The PGA Tour’s Florida Swing continues this week for the Arnold Palmer Invitational as it begins a difficult two-week stretch followed by the Players Championship next week.
This is the fourth Signature event of the 2024 schedule as this week will be a challenge for the field as they figure out just how to make par and ensure they take advantage of the scoreable holes throughout the course.
There are 69 players competing this week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The only eligible player not competing is Tony Finau.
For those who are not qualified for the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the PGA Tour also has the Puerto Rico Open taking place in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico this week, making it two tournaments going on simultaneously.
Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge is a par 72, measuring 7,466 yards where players will have to strategically work their way around the course as the week highlights one of best players of all-time in Arnold Palmer, who accumulated 62 PGA Tour wins, including seven major championships. He also impacted the growth of the game by being the catalyst for captivating fans in the early stages of golf television in the 1960s as he collected trophy after trophy.
This is a course that has featured some of the game’s top moments throughout the PGA Tour season, which includes Tiger Woods winning at Bay Hill a PGA Tour record eight times, including making birdies on the 72nd hole to win in 2008 and 2009. In 2001, he also defeated Phil Mickelson, who was World No. 2 at the time, in a matchup of the game’s two best players.
Last week, Austin Eckroat won the Cognizant Classic at 17-under par in a three-stroke victory over Erik van Rooyen and Min Woo Lee. Eckroat became the fourth player to secure their first PGA Tour victory this season.
Like The Genesis Invitational last month, there will be a 36-hole cut this week, set for the top 50 and ties and any player within 10 shots of the lead. This cut will also be in place for the Memorial Tournament in June.
Related: Where Arnold Palmer ranks on the PGA Tour all-time wins list
What channel is the Arnold Palmer Invitational on?
The Arnold Palmer Invitational will be televised between NBC and the Golf Channel.
Television schedule for the Arnold Palmer Invitational
| Round | Date | Time (ET) | TV |
| 1 | Thursday, Mar. 7 | 2:00 – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| 2 | Friday, Mar. 8 | 2:00 – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| 3 | Saturday, Mar. 9 | 12:00 – 2:30 p.m. 2:30 – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel NBC |
| 4 | Sunday, Mar. 10 | 12:30 – 2:30 p.m. 2:30 – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel NBC |
Other coverage for the Arnold Palmer Invitational
In addition to the Arnold Palmer Invitational being televised on the Golf Channel and CBS, the tournament will also air on ESPN+ and Peacock.
PGA Tour Live for the marquee and featured groups can be exclusively found on ESPN+ for all four days of the tournament, in addition to the featured holes around the course.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational will also be on the airwaves of Sirius XM for all four rounds.
Thursday, Mar. 7 (Round 1)
ESPN+: 7:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 12:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Friday, Mar. 8 (Round 2)
ESPN+: 7:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 12:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Saturday, Mar. 9 (Round 3)
ESPN+: 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 12:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sunday, Mar. 10 (Round 4)
ESPN+: 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 12:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Related: Top 10 PGA Tour golfers ever
How much are tickets for the Arnold Palmer Invitational?
Tickets to walk the grounds at the Arnold Palmer Invitational begin at $80 and prices increase for elevated access and hospitality venues, such as the White Claw Fan Deck and the new Orange Grove experience.
To grow the game, children 15 and under are admitted free into the grounds at the Arnold Palmer Invitational when accompanied by a ticketed adult.
Active duty, reservists, retirees, and National Guard members can receive a complimentary ticket throughout the tournament, while supplies last.
Payout for the Arnold Palmer Invitational 2024
The total purse is $20 million, and the winner will receive $4 million. In addition, the winner will receive 700 points towards the FedEx Cup standings.
Who are some of the top golfers in the Arnold Palmer Invitational field?
All of the game’s top players, including nine of the top 10 in the Official World Golf Ranking are on hand, including Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, who take up the top two spots, respectively.
Last year’s FedEx Cup winner Viktor Hovland is competing this week as he looks for his first top 10 of 2024 in his fourth start. Hovland, who recorded a T19 at The Genesis Invitational in his last start, enters this week with back-to-back top 10s at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge, including a runner-up finish two years ago.
Two-time winners from last season Lucas Glover and Max Homa as well as recent major champions from last year Brian Harman and Wyndham Clark are competing this week. Past FedEx Cup winners Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay also highlight the star-studded field .
Kurt Kitayama, who won last year’s Arnold Palmer Invitational, returns to Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge, looking to defend his title.
Eckroat, including van Rooyen, played their way into the field this week via the Aon Next 10. In addition, Lee is in the field through the Aon Swing 5 for those who were not part of the top 50 from last year’s FedEx Cup standings.
5 players with the best chance to win Arnold Palmer Invitational trophy on Sunday
Scottie Scheffler
The top player in the world and the 2022 Arnold Palmer Invitational Champion Scottie Scheffler enters this week looking to find his first official PGA Tour win in nearly a year since winning last year’s Players Championship. Scheffler ranks top 10 in four strokes gained categories, including leading the PGA Tour in approach the green and tee to green while ranking second in total strokes gained.
Scheffler also leads the PGA Tour in greens in regulation percentage, finding greens at an 80.37% clip while also atop the PGA Tour in par 4 scoring, which is going to be crucial this week.
Rory McIlroy
For the second consecutive week Rory McIlroy cracks this top 5, not only because he is the second ranked player in the world but has a track record that is hard to not rely on this week. At Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge, McIlroy won this event in 2018 and has four other top-5 finishes in the last seven years, including finishing as last year’s runner-up.
