For the first time this season, the PGA Tour has arrived on the east coast for this week’s Cognizant Classic at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
The name of the tournament is new in 2024, following the schedule change to calendar-year slate as it was formerly known as The Honda Classic. However, the course stay the same.
This week, players will have to battle a difficult PGA National course, which is a par-71, measuring 7,147 yards. The challenge this week will be how well players execute their shots off the tee as water hazards dominate the course. In total, there are 26 bodies of water, but the fairways are 32 yards in width, the largest since 2013.
In addition, scoring average on this course over the last five years is +1.14, which is the second toughest course, only Augusta National for the Masters has more difficulty.
Some courses on the PGA Tour are known for a three-hole stretch, which are popularly named. From Amen Corner at Augusta National (hole no. 11-13), the final three holes at TPC Sawgrass, which features the island green on the 17th, to even the Green Mile at Quail Hollow for three long holes to finish out the Wells Fargo Championship, PGA National is no different is a three-hole stretch of its own.
Called “The Bear Trap” for Jack Nicklaus, whose nickname was “The Golden Bear” and redesigned the course, the 15th, 16th and 17th are difficult to battle every time a player faces them.
The 15th is a par-3 at 179 yards, the 16th is a par-4 at 434 yards and the 17th is another par-3 at 175 yards.
One of the changes to the course this year is that the 10th hole will go from a 508 par-4 to a 530-yard par-5. With that, the back nine is bookended by par-5s and there are now three par-5s on the scorecard this week, with the other being the par-5 third.
As a result, it alleviates the stretch of not having a par-5 in 14 consecutive holes, from No. 4 to 17 and players who started on the back nine would not have the opportunity to get back on track until after The Bear Trap. Furthermore, the 10th hole, as a par 4, was the toughest hole on the course and more difficult than the three Bear Trap holes.
Last week, Jake Knapp won by two strokes at the Mexico Open at Vidanta, becoming the third rookie to win on the PGA Tour this season through the first eight weeks, joining Matthieu Pavon at the Farmers Insurance Open and Nick Dunlap at The American Express.
There were three rookies to win all of last season as Knapp ranked first in birdies and in both strokes gained total and approach the green. He was also second in driving accuracy as he put on a ball striking clinic to secure his first PGA Tour win.
Related: Rory McIlroy to make return at Cognizant Classic
What channel is the Cognizant Classic on?
The Cognizant Classic will be televised between NBC and the Golf Channel. This is the second of seven consecutive weeks the PGA Tour will televised on NBC, going all the way to the Valero Texas Open.
Television schedule for the Cognizant Classic
| Round | Date | Time (ET) | TV |
| 1 | Thursday, Feb. 29 | 2:00 – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| 2 | Friday, Mar. 1 | 2:00 – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel |
| 3 | Saturday, Mar. 2 | 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. 3:00 – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel NBC |
| 4 | Sunday, Mar. 3 | 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. 3:00 – 6:00 p.m. | Golf Channel NBC |
Other coverage for the Cognizant Classic
In addition to the Cognizant Classic being televised on the Golf Channel and CBS, the tournament will also be broadcasted 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 Cognizant Classic will also be on the airwaves of Sirius XM for all four rounds.
Thursday, Feb. 29 (Round 1)
ESPN+: 6:45 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 12:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. ET
Friday, Mar. 1 (Round 2)
ESPN+: 6:45 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 12:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. ET
Saturday, Mar. 2 (Round 3)
ESPN+: 6:45 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sunday, Mar. 3 (Round 4)
ESPN+: 6:45 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Peacock: 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Sirius XM: 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET
Related: Confident Chris Kirk defends title at Cognizant Classic
How much are tickets for the Cognizant Classic?
Tickets to walk the grounds at the Cognizant Classic begin at $70 and prices increase for elevated access and hospitality venues, such as the CIBC Champions Club overlooking the 18th hole and the Goslings Bear Trap looking over the 16th green and the 17th hole..
To grow the game, children 15 and under are admitted free into the ground at the Cognizant Classic when accompanied by a ticketed adult.
Active Duty, Reservists, Retirees, their registered Dependents and Non-Retired Veterans can receive up to two complimentary tickets throughout the tournament, while supplies last.
Payout for the Cognizant Classic 2024
The total purse is $9 million, and the winner will receive $1.62 million. In addition, the winner will receive 500 points towards the FedEx Cup standings.
Who are some of the top golfers in the Cognizant Classic field?
This week’s Cognizant Classic field has stars, highlighted by World No. 2 Rory McIlroy, who is coming off a skins victory in the latest version of ‘The Match’ on Monday, which featured World No. 8 Max Homa as well as LPGA stars Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang.
McIlroy won on the closest to the pin contest after the 12th and final hole from about 100 yards out under the lights at The Park course in West Palm Beach, Fla. All the proceeds won, more than $2 million, went in the player’s name to charity.
This is McIlroy’s first appearance at PGA National since 2018 as he is looking for his first win on this course in 12 years and a runner-up finish in 10 years.
