Masters-Heritage combo a reality of 2023 golf season. How PGA Tour’s best are preparing

Golf fans will finally have the opportunity to watch all of the PGA Tour’s top players in person at the 2023 RBC Heritage on Hilton Head Island.

The Tour’s designating the Heritage among its “elevated” events on Wednesday assures a high-profile field for the April tournament at Harbour Town Golf Links.

Jon Rahm, No. 5 in the world rankings, said wife “Kelley would be extremely happy because she’s been wanting to go back to Hilton Head for a very long time.”

The Heritage offered an impressive field in 2020, but that came in a rescheduled June date and with strings attached. Health restrictions in the early months of the COVID pandemic meant no fans and a myriad of precautions.

This time, spectators can be there.

Two of next year’s “elevated” events come the week following major championships, the Heritage after the Masters and the Travelers after the U.S. Open. The Masters-Heritage timing has made many top players skip Hilton Head in the past, though the tournaments are about 150 miles apart.

Revised rules mandate that the Tour’s best compete in the same tournaments more often. The Heritage, thanks to raising the purse to $20 million, received one of those plums for 2023.

Schedules will require some adjustments, Rory McIlroy said Wednesday on the eve of the CJ Cup in South Carolina at Congaree Golf Club.

“The PGA Tour is transitioning to a January-August season; everybody knows that,” he said. “So, this week, the CJ Cup is one of the (three optional) events for me.

“I think Jon (Rahm), myself, Viktor (Hovland), Matt Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton ... there’s a few of us in position to play (the PGA and DP World) tours. If you can let us play one PGA event in the fall and say another European Tour event in the fall, then you have to play only one in the middle of the season, I think that’s a good outcome for everyone.”

Joining the Heritage in receiving “elevated” designation for 2023 are the WM Phoenix Open, West Fargo Championship in Charlotte and the Travelers Championship in Hartford, Connecticut.

Players who finished in the top 20 in the 2022 Player Impact Program are required to participate in all elevated events for which they are eligible, plus at least three additional events. The commitment to compete in a pre-determined schedule and play at least 20 times per year is the result of collaboration among the top players.

Thus, the field in Hilton Head will be even stronger than the one that competes this week in the CJ Cup in South Carolina. And this week’s tournament includes 15 of the top 20 in the World Golf Rankings.

The Heritage staff cut back on ticket sales for the 2022 event in an effort to create a more fan-friendly environment, and the plan met all expectations. The tournament sold out, and a popular champion — Jordan Spieth edged Patrick Cantlay in a playoff — added to the experience.

Scottie Scheffler, the world’s top-ranked player, pondered his spring schedule and said some tough decisions would be required. Like Jordan Spieth and other Texas-based players, he could be playing five straight weeks.

“You have Wells Fargo (mandatory), Byron Nelson (in Texas), the PGA (a major), Colonial (in Texas) and Memorial (mandatory),” he said. “The Byron and Colonial both will be events at home where I get to sleep in my own bed; those are tough ones to skip.

“Obviously I want to do what I can to support the Tour, so I haven’t really looked too far into that. I’m sure my schedule will look pretty similar to how it looked last year, but I’ll definitely be adding probably either Wells Fargo or Memorial. ... It’s going to be a tough balance for guys.”

But no matter what decisions are made, fans will be the winners at Hilton Head. A word to the wise: Get your tickets early.