‘Out of their hands’: PGA Tour pros criticize course conditions at PGA National

PGA National’s Champion Course, home of the Bear Trap, used to be one of the most fearsome annual tests on the PGA Tour. Not so anymore.

In recent years, a major decision about the maintenance of the course has taken the bite out of the course. The result? The winning scores at the Cognizant Classic have soared.

And some PGA Tour veterans aren’t happy about it. Billy Horschel took to social media to make his displeasure known, explaining who is responsible for the easy conditions at PGA National, while Shane Lowry opened up on the subject during his pre-tournament press conference.

Here’s what you need to know.

Why Cognizant Classic winning scores skyrocketed

When the Cognizant Classic, then known as the Honda Classic, moved to the PGA National’s Champion Course in 2007, it immediately proved a tough challenge for the PGA Tour’s best. Look no further than the winning scores.

Mark Wilson won the inaugural PGA National Honda Classic with a final score of five under. At the 2008 Honda, Ernie Else finished six under age and took home the trophy.

From 2007-2020, only three Honda Classics ended with a winning score in double figures under par. Camilo Villegas hit 13 under in 2010, five strokes better than runner-up Anthony Kim. Rory McIlroy reached 12 under for his 2012 win, two shots better than co-runner-up Tiger Woods. Rickie Fowler matched McIlroy’s winning score in 2017 with a four-shot winning margin. All other winning scores during that stretch were in the single digits under par.

But as the new decade began, something changed at PGA National. Suddenly all the winning scores were double digits under par. Over the past three years the problem has only gotten worse.

Chris Kirk won in a 2023 playoff after tying Eric Cole through 72 holes at 14 under. In 2024, Austin Eckroat reached 17 under to win the Cognizant. Last year, Joe Highsmith shot a 19-under 265 to take the win.

So what gives? According to several PGA Tour players, the culprit is a course maintenance decision. Although PGA National features primarily Bermuda grass on its surface, as does many Florida courses, in recent years the Bermuda has been overseeded with rye grass during the winter.

While overseeding makes the course look better, it also makes it much easier for players to navigate from the rough than if the grass were pure Bermuda. This greatly reduces the risk of missing the greens or fairways.

As a result, players have gone low with ease during the Cognizant Classic.

Billy Horschel blames PGA National for overseeding the course

Horschel, an eightfold PGA Tour winner, has extensive experience playing PGA National on Tour. In his long career, Horschel has made 13 starts in the Cognizant Classic/Honda Classic.

In his first 11 events at PGA National, Horschel’s best score was 7 under in 2017, which earned him a T4. His next best score during that stretch was 2 under.

But in 2024, Horschel reached a final score of 12 under. However, unlike McIlroy in 2012 and Fowler in 2017, who won by the same score, Horschel finished T9, five shots off the lead.

On Wednesday, Horschel publicly shared his thoughts on the recent changes at PGA National on social media.

In the replies to an

In his response, Horschel blamed the overseeding problem on the “owners of PGA National.” According to Horschel, the PGA Tour would prefer that the course not be seeded, but that is not up to them.

“Unfortunately not the [PGA] Tour’s fault. PGA National owners are doing it. Tour has tried to explain why there should be no overseeding, but ultimately it is beyond their control,” Horschel wrote.

He went on to argue that the PGA Tour should fight for “full control” of host courses in the future.

“One thing we need to do going forward is to ensure we have full control over the design of all Tour courses,” he wrote.

Shane Lowry on PGA National: ‘Last year it was a bit too easy’

After a series of withdrawals prior to the tournament, Shane Lowry is arguably the biggest star still in the Cognizant Classic field. As a local resident, Lowry cherishes this event, the hosting course and the opportunity to sleep at home and spend time with his family during tournament week.

He explained this on Wednesday during his press conference during the Cognizant Classic. But he also spoke at length about the easier course conditions of recent years.

“I like that the rough is a little thicker this year. Last year it was a little too easy, I thought,” Lowry began. “I don’t particularly want to see 59s here, but yeah, I hope the scoring will be a little harder this year and it plays like it used to.”

Lowry explained that when he first moved to Florida he had trouble adjusting to playing on Bermuda grass, joking, “I wish it had been overseeded then.”

Then a reporter asked Lowry how different the current PGA National format is from the heyday of single-digit winning scores.

“Yeah, I don’t think that’s it. I think it’s probably – it’s probably going to be easier to play than that, which I don’t like. I would rather see – look, I’m a member of a few courses here, and all of Bermuda, and the golf courses this time of year are incredible. The Bermuda golf courses here are incredible,” Lowry said.

He concluded: “I have a feeling it’s going to look great on TV. It’s going to be nice and green. It’s going to be great. But I’d probably like to see a little more of the old, traditional format. It is what it is this week, and you just have to deal with the cards you’re dealt.”

You can watch the opening round of the 2026 Cognizant Classic on Golf Channel starting Thursday at 2:00 PM ET.