PGA Tour China


PGA Tour China is a China-based men's professional golf tour as part of the PGA Tour's global expansion. The tour started in 2014. After a hiatus in 2017, the tour resumed in 2018. It is known as PGA Tour Series China. An earlier tour, the Omega China Tour, ran from 2004 to 2009.
The United States-based PGA Tour started PGA Tour China in 2014, joining PGA Tour Canada and PGA Tour Latinoamérica as international developmental tours. Similar to the Canadian and Latinoamerica tours, PGA Tour China offers a path to the Korn Ferry Tour for top finishers. It also offers Official World Golf Ranking points to the top-six finishers at each tournament. The top five finishers on the Order of Merit at season's end receive promotion to the Korn Ferry Tour. The money leader is fully exempt, while the other four players receive conditional status. Those who place second through tenth on the Order of Merit advance to the Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament's final stage. The top-50 players on the Order of Merit at the end of the season retain PGA Tour China privileges for the following year.
On 29 January 2014, PGA Tour China announced qualifying procedures and a 12-event season to begin in April. Two 72-hole qualifying tournaments were played in March. Each event awarded 20 full-time Tour cards, and conditional cards to the next 20 players plus those tied. For its inaugural season, PGA Tour China gave exemptions to the top 70 according to the China Golf Association rankings. After the 40 qualifiers and 70 from the rankings, the balance of the fields were filled through sponsor exemptions, Monday qualifiers and eligible players from the Web.com Tour, PGA Tour Latinoamérica, and PGA Tour Canada.
Zhang Lianwei, China's most successful professional golfer, hit the first tee shot in PGA Tour China history. South Korean teenager Wang Jeung-hun dominated the season's first event, the Mission Hills Haikou Open, winning by what is still a tournament record 10 shots.
Teenager Li Haotong won the final two events of the 2014 season, the Hainan Open and the Tour Championship – and three tournaments overall – to capture Player of the Year honors and full access to the Web.com Tour. Li later played on the European Tour, where he was an event in 2006. Another notable winner was China's Jin Cheng, a 16-year-old amateur who came from behind on the final day of the Nine Dragons Open to pass Lucas Lee. The victory by Jin is still the only time an amateur has broken through and won. Brett Drewitt finished third on the Order of Merit and also advanced to the Web.com Tour. After two seasons on that circuit, Drewitt earned his PGA Tour card for the 2016-17 season.
In 2015, New Zealand's Josh Geary won three tournaments, matching the win total of Li. But it was Australia's Bryden Macpherson, having returned to China for the second half of the season after failing to qualify for the Web.com Tour Finals, who finished atop the Order of Merit for a return trip to the Web.com Tour in 2016. Midway during the 2015 season, the series was renamed Ping An Bank China Tour – PGA Tour China Series after Ping An Bank became the tour's umbrella sponsor.
Another teenager from China dominated the third season, in 2016. Nineteen-year-old Dou Zecheng defeated Zhang Xinjun in the season-opening Henan Open, and Dou just kept winning. He eventually captured four titles, setting a record for single-season earnings CN¥1,144,350. The University of Oklahoma's Charlie Saxon won two tournaments and finished second on the Order of Merit. Dou was prominently featured in a Fortune article that appeared during the 2016 season. The Tour also made history by hosting its first tournament outside of Mainland China, the Clearwater Bay Open at Clearwater Bay Golf & Country Club in Hong Kong. In 2017, Dou became the first Chinese player to win on the Web.com Tour and graduated to the PGA Tour.

2020 season

The 2020 season was announced in January with a 14 tournament schedule which ventured outside Greater China for the first time with the Phuket Championship in Thailand. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the season was initially postponed, before being cancelled in late July, with all exemptions being carried forward to 2021. Earlier in July, China had announced the cancellation all international sporting events for the year. All players who qualified for the PGA Tour China during the 2020 season will be eligible for the LocaliQ Series.
DateTournament
29 MarSanya Championship
5 AprHaikou Classic
12 AprChongqing Championship
19 AprGuangzhou Open
10 MayClearwater Bay Open
17 MayPhuket Championship
24 MayBeijing Championship
14 JunTBC
21 JunTBC
19 JulTBC
26 JulTBC
13 SepSuzhou Championship
20 SepShanghai Open
27 SepMacau Championship

2019 season

The table below shows the initial 2019 schedule. "Date" is the ending date of each event. OWGR is the number of Official World Golf Ranking points awarded for that tournament. The season ran separately from the 2019 China Tour.

