Johnson Wagner has suggested a problem with the signature events on the PGA Tour after being left shocked by the crowds he saw during the Cadillac Championship at Doral this past week.
The Cadillac Championship made its debut as a signature event on the PGA Tour. But the week saw the tour return to familiar surroundings, with the Blue Monster hosting the event.
Doral had previously been one of the more iconic stops on the circuit. The Doral Open was played from the early 1960s until 2006. And the WGC-Cadillac Championship was held at the venue for a further decade.
So there would have been plenty of excitement for the course’s return. Unfortunately, it proved to be a slightly underwhelming week.
Johnson Wagner comments on the crowds at the Cadillac Championship at Doral
There was little drama on the golf course, largely due to the brilliance of Cameron Young. Young had a five-shot lead at the halfway stage and did not look back.
But it was striking just how little buzz the week seemed to have. Speaking on Scorecard on CBS Sports, Johnson Wagner suggested that he was staggered by just how flat the atmosphere proved to be.
“Players love the signature events right now. They like the fact that there’s only 72 guys. Practice rounds are a lot faster, but man, I’m telling you what, the more I’m at these signature events, especially early in the week, there just is something lacking,” he said.
“So I took a walk on the course on Thursday, I hadn’t seen the course in over 10 years, so I wanted to check it out. It was shocking to me. In walking the golf course, I probably bumped into 15 to 20 fans. There was nobody out there on Thursday.
“I timed it well. I think most of the spectators were with Scottie Scheffler, so I didn’t see him while I was out there, which was probably part of the reason why I didn’t see any fans. But I’m telling you, Saturday, I was walking with Scheffler and the biggest crowds on the course. There were some people, but it was really lacking. As I’m driving back in because Scottie was about the fifth or sixth last pairing on Saturday, I’m driving back in and I see Dottie, wave to her as I’m driving by the 15th hole, she’s with the final group with maybe 20 people around the tee box on 15, which is a really cool par three and a great place to sit and watch shots all day long.
“I don’t know why it happened that way. Maybe Miami in May isn’t the best idea. I think that should be moved up.”
Wagner suggests a change to the signature events on the PGA Tour
The signature events just keep coming. This week will see the Truist Championship take place at Quail Hollow, with only Memorial and Travelers Championship still ahead.
There is definitely plenty of excitement heading into the week when it comes to many of the world’s best players facing off outside of a major. But perhaps it would be fair to say that the PGA Tour is not maximising the potential of the signature events.
Wagner believes that not allowing fans onto the course early in the week is a big mistake from those at Ponte Vedra.
“You look at signature events as a whole, I was at Quail Hollow yesterday, there was no spectators allowed on Monday and Tuesday of signature events. The tournament, in my opinion, doesn’t have the ability to build as the week goes on,” he said.
“I played this tournament, the Truist, for 15 years, and Monday and Tuesday, there were more crowds around the course at Quail Hollow than most other events on a Saturday, Sunday. So to lose those days, it just doesn’t feel like the spectators have the momentum going into the week.”
Brian Rolapp does get given some leeway because much of the 2026 schedule was set in stone before his appointment as CEO was confirmed.
However, there clearly needs to be changes made. The signature events need to be spread out more; placed at times of the year when fans have the most reason to be excited about them.
The Cadillac Championship being squeezed in at this stage of the year certainly did the event few favours.
