‘Just terrible’: Padraig Harrington blasts proposed PGA Tour changes

Big changes are (likely) coming to the PGA Tour.

The PGA Tour’s Player Advisory Council sent out a 23-page document to Tour membership last week detailing proposed changes for 2026. The Tour’s Policy Board — a group of 12 that includes Tiger Woods and five other pros — will vote on the changes later this month, and they’re likely to be approved.

The proposal includes items such as smaller field sizes, a smaller number of fully exempt members, tweaked pathways to Tour membership, a reduction of Monday qualifiers and more.

You can read more about all of the changes here, but for now we are going to get a three-time major winner’s take on the proposal.

So, what does Padraig Harrington think?

“Terrible,” he said, shaking his head. “Just terrible. It really is.”

Harrington explained his thoughts on Wednesday’s episode of “Golf Today” on Golf Channel. In short, he’s not a fan of shrinking field sizes, among other things.

“At the end of the day the people who are on the inside are voting to keep the thing tighter and more closed,” Harrington said. “Sure, why don’t we just have 12 people in the event if I’m entered and everybody else can go home?

“The Tour was running just fine. I know there’s a little bit of pressure on time to get fields finished when they go to 156 [players] at certain times of the season, but players will deal with that, they’ll handle that. They know at the start of the year, hey, I might miss out on a few tournaments cause of light. The slow-play issue is like driving in rush hour traffic. There are too many people on the golf courses and the tee times are too tight. So yes this is a way of solving one of the big issues in golf, the pace of play, but you want to give everyone the opportunity.”

Harrington said he would have been more in favor of the proposal if there was a stronger “secondary” Tour behind the PGA Tour to which underperforming players would be relegated, adding that maybe someday the DP World Tour play that role.

Although the proposal that really irked him?

“Not having a Monday qualifier?” he said. “Come on! That’s one of the most exciting things on the Tour.”

The proposal wouldn’t completely banish the Tour of Monday qualifiers — which have long been an integral part of a Tour week and can provide great storylines and career-changing opportunities — but they would take a hit. They’d be eliminated for fields of 120 or fewer and only two spots (instead of four) will be awarded for 132-player fields.

Harrington said he’s always loved these qualifiers because it’s a great way to evaluate a young player’s drive.

“When I look at a young pro and whether he’s going to be successful, if he just drives down the road to the local events, he’s not really pushing himself,” Harrington said. “If he travels, plays Monday qualifies, goes to South Africa and goes to Europe and goes to all those tour schools, I know that guy wants to make it. So it’s a way of me separating people out. Do they really want to make it as a pro? Or would they like to make it as a pro?

The policy board will vote on the proposed changes on Nov. 18.