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A mixed-team golf event will be a fixture on the PGA Tour schedule for the first time in almost 25 years.
The PGA and LPGA announced that the QBE Shootout will be converted into a mixed-team event starting in 2023 — a return to the format after the last JCPenney Classic was played in 1999.
The 2022 edition of the event tees off from Tiburón Golf Club in Naples, Florida, this weekend — with LPGA players Nelly Korda and Lexi Thompson in the field. Women’s players have played in men’s events over the years, but not with any regularity.
The Shootout has a purse of $3.8 million, with each two-person team splitting $950,000 for winning. That $425,000 per player is more than all but seven LPGA events can offer this season for winning a given event.
Still, LPGA purses are on the rise, with the Tour offering more than $100 million in prize money for the first time in 2023.
“I think it’s something that needed to be done for quite a while,” PGA player Billy Horschel said. “When you look at the game of golf, the fans want to see more team events, see something different. It’s going to benefit the PGA Tour, but I think it’s going to benefit the LPGA Tour even more in terms of getting more exposure.”
The reformatted QBE Shootout is just the latest innovation from the PGA Tour as it seeks to meet the challenge from the upstart LIV Golf.
In recent months, the tour has announced several intriguing offerings, including TGL, a virtual golf league founded by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy with an all-star list of investors.
LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman used to host the QBE Shootout, but was “asked not to attend” this year’s edition for the first time. However, the event will continue to use Tiburón’s Gold Course — which was designed by Norman.
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