The American Express Golf Tournament, a marquee event that helps kick off the PGA Tour season. This annual event, held in the picturesque landscapes of California, gathers some of the finest golfers to showcase there skill’s, strategy, and sheer determination on the course.
What is The American Express Tournament?
The American Express marks the third event on the PGA Tour and the second full-field competition of the early season. What sets this tournament apart is its distinctive format, spanning play across three distinct courses in the scenic Coachella Valley. As a PGA Tour event, participants in this expansive field vie for 500 FedEx points, with the total purse amounting to $8,400,000. The ultimate victor will have the honor of hoisting The American Express trophy and claiming the prize of $1,440,000. Last years winner was Jon Rahm, as we all know he went to play for LIV so we will not see the defending champion at this years American Express.
The American Express Tournament Courses
The American Express Golf Tournament traditionally takes place on three courses in the Coachella Valley, California. The courses featured in the tournament include the Pete Dye Stadium Course, the Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA West, and the La Quinta Country Club.
The Stadium Course at PGA West – The Stadium Course at PGA West has earned acclaim as one of the country's premier courses and is renowned for its challenging nature. The tour professionals will navigate a course length of around 7,300 yards. Much like TPC Sawgrass (home of The Players), this course showcases an island green, adding to its allure. In the previous year, the course's scoring average stood at 70.70. The Stadium Course is slated to host the final round on Sunday following the cut.
Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA West – I typically don't favor Nicklaus-designed courses, and this particular course usually ranks among the easiest on the PGA Tour throughout the year. The Nicklaus Tournament Course underwent a significant renovation in 2020, involving the replacement of over 50,000 square feet of putting surface with TifEagle Bermuda greens. Additionally, the greens were expanded by 7,000 square feet. Notably, the Nicklaus Tournament Course boasts the lengthiest rough among the three courses, measuring at 2 inches.
La Quinta Country Club – Despite being the easiest of the three courses, La Quinta demands the players' attention. Last year, the course's scoring average stood at 69.91. Interestingly, TifDward Bermuda greens are featured only on the back nine, presenting a unique challenge for the players. As per the PGA website, the primary rough has been raised to 1.75 inches for last year's tournament which made it score harder.
2024 American Express Field
Alexander, Tyson | Baddeley, Aaron | Barjon, Paul | Barnes, Erik | Bezuidenhout, Christiaan | Björk, Alexander | Blair, Zac | Block, Michael | Bramlett, Joseph | Brehm, Ryan |
Bridgeman, Jacob | Buckley, Hayden | Burgoon, Bronson | Burns, Sam | Campos, Rafael
Cantlay, Patrick | Champ, Cameron | Cole, Eric | Coody, Parker | Coody, Pierceson
Crowe, Trace | Daffue, MJ | Davis, Cam | Day, Jason | Detry, Thomas | Dou, Zecheng | Dougherty, Kevin | Dufner, Jason | Dumont de Chassart, Adrien | Duncan, Tyler
Echavarria, Nico | Eckroat, Austin | Endycott, Harrison | Finau, Tony | Fishburn, Patrick |
Fowler, Rickie | Furr, Wilson | Gay, Brian | Ghim, Doug | Gordon, Will | Gotterup, Chris |
Greyserman, Max | Griffin, Ben | Griffin, Lanto | Gutschewski, Scott | Haas, Bill |
Hadley, Chesson | Hadwin, Adam | Hahn, James | Hale, Jr., Blaine | Hall, Harry | Hickok, Kramer
| Higgo, Garrick | Highsmith, Joe | Hisatsune, Ryo | Hoey, Rico | Hoffman, Charley | Hoge, Tom | Holmes, J.B. | Horschel, Billy | Hossler, Beau | Hubbard, Mark | Im, Sungjae | Jaeger, Stephan | Johnson, Zach | Kim, Chan | Kim, Michael | Kim, S.H. | Kim, Si Woo | Kim, Tom | Kirk, Chris | Kisner, Kevin | Kizzire, Patton | Knapp, Jake | Kohles, Ben | Landry, Andrew | Lashley, Nate | Lee, Min Woo | Lindheim, Nicholas | Lingmerth, David | Lipsky, David | Long, Adam |
Lower, Justin | Lowry, Shane | MacIntyre, Robert | Malnati, Peter | Martin, Ben |
McCormick, Ryan | McCumber, Tyler | Meissner, Mac | Meronk, Adrian | Merritt, Troy | Montgomery, Taylor | Moore, Ryan | Murray, Grayson | NeSmith, Matt | Norlander, Henrik | Novak, Andrew | Palmer, Ryan | Pavon, Matthieu | Pendrith, Taylor | Pereda, Raul | Perez, Victor | Phillips, Chandler | Piercy, Scott | Poston, J.T. | Power, Seamus | Putnam, Andrew | Rai, Aaron | Ramey, Chad | Reavie, Chez | Ryder, Sam | Schauffele, Xander | Scheffler, Scottie | Schenk, Adam | Schmid, Matti | Shelton, Robby | Sigg, Greyson | Silverman, Ben | Skinns, David | Sloan, Roger | Smalley, Alex | Smotherman, Austin | Springer, Hayden | Stallings, Scott | Stanger, Jimmy | Stevens, Sam | Streelman, Kevin | Tarren, Callum | Taylor, Ben | Taylor, Nick | Teater, Josh | Thompson, Davis | Tosti, Alejandro
Does The American Express have a Cut?
Yes, the American Express features a sizable field, one of the largest all season. This will promote a cut after the Friday round for players qualifying to proceed to the weekend.
Who Won The American Express in 2023?
Jon Rahm fired out to an impressive start in 2023, securing victories in consecutive event start. Closing with a final-round 68 at the Stadium Course of PGA West, Rahm clinched The American Express title, edging out PGA Tour rookie Davis Thompson by a single shot. Jon will not be playing in The American Express in 2024 because he has joined LIV Golf.
2024 American Express TV Schedule
The broadcasting schedule for The American Express in 2024: Jan. 18th-24th, Thursday-Sunday 03:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. EST on Golf Channel.
American Express Pick's & Player to Watch
Since we are writing this very early. We will be basing our picks on the players scheduled to be in the field as of the time of writing this. If we see any changes int the participants we will make changes.
Winner: Patrick Cantlay
Top-5: Sam Burns
Top-10: Scottie Scheffler
Top-20: Tom Hoge
Player to Watch: Tom Kim | Davis Thompson | Jason Day | Xandar Schauffele