Pre-Tournament Information – 2026 Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard

Player Interviews (all times local)

Tuesday, March 3
9:15 a.m. – Russell Henley

Noon – Daniel Bennett

Wednesday, March 4

Following 8:10 a.m. (18-hole) Pro-Am – Rory McIlroy (outside)

Following 8:10 a.m. (18-hole) Pro-Am – Collin Morikawa

Following 8:40 a.m. (18-hole) Pro-Am – Chris Gotterup

Following 8:50 a.m. (18-hole) Pro-Am – Justin Thomas

To Be Determined – Scottie Scheffler

*Visit pgatourmedia.com for the latest interview schedule

 Russell Henley

• 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard winner; final-round 70 included a chip-in for eagle at the 16^th hole leading to his fifth PGA TOUR win
• Seeking to become the first player to successfully defend at Bay Hill since Matt Every (2015)
• PGA TOUR wins (5): 2013 Sony Open in Hawaii, 2014 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches, 2017 Texas Children’s Houston Open, 2022 World Wide Technology Championship, 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard
• World No. 7 will make his 10^th start at the event, with both top-10 finishes coming in his last two starts (T4/2024, 1^st/2025)
• Three top-20 finishes in four starts this season (best: T8/The American Express)

Chris Gotterup

• Only multiple winner during the 2026 PGA TOUR Season is currently No. 2 in the FedExCup standings

• PGA TOUR wins (4): 2024 ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic, 2025 Genesis Scottish Open, 2026 Sony Open in Hawaii, 2026 WM Phoenix Open
• World No. 6 is making his debut appearance at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard
• Coming off a missed cut in his most recent start at The Genesis Invitational

Rory McIlroy

• Three-time FedExCup Champion (2016, 2019, 2022) leads the field with 29 PGA TOUR victories; seeks to join Horton Smith with 30 wins (16^th all time)
• 2018 champion is making his 12^th career start at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and has played every year since his debut in 2015
• Final-round 64 en route to victory in 2018 marks his low 18-hole score in 44 career rounds at Bay Hill
• Has finished no lower than T27 (2016) in 11 previous appearances at Bay Hill
• World No. 2 has one top-10 finish in two starts this season (T2/The Genesis Invitational; his 13^th runner-up finish on TOUR)
• Became the sixth player in history to capture the Career Grand Slam with his victory at the 2025 Masters Tournament, one of three victories during the 2025 PGA TOUR Season (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, THE PLAYERS Championship)

Collin Morikawa

• World No. 5 and FedExCup No. 4 is making sixth Arnold Palmer Invitational start, with two top-10 finishes (T9/2020, 2^nd/2025)
• Held a one-stroke lead after 54 holes over eventual champion Russell Henley at Bay Hill in 2025, finishing one behind following an even-par 72 (to Henley’s 70)

• Earned seventh PGA TOUR victory earlier this season at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, marking his first Signature Event victory; posted weekend rounds of 62-67 for a one-stroke victory over Min Woo Lee and Sepp Straka
• Added his second top-10 of the season in his most recent start at The Genesis Invitational (T7)

• PGA TOUR wins (7): 2019 Barracuda Championship, 2020 Workday Charity Open, 2020 PGA Championship, 2021 WGC-Workday Championship at The Concession, 2021 The Open Championship, 2023 Baycurrent Classic, 2026 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am

 Scottie Scheffler

• World No. 1 and 20-time PGA TOUR winner is in search of his third win at Bay Hill (2022, 2024)
• One of eight multiple winners of the event; the others: Tiger Woods (8), Jerry Heard (2), Gary Koch (2), Tom Kite (2), Loren Roberts (2), Ernie Els (2), Matt Every (2)
• 2024 FedExCup Champion is making sixth Arnold Palmer Invitational start (T15/2020, 1^st /2022, T4/2023, 1^st/2024, T11/2025)

• Recently finished T12 at The Genesis Invitational, ending a streak of 18 consecutive top-10 finishes on TOUR
• Currently No. 3 in the FedExCup standings
• Won his first start of the 2026 PGA TOUR Season at The American Express, marking his 20^th career PGA TOUR title
  • Became the 40th player to reach 20 career wins and the first since Rory McIlroy reached the milestone in 2021
  • 20^th win came in his 151^st start on TOUR, marking the second-fewest starts to reach 20 wins (Tiger
• Finished T12 in his most recent start at The Genesis Invitational, snapping a streak of 18 consecutive top-10s on TOUR

Justin Thomas

• 2017 FedExCup Champion is making season debut after undergoing microdiscectomy surgery in November
• Most recent PGA TOUR start came at the 2025 Procore Championship (69^th) in September
• Most recent of his 16 PGA TOUR victories came at the 2025 RBC Heritage
• Finished T7 in the 2025 FedExCup with one victory (RBC Heritage) and three runner-up finishes (The American Express, Valspar Championship, Truist Championship)
• Making fifth Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard start (best: T12/2024)

Daniel Bennett

• Arnold Palmer Cup Exemption recipient and current University of Texas sophomore will make his debut appearance on the PGA TOUR
• Named SEC Freshman of the Year, recording a team-best 70.00 scoring average with a pair of individual runner-up finishes; finished T16 or better in eight of his 11 stroke-play events
• South African received a spot in the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard by virtue of a vote from his peers at the 2025 Arnold Palmer Cup last June, where he helped lead the International team to victory over the U.S. at Congaree Golf Club in Ridgeland, S.C.

 Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard notes:

• The Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard is the eighth event of the 2026 PGA TOUR Season and the third of eight Signature Events. Like all Signature Events, the limited-field event offers increased FedExCup points (700) and a heightened purse ($20 million), however, additional elements set the three player-hosted events apart (The Genesis Invitational, Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard and the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday):

• • Only Signature Events to feature a cut: 36-hole cut, low 50 players and ties and any additional players within 10 strokes of the 36-hole lead

• • 20 percent prize allocation to winner ($4 million), up from 18 percent

• • One tournament host exemption, not restricted to PGA TOUR members: The Genesis Invitational (Sahith Theegala, Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption/finished T22), Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard (Daniel Bennett, Arnold Palmer Cup Exemption), the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday (TBD/Jack Nicklaus Award)

• The Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard is the first of four PGA TOUR events (the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, RBC Canadian Open, Genesis Scottish Open) that is part of The Open Qualifying Series (OQS); one spot will be available this week into the 154^th Open at Royal Birkdale. The top player, not otherwise exempt, that makes the cut at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard will earn an exemption. In the event of a tie for a qualifying place, the player with the higher ranking in the OWGR at the beginning of the week will earn the spot.
• There has not been a playoff at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard since 1999; in the 26 events since then, 14 have been decided by one stroke.
• 2025 FedExCup Champion Tommy Fleetwood makes his 10^th start at this event, with three top-10 finishes (T10/2017, T3/2019, T10/2021); most recently finished T11 in 2025
• Joel Dahman and Taylor Moore both have conditional status on TOUR in 2026 (111-125 in 2025 FedExCup Fall standings). Moore qualified via the Aon Swing 5 following a T2 at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches while Dahmen filled the field to 72 players based on his current FedExCup rank
• Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches winner Nico Echavarria will make his debut at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard; seeks to become the first player on TOUR to win in back-to-back weekssince Scottie Scheffler (2024 Masters Tournament, 2024 RBC Heritage); Scheffler is also the last player to win back-to-back starts on TOUR (2025 Procore Championship, 2026 American Express)