The Most Popular Golf Tournaments & Events
Golf is one of the richest and most popular sports in the world to both play and watch. Every year, hundreds of thousands of people line the fairways, with millions at home tuning in to watch the best players in the game compete in the biggest tournaments.
While there are golf competitions held all around the world, there are only a few that can be regarded as the biggest and the best. Here are seven of the most popular golf tournaments in the world.
The Masters
When it comes to prestige and popularity, there is no bigger tournament than The Masters. Everything from PGA tour betting to crowd sizes is the biggest when the Masters rolls around, as it is the pinnacle of the sport.
Played at the legendary Augusta National Golf Course in Georgia, The Masters has seen some of the biggest players in golf history take part. Considering the green jacket is arguably more coveted than any trophy or paycheck, it’s no surprise that this tournament is the most popular in the world.
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or the British Open as it is also known, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and is played at the home of golf, St. Andrews in Scotland. First played in 1860, the Open has brought together the biggest names in golf every year since.
The Open has become as huge as it is due to international appeal and audiences, as it is one of the few PGA tournaments not played in the United States. Not to mention the fact that everyone from Tiger Woods to Jack Nicklaus has walked the hallowed fairways in Fife.
The Ryder Cup
It is no surprise that a tournament that pits the best of the US against the best of Europe is on this list. The Ryder Cup is played every two years, when a captain from the US and one from Europe choose a team to take part in a tournament consisting of four-ball, foursomes, and singles.
While the field isn’t huge, the best players in the world are all on display. You can think of it like the NBA All-Star game, although the teams aren’t there to have fun but to dominate their rivals.
The PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is widely regarded as the “least significant” of the Majors by some players, but the fans most certainly think otherwise. Played at a different course each year, the tournament is famous for having some of the biggest upsets in the game.
The greens are notorious for being very tricky to navigate, and the tournament often ends up being a way for up-and-coming players to prove they can hang with the veterans.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational
Named after a player that transformed golf forever and inspired hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of fans to take up the sport, the Arnold Palmer Invitational is one of the most popular tournaments in golf.
Despite not having the biggest purse and usually having incredibly favorable conditions, the tournament still draws many of the best players in the world and has enormous viewership when it is played, especially among those fans who are interested in PGA Tour betting.
The U.S. Open
The U.S. Open is arguably as big as the Open Championship. It is one of the most important competitions on the schedule for American players, and could be regarded as more prominent due to the purse size being larger than both the Masters and the Open Championship.
However, due to the fact that it is often packed with American players, the U.S. Open typically draws its biggest audience from the US, while other tournaments have more of an international fanbase.
Alfred Dunhill Links Championship
The Links Championship is a pro-am tournament played in Scotland across three of the most famous courses in golf. Each day, players play 18 holes across St. Andrews, Carnoustie, and Kingsbarns, with the tournament finishing at St. Andrews.
Conditions are often very difficult, meaning fans almost always get to see some of the best players in the world performing at the top of their game. While it doesn’t bring the same crowd numbers as the Masters or Open, the tournament has worldwide appeal, with fans watching from everywhere, from Argentina to Tokyo and all points in between.
