour and its gamers, we’d return to our conventional date and begin Event week on the Memorial Day vacation.”
The Memorial Event presents a grueling take a look at 12 months in and 12 months out, virtually serving as a ‘Mini-major.’ This 12 months’s version actually lived as much as that billing, as Scottie Scheffler fought agency and quick situations, in addition to a charging Collin Morikawa, to win by a stroke at 8-under par. Scheffler even mentioned it performed like a U.S. Open, nevertheless it’s extraordinarily troublesome for each the thoughts and the physique to play a U.S. Open-type course in back-to-back weeks.
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Therefore, at Pinehurst No. 2 this previous week, Scheffler defined why he doesn’t wish to play the week earlier than a serious going ahead.
“I feel enjoying the week earlier than, quite a lot of it will depend on the golf course, however I feel final week with the golf course the way in which it was, it most likely was not one of the best prep work for me coming into one other difficult occasion,” Scheffler mentioned Sunday.
“I shot 5-under in the course of the first spherical on the Memorial, which might have been the simplest day, and after that, I used to be 3-under from there on out. I imply, that’s fairly U.S. Open-like, and to play that many rounds, particularly with what I’ve been coping with the weeks main up or the entire season, been enjoying quite a lot of good golf and being in rivalry, I feel possibly my prep would have been a bit bit higher for this week if I used to be at house.”
Curiously, Nicklaus, the 18-time main champion who has gained extra of them than anybody else, agreed with this sentiment.
“After I performed, I not often performed every week earlier than any main championship. So I’m requested to be a part of placing on a golf match in every week that I might by no means play,” Nicklaus mentioned earlier than his match.
“From a sponsor’s standpoint, Memorial Day has been what our identify is, and we have been round Memorial Day. [Monday] is generally an enormous day gallery-wise for us as a result of it was Memorial Day, and we had possibly a thousand individuals right here [this year on Monday].”
Now Nicklaus will get his want, as his match will welcome the PGA Tour’s greatest gamers two weeks earlier than Oakmont Nation Membership in Pittsburgh—one other brutally robust course—will host the 2025 U.S. Open.
And better of all, Scheffler, now figuring out that the 2025 Memorial aligns along with his plans, might be there defending his title, too.
Jack Milko is a golf workers author for SB Nation’s Taking part in By means of. You should definitely take a look at @_PlayingThrough for extra golf protection. You may comply with him on Twitter @jack_milko as nicely.
