Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy face off in secret 'first major of the year'
The unofficial first "major" of the golf season takes place on Monday with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy in the field, but you have probably never heard of the event.
Woods and McIlroy will be among dozens of PGA Tour players in the field for the Seminole Pro-Member at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida, where they will be paired with billionaire businessmen, celebrities and some of the biggest movers and shakers in the game of golf.
Woods is paired with PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh in the 7.45am ET tee time, playing alongside Justin Thomas and his partner, tech billionaire Mike Walrath. McIlroy is playing with his father, Gerry, and the pairing of Padraig Harrington and PGA Tour chairman Ed Herlihy at 8.32am.
The Seminole Pro-Member is one of the most exclusive events in the game of golf, played at one of America's most prestigious courses. Davis Love, a 21-time winner on the PGA Tour, once described the event as "the first major of the year", with Seminole members getting the chance to play alongside many of the best players on the planet.
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Seminole has similarly strict membership rules to Augusta National, but unlike the home of The Masters, there is an added layer of mystique, with very few televised events being held at the course. Off the gold tees, it is a 6,836-yard par-72 layout.
The course was designed by the revered Donald Ross and opened in 1929. It is peppered with bunkers and borders the coast, bringing wind into play. The greens are rated among the fastest in the world, providing a major championship-esque test to the professionals teeing it up.
The tournament is made up of 90 pairings playing the better-ball format, with leaderboards for gross and net titles. Thomas and Walrwath won the gross title with an impressive score of 63 in 2023, while Jim Davis and Brendan Todd romped to the net title with a score of 60, three shots clear of the McIlroys.
Seminole Golf Club is one of the most exclusive courses in America (Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)The event boasts a stronger field than most PGA Tour events throughout the season, with Matt Fitzpatrick, Rickie Fowler, Tony Finau, Collin Morikawa and Cameron Young among the stars listed to on show on Monday. However, there are set to be some late changes after the Cognizant Classic final round was suspended due to bad weather, with a number of players due to play still needing to finish their final rounds on Monday morning.
There are also some recognisable names among the playing members, including seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady and two-time NBA champion Shane Battier, who are paired with Finau and Kevin Streelman respectively. But there will be no LIV Golf members in the field on Monday.
Investment banker Jimmy Dunne is the president of Seminole Golf Club as well as an independent director on the PGA Tour Policy Board. Although he played a central role in negotiating the framework agreement between the tour and LIV Golf's backers, the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, he has chosen to invite only PGA Tour players to take part. Dunne will play with New Zealand ace Ryan Fox.
“We are doing what we have always done,” Dunne told Golfweek before 2023's event. “PGA Tour players get the first priority. This event has always been supported by the PGA Tour. We try to make this a special and unique day for Tour players.”
It will be Woods' first competitive golf since withdrawing from the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club on February 16 due to a bout of the flu. He is set to skip the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill next weekend, with the 48-year-old likely to make his next PGA Tour appearance at The Players in March, although he is yet to commit to play at TPC Sawgrass.
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