Kim, Villegas to play in Europe

Early season PGA events have trouble garnishing attention that mid- and late season tournaments do.  There is the obvious reason that in January and February fans, whether faithful or marginal, don’t have golf on their minds and the big names are not all there.

Well, add two more to the early season migration to Europe.  Anthony Kim and Camilo Villegas have both paid dues to join the European Tour, setting the stage for them to compete in some of the big money events like the new season-ending $20 million Dubai World Championships that replaces the Volvo Masters.  Also, Phil Mickelson and Mike Weir have both said they plan on playing more in Europe next season.

It will hurt the PGA events in television ratings but, the tournaments missed by these stars already have low ratings because of where they sit on the schedule.  The positive out of the shift is that more of the young talent that fans are watching in the Fall Series will take center stage and, hopefully, crowd the leaderboards of the marquee events.

Overall, both Tours will benefit and maybe the PGA will see more of the top European talent in more non-major events.