Scottie Scheffler will participate in the American Express Championship at the end of January, marking his 2026 debut.
Scottie Scheffler will compete for the first time in 2026 at the PGA Tour’s American Express Championship, tournament organizers confirmed Wednesday. The event will take place from January 22 to 25 in La Quinta, California, with total prize money of $9,200,000. Last year, Austrian Sepp Straka won the tournament.
Scheffler Faces Tough Challenge in California
The American Express Championship is one of the few tournaments missing from Scheffler’s victory list. After a third-place finish in 2020 and various top-25 placements in recent years, he missed the 2025 event due to hand surgery. However, the competition this year is strong, featuring players like defending champion Sepp Straka, Ben Griffin, and Robert MacIntyre who could challenge the world number one.
This tournament is the second PGA Tour event of the new year following the Sony Open in Hawaii next week. The usual season opener, The Sentry, was canceled in October due to poor course conditions caused by drought in Kapalua.
Will Scottie Scheffler Follow Up with Another Outstanding Season?
Scheffler aims for a strong start at the American Express Championship to build on his successes from last year. In 20 tournaments, he secured six wins, including the PGA Championship and The Open Championship. He also finished in the top 10 in 17 out of 20 appearances and did not finish outside the top 25, earning him PGA Tour Player of the Year honors for the fourth consecutive time.
Following his two major titles in 2025, Scheffler now has a clear goal for 2026. After his Masters wins in 2022 and 2024, the American is only missing the US Open to complete the Career Grand Slam. He will compete for the title there from June 18 to 21.