Scotland’s affable Russell Knox will get to play a decent 2023/24 new season schedule despite forfeiting full PGA Tour status.
Knox, 38, ended an indifferent season in missing Friday’s halfway cut by a shot with scores of 72 and 67 for a one-under-par tally in the Wyndham Championship, and in what was also a 300th Tour start since his debut in 2011.
The North Carolina event is the last ‘regular’ event on the 2022/23 schedule ahead of the start of next week’s three-tournament Play-Off Series, and with Knox’s effort mirroring a season when he contested 31 events and played all four rounds in 18.
Knox needed to finish 125th on the money list but in missing the Wyndham cut he is predicted to end the year ranked 142nd.
Scotland’s Russell Knox will be looking for bigger and better results heading to the 2023/24 PGA Tour season.
Horribly hurting Knox was sitting out in the weekend rounds in 10 of 11 events from the second week in February to the second week of May.
As well, it’s the first season since 2013 the double PGA Tour winner has not earned more than $US1m a season, and in a strong PGA Tour career boasting $US 14.2m in prize-money.
Though it’s not all gloom-and-doom for the Scot as he will get to play many of the nine or so events on the new schedule from September to Christmas but as the New Year dawns that is when it will get tougher, especially with the rich $US 20m ‘Designated’ events out of reach.
However, Knox’s winning stature should help him contest a decent schedule and the opportunity to regain full Tour status this time next year.
Better news for American Justin Thomas who needed to make the Wyndham cut to boost hopes of being picked by USA captain Zack Johnson later this month ahead of September’s Ryder Cup in Rome.
Thomas, who missed three of four cuts in this year’s majors, produced a rousing second round 65 to be lying just outside the leading 20, and with ‘JT’ predicted to move to 72nd on the money-list and in reach of breaking into the leading 70 that will tee-up next week in Memphis.
Thomas said: “Literally, I wanted to make the cut very badly, I mean, if I wanted any chance at what I want to do the rest of the year.
“You know, it is what it is. I was going to give it the best I had and shoot as low as I could whether that was 65 or 75 today.
“Fortunately for me it was a 65. I’m just going to go do the best I can and just give it everything I have this weekend because I don’t have much to lose”.