He also has a sixth-place finish in 2019 for four straight top six finishes from 2017 to 2020 with 10th and 13th place finishes in 2021 and 2022. As a result, having a top-13 finish in each of the last seven years, makes him a legitimate contender.
Matt Fitzpatrick
Matt Fitzpatrick is coming off a T21 at the Cognizant Classic last week, which included firing a final round 67 on a difficult course at PGA National. Like McIlroy, Fitzpatrick has a track record at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge. Since missing the cut in 2018, he has finished no worse than 14th, which came last year before four consecutive top-10s, including a runner-up finish in 2019.
As a result, this is a player, like many, that love this course as he looks for his first top-10 or better heading into a big couple of weeks with the Players Championship taking place next week.
Viktor Hovland
The reigning FedEx Cup winner comes to the Arnold Palmer Invitational looking to get his first PGA Tour win of 2024. Viktor Hovland has two straight top-10 finishes entering this go-around, including a T2 two years ago. He has not played since The Genesis Invitational when he tied for 19th in Los Angeles, so he is well rested for his first event this season on the east coast.
Cameron Young
Cameron Young, the 2021-22 Rookie of the Year, enters Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge looking to continue his hot stretch. Before finishing inside the top-5 last week at the Cognizant Classic, he had a T16 at The Genesis Invitational and a T8 at the WM Phoenix Open.
During last week’s event at PGA National, Young led the Cognizant Classic field in par-4 scoring, leading to his T4 finish. The par-4 scoring is going to be vital this week, in addition to hist two top-15s the last two years at the Arnold Palmer Invitational for that experience needed around this difficult property.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational pairings
All times ET; (FG) is Featured Group and (MG) is Marquee Group on ESPN+
| Round 1: 1 tee | Round 2: 1 tee | Players |
| 7:45 a.m. | 10:40 a.m. | Nick Dunlap |
| 7:55 a.m. | 10:55 a.m. | C.T. Pan, Stephan Jaeger |
| 8:05 a.m. | 11:05 a.m. | Luke List, Justin Lower |
| 8:15 a.m. | 11:15 a.m. | Will Zalatoris, Min Woo Lee |
| 8:25 a.m. | 11:25 a.m. | Mackenzie Hughes, Adam Schenk |
| 8:35 a.m. | 11:35 a.m. | Nick Taylor, Sepp Straka |
| 8:45 a.m. | 11:45 a.m. | Keegan Bradley, Justin Rose |
| 8:55 a.m. | 11:55 a.m. | Jason Day, Tom Hoge |
| 9:05 a.m. | 12:05 p.m. | Taylor Moore, Patrick Rodgers |
| 9:20 a.m. | 12:15 p.m. | Hideki Matsuyama, Russell Henley |
| 9:30 a.m. | 12:30 p.m. | Brendon Todd, Andrew Putnam |
| 9:40 a.m. | 12:40 p.m. | Chris Kirk, Lee Hodges |
| 9:50 a.m. | 12:50 p.m. | Brian Harman, J.T. Postman |
| 10:00 a.m. (FG) | 1:00 p.m. | Wyndham Clark, Tom Kim |
| 10:10 a.m. (MG) | 1:10 p.m. (FG) | Sam Burns, Scottie Scheffler |
| 10:20 a.m. (MG) | 1:20 p.m. | Viktor Hovland, Rickie Fowler |
| 10:30 a.m. | 1:30 p.m. | Austin Eckroat, Matthieu Pavon |
| 10:40 a.m. | 1:40 p.m. | Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Nicolai Hojgaard |
| Round 1: 1 tee | Round 2: 1 tee | Players |
| 10:55 a.m. | 7:45 a.m. | David Ford, Webb Simpson |
| 11:05 a.m. | 7:55 a.m. | Grayson Murray, Erik van Rooyen |
| 11:15 a.m. (FG) | 8:05 a.m. (FG) | Jake Knapp, Justin Thomas |
| 11:25 a.m. | 8:15 a.m. | Corey Conners, Eric Cole |
| 11:35 a.m. | 8:25 a.m. | Cam Davis, Denny McCarthy |
| 11:45 a.m. (MG) | 8:35 a.m. (MG) | Patrick Cantlay, Matt Fitzpatrick |
| 11:55 a.m. | 8:45 a.m. | Emiliano Grillo, Byeong Hun An |
| 12:05 p.m. | 8:55 a.m. | Sahith Theegala, Sungjae Im |
| 12:15 p.m. | 9:05 a.m. | Si Woo Kim, Adam Hadwin |
| 12:30 p.m. | 9:20 a.m. | Adam Svensson, Harris English |
| 12:40 p.m. | 9:30 a.m. | Seamus Power, Tommy Fleetwood |
| 12:50 p.m. | 9:40 a.m. | Cameron Young, Lucas Glover |
| 1:00 p.m. | 9:50 a.m. (FG) | Kurt Kitayama, Max Homa |
| 1:10 p.m. (FG) | 10:00 a.m. (MG) | Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth |
| 1:20 p.m. (FG) | 10:10 a.m. (MG) | Collin Morikawa, Rory McIlroy |
| 1:30 p.m. | 10:20 a.m. | Ludvig Aberg, Shane Lowry |
| 1:40 p.m. | 10:30 a.m. | Sami Valimaki, Adam Scott |