The Travelers Championship, the PGA Tour’s annual tournament held outside Hartford, Connecticut, has made history as the first event officially selected for the tour’s newly announced Championship Series.
Beginning in 2028, the PGA Tour plans to restructure its schedule into two distinct levels: the Championship Series and the Challenger Series. The Championship Series will be home to the sport’s best players and include as many as 24 tournaments.
Among those 24 events are The Players Championship and golf’s four major championships, though those events operate independently of the PGA Tour and set their own qualification standards.
The Championship Series is essentially a continuation of the current “signature events” format, so it came as little surprise that the most high-profile tournaments on the calendar would earn spots in the new tier.
The Travelers Championship has held signature event status every year since that format was introduced in 2023. The PGA Tour’s relationship with the Hartford area dates back to 1952, and the tour has been playing at TPC River Highlands since 1984.
Travelers tournament director Nathan Grube expressed enthusiasm about the selection in an official statement. “This partnership with Travelers and with the PGA Tour has taken the tournament to incredible new heights,” Grube said. “We’re proud of the Travelers Championship, the economic impact it makes on our community and the state of Connecticut, and the hundreds of local charities that continue to benefit financially.”