Last year, Chris Kirk won at PGA National for his first PGA Tour victory in eight years. Kirk, who won The Sentry to begin the 2024 season, defeated Eric Cole on the first playoff hole last year. Both received year-end honors as Cole went on to win the Rookie of the Year and Kirk was awarded the PGA Tour Courage award with his win last year after taking a leave of absence in 2019 to address issues of alcohol abuse and depression.
Also, the three victorious rookies in 2024 – Dunlap, Pavon and Knapp – are playing this week and are in featured groups, as Knapp is in the marquee group with McIlroy and Kirk.
In addition, a couple of other PGA Tour stars are competing this week at the Cognizant Classic in Tom Kim, Matt Fitzpatrick as well as another drought-stopper in Rickie Fowler, who won last year’s Rocket Mortgage Classic for his first PGA Tour win in four years.
With this being the final event before the next week’s Signature event, the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the final spots will be decided for next week’s field through the Aon Swing 5. Sami Valimaki, who was last week’s runner-up, leads the way, followed by Stephan Jaeger, Justin Lower, C.T. Pan and Robert MacIntyre.
There are five golfers within 20 FedEx Cup points of overtaking any of those five players in the Aon Swing 5 in Doug Ghim, Chan Kim, Andrew Novak, Erik van Rooyen and Carson Young.
5 players with the best chance to win Cognizant Classic trophy on Sunday
Rory McIlroy
Rory McIlroy comes to the Cognizant Classic with positive vibes after his win at The Match. But being on the east coast might be the other factor playing on Bermuda grass after he recorded struggled on the west coast with a T66 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and a T24 at The Genesis Invitational.
Although this week is not for long drivers compared to last week in Mexico, it is more on accuracy with shots with water in play and other hazards. McIlroy has wanted to play in more events before the Masters, so he can get opportunities to be in contention. This week is no different as it sets him up to play at three straight weeks through The Players Championship.
Tom Kim
Tom Kim has been solid this season, but not to level of being in contention this week. With two straight big purse events with the Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players Championship coming up after this week, this is the opportunity for Kim to get right.
Although he has struggled, Kim’s precision has been vital as he makes his tournament debut this week. Last season, he ranked 19th in strokes total and 10 in strokes gained approach. The approach shots, especially on the par-4s, will be crucial for Kim, who ranked seventh in par-4 scoring average last year.
Russell Henley
It’s been a minute since Russell Henley teed it up at PGA National and won on this course. Henley made his debut in 2013 and won the following year, which was fueled by an opening round 64. Although he has not competed at PGA National since 2021, he has back-to-back top 10 finishes with a solo third in 2021 and a solo eighth in 2020.
The track history is there with success in both his score to par and his stroke gained numbers all in the positive side, taking strokes off the board over the last five years.
Sepp Straka
Like Henley, Sepp Straka has won at PGA National in the past having won the 2022 Honda Classic for his first PGA Tour win. In his title defense last year, he tied for fifth shooting just one shot worse than his victorious tournament the year before.
In his T5 finish last year, he led the field in greens in regulation and co-led in par-4 scoring, which is going to be vital with three par-5s on the course.
Stephan Jaeger
Stephan Jaeger enter the Cognizant Classic having played well as of late as his tied for third place last week in Mexico to extend his consecutive cut streak to 22 straight tournaments. Last week was his second T3 of the season as he also accomplished that mark at the Farmers Insurance Open after recording 73-72 over his final 36 holes, compared to going 68-64 though his first two rounds at Torrey Pines. Last week, Jaeger even finished better with a final round 65.
Jaeger has been solid this season, ranking inside the top 50 in five of six strokes gained categories (total, tee to green, around the green, putting and off the green) while ranking 72nd in strokes gained approach, which is still good. Last year at PGA National, Jaeger recorded a 14th place finish as he recorded better scores (71-69-67-67) as the tournament progressed.
