PGA Tour, pro golf can improve with 1 big change: move Irish Open

For American golf fans, the season of ‘Breakfast Golf’ is upon us, as the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour stage the Genesis Scottish Open at the Renaissance Club this week.

With the five-hour time difference between the East Coast and the British Isles, millions of Americans wake up extra early to catch the world’s best play in Scotland each summer. (Yes, I am one of the crazy ones who sets an alarm at 4 a.m. ET to rise and shine to watch the world’s best.)

But what’s great about this year’s Scottish Open is that it serves as the perfect appetizer for golf’s oldest major, The Open Championship, which the famed Old Course at Royal Troon will host next week. It gives the players—and golf fans—a taste of links golf, the style of play most often seen in the British Isles, one that depends heavily on the weather and is played along the sea.

Links golf also requires creativity, forcing the player to hit various shots: up in the air, on the ground, bump-and-runs, piercing stingers into the wind, and sometimes, the deep and intimidating pot bunkers force players to take diabolical stances. No matter the shot, links golf always entertains and is often a favorite style of play of many. Just ask Tom Watson, who won five Claret Jugs.

Hence, we need more links golf in the professional game. So, piggybacking on what Evin Priest, an Australian reporter for Golf Digest, posted early Thursday, I have a suggestion on how to improve the PGA Tour in the future:

Make the Irish Open Bigger The 10th green at Royal County Down. Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images

We need to move the Irish Open back to July and make it a co-sanctioned event on the PGA Tour, similar to what has been done with the Genesis Scottish Open.

This year’s Irish Open will take place at Royal County Down in Northern Ireland, which Golf Digest has repeatedly ranked as the top-ranked course in the world. But Irish golf fans must wait until September to see top players vie for their national open. Unfortunately for them, many top golfers have ended their seasons by then.

Despite that, Rory McIlroy will be there. He always plays in the Irish Open, having won it in 2016. So, too, will Shane Lowry, the man from County Offaly who won the Irish Open as an amateur in 2009 at County Louth, another spectacular venue on the east coast of Ireland.

But the Irish Open, like the Scottish Open this week, has a magical mystique—as does the entire Emerald Isle. Perhaps it’s the phenomenal courses that exist in Ireland. Or maybe it’s the unmatched charm that seemingly every Irishman or Irishwoman has. Either way, the Irish Open should become a significant tournament on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour. Make it a Rolex Series Event, the DP World Tour equivalent of the PGA Tour’s Signature Events. Make the British Isles the place to be in July.

Those who love watching and supporting the John Deere Classic may not like this sentiment, but the John Deere should become a co-sanctioned event on the PGA Tour, played simultaneously with the Irish Open. No disrespect to TPC Deere Run, which has produced thrilling finishes and remarkable tournaments for nearly 25 years, but the Quad Cities course does not have the pedigree of Royal County Down or many others that have hosted the Irish Open, such as Portmarnock, Lahinch, Ballybunion, Royal Portrush, and countless others.

Unfortunately, the John Deere Classic has not boasted strong fields in quite some time while also seeing inflated scores north of 20-under-par.

But that’s the beauty of this idea. Some players can play in the Quad Cities, while other top players make the trip to Ireland—like many have done this week to Scotland.

Make the Irish Open bigger, bringing the world’s best to some of the best courses in the world. Ireland boasts 14 courses in Golf Digest’s ‘World’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses,’ so why doesn’t professional golf further take advantage of what this tiny island has to offer?

The Irish Open already has a rotation, playing many of these top courses and others, like the K Club and Adare Manor, two Ryder Cup venues. It is also one of the more visited events on the DP World Tour annually. The Irish love golf.

The 10th green at Ballybunion in Ireland. Photo by Brendan Moran/R&A/R&A via Getty Images

Should they take up my suggestion, this championship would undoubtedly produce even more attendance numbers, ratings, and, therefore, revenue for the PGA and DP World Tours.

So, here is my recommendation for the future, using the 2025 calendar as a guide. I hope this idea would bring more of the top players to Ireland and also entertain golf fans around the world even more:

July 3-6: Irish Open / John Deere Classic July 10-13: Scottish Open / Isco Championship in Kentucky July 17-20: The 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush

That’s three straight weeks of links golf, which will not only extend ‘Breakfast Golf’ for American fans but also get many top players even more accustomed to links golf. And, as Justin Thomas said after his round on Thursday, he adores links golf. He loves playing other courses outside of tournament venues whenever he is in the British Isles. He even said he is looking to play different courses—not Royal Troon—before The Open next week—the week of a major!? That’s how exceptional golf is in this part of the world.

So, knowing all of this and considering the fact that National Opens are such special events, why not make the Irish Open even bigger?

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.