It was 1985, and Lanny Wadkins and Craig Stadler were locked in an epic five-hole playoff at the Bob Hope Desert Classic at Indian Wells Country Club. Wadkins eventually won the playoff, but not before Stadler had made an unlikely birdie on the fourth playoff hole, the par-5 18th, by hitting a second shot off the side of the mountain to the right of the hole.
The date was Jan. 13, and it was the last time the desert’s PGA Tour event, now known as The American Express, was the first event on the calendar year of the tour. But with news from the PGA Tour this week, first reported by Sports Business Journal, it looks like The American Express will indeed kick off the 2027 schedule.
The American Express dates of Jan. 21-24 had been the only confirmed dates for 2027 as the tour looks to shuffle and streamline its tournament schedule for next year and beyond. The two tournaments traditionally played before The American Express, both in Hawaii, had been confirmed to be off the schedule for 2027.
Now three more events have confirmed dates for 2027, but all three are after The American Express on the schedule. The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am will be played Feb. 4-7, SBJ reports. The Waste Management Phoenix Open will end on Feb. 14, the date of the Super Bowl. The following week, Feb. 18-21, will see the Genesis Invitational played in Pacific Palisades.
That leaves only one West Coast Swing tournament without a date, the PGA Tour event in San Diego at Torrey Pines Golf Course. That tournament is still without a title sponsor, though it is believed Sentry, a sponsor of one of the Hawaiian events, will move its sponsorship to San Diego.
If the San Diego event is played Jan. 28-31, in the empty week between The American Express and the Pebble Beach tournament, that would mean The American Express will be the first event of the new year.
That could mean a strong field for The American Express, which has had increasingly strong fields in recent years. Now players who want to get their new year started may decide to start in La Quinta, even if they have not played in the event in the past. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler is the defending champion the La Quinta event, which featured eight of the top 13 players in the world rankings last January.
The desert tournament has been the kickoff event for the PGA Tour three times in its history, in 1979, 1980 and 1985. Over the last two decades The American Express has been slotted in as the third event of each year after the two Hawaiian events, and broadcast exclusively on Golf Channel. The tournament is once again to be broadcast on Golf Channel in 2027.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: The American Express set to be first event on the 2027 PGA schedule
Reporting by Larry Bohannan, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