The Cognizant Classic pairings
All times ET; (FG) is Featured Group and (MG) is Marquee Group on ESPN+
| Round 1: 1 tee | Round 2: 10 tee | Players |
| 6:45 a.m. | 11:45 a.m. | Byeong Hun An, Callum Tarren, Dylan Wu |
| 6:56 a.m. | 11:56 a.m. | Tyler Duncan, Ryan Palmer, Jhonattan Vegas |
| 7:07 a.m. | 12:07 p.m. | C.T. Pan, Mark Hubbard, Sam Stevens |
| 7:18 a.m. | 12:18 p.m. | K.H. Lee, Chad Ramey, Keith Mitchell |
| 7:29 a.m. | 12:29 p.m. | Nick Hardy, Kevin Kisner, J.B. Holmes |
| 7:40 a.m. | 12:40 p.m. | J.T. Poston, Francesco Molinari, Brandt Snedeker |
| 7:51 a.m. | 12:51 p.m. | Davis Riley, Ryan Brehm, Zach Johnson |
| 8:02 a.m. | 1:02 p.m. | Beau Hossler, Sam Ryder, Doug Ghim |
| 8:13 a.m. | 1:13 p.m. | Garrick Higgo, Matt NeSmith, Matti Schmid |
| 8:24 a.m. | 1:24 p.m. | Chesson Hadley, Justin Suh, Ben Kohles |
| 8:35 a.m. | 1:35 p.m. | Chan Kim, Chandler Phillips, Tyler Collet |
| 8:46 a.m. | 1:46 p.m. | Jacob Bridgeman, Rico Hoey, Chase Johnson |
| Round 1: 10 tee | Round 2: 1 tee | Players |
| 6:45 a.m. | 11:45 a.m. | Ben Martin, Maverick McNealy, Andrew Novak |
| 6:56 a.m. | 11:56 a.m. | Ryan Moore, Austin Eckroat, Harry Hall |
| 7:07 a.m. | 12:07 p.m. | Alex Smalley, Hayden Buckley, Davis Thompson |
| 7:18 a.m. | 12:18 p.m. | Corey Conners, Matt Wallace, Billy Horschel |
| 7:29 a.m. (FG) | 12:29 p.m. (FG) | Matthieu Pavon, Camilo Villegas, Shane Lowry |
| 7:40 a.m. (MG) | 12:40 p.m. (MG) | Jake Knapp, Chris Kirk, Rory McIlroy |
| 7:51 a.m. (FG) | 12:51 p.m. (FG) | Nick Dunlap, Akshay Bhatia, Cameron Young |
| 8:02 a.m. | 1:02 p.m. | Michael Kim, Stephan Jaeger, Thomas Detry |
| 8:13 a.m. | 1:13 p.m. | Peter Malnati, Bud Cauley, Brandon Wu |
| 8:24 a.m. | 1:24 p.m. | Sami Valimaki, Jimmy Stanger, Adrien Dumont de Chassart |
| 8:35 a.m. | 1:35 p.m. | Ryo Hisatsune, Jorge Campillo, Max Greyserman |
| 8:46 a.m. | 1:46 p.m. | Alexander Bjork, Parker Coody, Michael Gligic |
| Round 1: 1 tee | Round 2: 10 tee | Players |
| 11:45 a.m. | 6:45 a.m. | Greyson Sigg, S.H. Kim, Ryan Fox |
| 11:56 a.m. | 6:56 a.m. | Patton Kizzire, Kevin Streelman, Tyson Alexander |
| 12:07 p.m. | 7:07 a.m. | Lanto Griffin, Denny McCarthy, Min Woo Lee |
| 12:18 p.m. | 7:18 a.m. | Tom Hoge, Brendon Todd, Matt Kuchar |
| 12:29 p.m. (FG) | 7:29 a.m. (FG) | Russell Henley, Daniel Berger, Eric Cole |
| 12:40 p.m. (FG) | 7:40 a.m. (FG) | Sepp Straka, Rickie Fowler, Sungjae Im |
| 12:51 p.m. (MG) | 7:51 a.m. (MG) | Tom Kim, Matt Fitzpatrick, Justin Rose |
| 1:02 p.m. | 8:02 a.m. | Aaron Baddeley, Padraig Harrington, Justin Lower |
| 1:13 p.m. | 8:13 a.m. | Taylor Pendrith, Joseph Bramlett, Ben Taylor |
| 1:24 p.m. | 8:24 a.m. | Paul Barjon, Patrick Fishburn, Fred Biondi |
| 1:35 p.m. | 8:35 a.m. | Robert MacIntyre, Pierceson Coody, Norman Xiong |
| 1:46 p.m. | 8:46 a.m. | Victor Perez, Alejandro Tosti, Rasmus Hojgaard |
| Round 1: 10 tee | Round 2: 1 tee | Players |
| 11:45 a.m. | 6:45 a.m. | Martin Laird, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Ben Griffin |
| 11:56 a.m. | 6:56 a.m. | Robby Shelton, Taylor Montgomery, David Lipsky |
| 12:07 p.m. | 7:07 a.m. | Troy Merritt, Jeff Overton, Zac Blair |
| 12:18 p.m. | 7:18 a.m. | Luke List, Lee Hodges, Joel Dahmen |
| 12:29 p.m. | 7:29 a.m. | Lucas Glover, Adam Svensson, Gary Woodland |
| 12:40 p.m. | 7:40 a.m. | Erik van Rooyen, Nico Echavarria, Adam Schenk |
| 12:51 p.m. | 7:51 a.m. | Vincent Norrman, Cameron Champ, Scott Stallings |
| 1:02 p.m. | 8:02 a.m. | Alex Noren, Kevin Yu, Carl Yuan |
| 1:13 p.m. | 8:13 a.m. | Nate Lashley, Robert Garrigus, Carson Young |
| 1:24 p.m. | 8:24 a.m. | Thorbjorn Olesen, Chris Gotterup, David Skinns |
| 1:35 p.m. | 8:35 a.m. | Joe Highsmith, Mac Meissner, Chris Crawford |
| 1:46 p.m. | 8:46 a.m. | Ben Silverman, Nicolas Lindheim, Braden Shattuck |