It stays to be seen how the reimagined fall schedule will play out following the PGA Tour’s transfer again to a calendar-year lineup, however no matter turns into of the post-Tour Championship panorama it should probably be with fewer stars.

When the brand new FedExCup Fall will get underway subsequent week on the Fortinet Championship, it should achieve this with a area mild on heavyweight names. Two-time defending champion and world No. 7 Max Homa can be on the fall opener, as will Justin Thomas, who’s in a precarious spot having did not qualify for the playoffs however needing a tune-up earlier than subsequent month’s Ryder Cup. They’re the headliners in Napa, California, on a tee sheet with acquainted, if not star-studded, names.

That’s in all probability going to be the story throughout the autumn as prime Tour gamers embrace a completely new idea – an offseason.

The seven-event fall schedule will now function a sort of seeding/qualifying sequence for subsequent season, with gamers who completed outdoors the highest 70 on the common season factors listing vying for higher standing. However with the highest gamers locked in for subsequent season – significantly these inside the highest 50 who’re additionally certified for practically each signature occasion in 2024 – and no FedExCup factors being carried over from the autumn, most of the sport’s greatest will do what they’ve all the time stated they wished and take a break.

“I’m not going to do a lot. I’m going to play the Ryder Cup. I don’t know what I’ve deliberate after that, but it surely’s not going to be a lot. You gained’t be seeing a lot of me,” laughed Scottie Scheffler on the season finale. “I’ll be hiding.”

The world No. 1 isn’t the one prime participant poised for an prolonged break, with most of those that certified for East Lake planning dramatically lowered schedules within the fall.

“I’m going to have a very busy October at residence. It’s been 12 straight years of taking part in fall golf, so I’m going to place every little thing I’ve bought into the Ryder Cup and I really feel like I’ll deserve an October off,” stated Open champion Brian Harman, whose taking part in plans embody the Ryder Cup, RSM Basic and the unofficial Hero World Problem to shut out 2023. “It’s good to have the choice to really feel such as you’re not getting to this point behind. I do suppose there can be loads of guys who will play a fairly full schedule within the fall simply because they need to preserve their sport sharp.”

If anybody wants a break it’s Lucas Glover, whose torrid end to the season was as inspiring because it was exhausting. Glover’s run included 9 occasions in 10 weeks and back-to-back victories on the Wyndham Championship and FedEx St. Jude Championship.

“After Memphis I used to be actually trying ahead to [taking an extended break],” stated Glover, who plans to play the Bermuda Championship and maybe one different occasion within the fall. “I’d prefer to play somewhat bit to remain contemporary, however I’ll be at plenty of softball and ice hockey practices, that’s for certain.”

The speculation of a full offseason vs. the truth of roughly 4 months away from aggressive golf will probably set in for a lot of. On the season-ending Tour Championship one long-time participant supervisor scoffed on the concept of a participant, even the sport’s highest, taking 4 months off, and most gamers acknowledged that “offseason” doesn’t essentially imply day without work.

“This week feels completely different. It’s all the time the tip of the season, however you’re all the time two weeks away from the season beginning once more. Whereas this time, you’re ending and you recognize it doesn’t begin till January,” Tommy Fleetwood stated at East Lake. “It’ll be attention-grabbing. All that point off feels nice, however I don’t know what number of gamers will begin getting itchy ft after a month or two. Who is aware of, it’d delay careers.”

The Tour’s transfer again to a calendar-year schedule – and a standalone fall that doesn’t carry over to the brand new yr – had been a precedence of many prime gamers (most notably Phil Mickelson) who would have most well-liked a real offseason. However even when these gamers don’t compete often on Tour, it doesn’t imply they’ll be sidelined for the autumn.

Rory McIlroy, for instance, took every week off after the Tour Championship earlier than choosing up his schedule at this week’s Horizon Irish Open adopted by subsequent week’s BMW PGA Championship.

“I’ve bought a buddy’s bachelor occasion in Mykonos after Wentworth for a number of days, after which I’ve a number of days to dry out earlier than the Ryder Cup,” McIlroy stated. “I’ve bought an enormous, no matter that’s, six-out-of-eight [event] run culminating with the Ryder Cup the place I’m hoping to play plenty of golf.”

It will likely be a equally busy fall for Fleetwood who will make the most of the reimagined fall schedule on the Tour to pad his DP World Tour begins, together with subsequent week at Wentworth adopted by the Ryder Cup, Alfred Dunhill Hyperlinks Championship, Nedbank Golf Problem and the European finale in Dubai.

“I don’t significantly need 4 months off as a result of by the point I come again I’ll be in all probability very rusty. I’ve bought to say, I actually like that when we get to January all people is ranging from scratch,” Fleetwood stated. “Yearly since I’ve been on the PGA Tour, we’ve had the Zozo [Championship] and CJ [Cup] however should you didn’t play effectively in these you come again out and play the Center East in January [on the European tour] and then you definitely’re simply taking part in catchup on the PGA Tour. It’s a pleasant feeling figuring out that in January all people begins the identical.”

The Tour’s new-look fall guarantees to be a lot completely different than what gamers and followers have seen previously. For the highest gamers it presents a selection: play every time and wherever you need, or don’t play in any respect.