Korn Ferry Tour qualifiers

The top five players on the Order of Merit earned Korn Ferry Tour cards for 2020.
RankPlayerCountryEventsPrize money
1Max McGreevy13974,153
2Trevor Sluman13787,865
3David Kocher13771,337
4Cyril Bouniol13674,968
5Luke Kwon13668,359

2018 season

The table below shows the 2018 schedule. "Date" is the ending date of each event. OWGR is the number of Official World Golf Ranking points awarded for that tournament. All tournaments except the Clearwater Bay Open had a purse of ¥1,500,000. For the Clearwater Bay Open, the purse is ¥2,000,000. The season ran separately from the 2018 China Tour.
DateTournamentWinnerOWGR pts
18 MarChengdu Championship Jeffrey Kang 6
25 MarChongqing Championship Cao Yi 6
6 MayChangsha Championship Charlie Saxon 6
13 MayHaikou Championship Todd Baek 6
10 JunGuilin Championship Charlie Saxon 6
17 JunKunming Championship Yeung Motin 6
15 JulYantai Championship Joseph Winslow 6
22 JulQingdao Championship Yuan Yechun 6
29 JulBeijing Championship Peter Campbell 6
2 SepSuzhou Open Richard Jung 6
9 SepQinhuangdao Championship Nick Voke 6
30 SepMacau Championship Nick Voke 6
7 OctZhuhai Championship Kevin Techakanokboon 6
14 OctClearwater Bay Open Nick Voke 6

Web.com Tour qualifiers

The top five players on the Order of Merit earned Web.com Tour cards for 2019.
RankPlayerCountryEventsPrize money
1Callum Tarren141,094,600
2Charlie Saxon141,092,224
3Nick Voke5987,500
4Yuwa Kosaihira14732,832
5Todd Baek14660,700

2016 season

The table below shows the 2016 schedule. "Date" is the ending date of each event. OWGR is the number of Official World Golf Ranking points awarded for that tournament. All tournaments had a purse of ¥1,200,000.
DateTournamentWinnerOWGR pts
15 MaySt. Andrews Henan Open Dou Zecheng 6
29 MayUnited Investment Real Estate WuHan Open Dou Zecheng 6
5 JunCadillac Championship Alexander Kang 6
12 JunLanhai Open Rohan Blizard 6
26 JunSunning Estate Nanjing Zhongshan Open Dou Zecheng 6
3 JulPing An Private Bank Wanda Open Kim Tae-woo 6
4 SepYulongwan Yunnan Open Dou Zecheng 6
11 SepChongqing Jiangnan NewTown KingRun Open Gunn Charoenkul 7
18 SepPingan Bank Open Charlie Saxon 7
6 NovClearwater Bay Open Daniel Nisbet 7
13 NovPutian Open Kim Tae-woo 7
20 NovZhuhai Hengqin Phoenix Tree Open Charlie Saxon 7
27 NovBuick Open Zhang Huilin 7

Web.com Tour qualifiers

The top five players on the Order of Merit earned Web.com Tour cards for 2017.
RankPlayerCountryEventsPrize money
1Dou Zecheng131,144,350
2Charlie Saxon13871,395
3Alexander Kang12597,575
4Kim Tae-woo12578,886
5Zhang Xinjun11504,675

2015 season

The table below shows the initial 2015 schedule. "Date" is the ending date of each event. OWGR is the number of Official World Golf Ranking points awarded for that tournament. All tournaments had a purse of ¥1,200,000.
DateTournamentWinnerOWGR pts
5 AprBuick Open Josh Geary 6
17 MayEternal Courtyard Open Chan Shih-chang 6
24 MayUnited Investment Real Estate Wuhan Open Justin Shin 6
31 MayLanhai Open Josh Geary 6
13 SepPingan Bank Open Eugene Wong 6
27 SepCadillac Championship Bryden Macpherson 6
4 OctYulongwan Yunnan Open Josh Geary 6
11 OctLushan Open Bryden Macpherson 6
18 OctChongqing Jiangnan NewTown KingRun Open Zhang Xinjun 6
22 NovNine Dragons Open Chao Haimeng 6
29 NovHainan Open Zhang Huilin 6
6 DecCapital Airline – HNA Real Estate Championship He Zeyu 7

Web.com Tour qualifiers

The top five players on the Order of Merit earned Web.com Tour cards for 2016.
RankPlayerCountryEventsPrize money
1Bryden Macpherson8769,960
2Josh Geary9747,230
3Zhang Xinjun12545,046
4Dou Zecheng12483,813
5Eugene Wong11454,768

2014 season

The table below shows the initial 2014 schedule. "Date" is the ending date of each event. OWGR is the number of Official World Golf Ranking points awarded for that tournament. All tournaments had a purse of ¥1,200,000.
DateTournamentWinnerOWGR pts
20 AprMission Hills Haikou Open Wang Jeung-hun 6
4 MayBuick Open Sam Chien 6
18 MayUnited Investment Real Estate Wuhan Open Brett Drewitt 6
8 JunLanhai Open David McKenzie 6
15 JunEarls Beijing Open Zhang Xinjun 6
10 AugYulongwan Yunnan Open Gunn Charoenkul 6
7 SepChateau Junding Penglai Open Todd Baek 6
14 SepCadillac Championship David McKenzie 6
28 SepJianye Tianzhu Henan Open Li Haotong 6
16 NovNine Dragons Open Jin Cheng 6
23 NovHainan Open Li Haotong 6
30 NovCTS Tycoon Championship Li Haotong 6

Web.com Tour qualifiers

The top five players on the Order of Merit earned Web.com Tour cards for 2015.
RankPlayerCountryEventsPrize money
1Li Haotong12967,788
2Zhang Xinjun8650,600
3Brett Drewitt12585,196
4Sam Chien12573,951
5Todd Baek11535,920

Source

Order of Merit winners