The PGA Tour Champions will debut the Simmons Bank Championship in Little Rock, Ark., in October 2024, the tour announced Tuesday.
The tournament will be played at Pleasant Valley Country Club and serve as the second leg of the Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs. The top 54 players in Schwab Cup points after the first round will qualify, and only the top 36 points-earners after the Simmons Bank Championship will reach the playoff finale.
The tour announced a five-year agreement and said the first edition will be played the week of Oct. 21, 2024.
“Simmons Bank has been a tremendous title sponsor on the Korn Ferry Tour and we are thrilled to have them join PGA TOUR Champions to sponsor one of our playoff events,” PGA Tour Champions president Miller Brady said in a news release. “Bringing a tournament to their home in Little Rock shows Simmons Bank’s commitment to supporting their local community using the platform of professional golf to highlight the state of Arkansas and all that it has to offer.”
The tour did not reveal what will become of the TimberTech Championship in Boca Raton, Fla., which presently serves as the second round of the playoffs.
The Simmons Bank Championship is the PGA Tour Champions’ first foray into Arkansas. The last time a PGA Tour-sanctioned event was held in the state was the Fort Smith Classic on the Korn Ferry Tour, last played in 2010.
Two-time major champion John Daly is among the tour’s players who call Arkansas home.
–Field Level Media