Professional golf tournaments are played year-round, with millions of dollars on the line nearly every week. Diehard fans tune in regularly, but on four weekends a year, the golf world stands still as fans around the world tune in for the Majors.

While the purses are large, the true stakes of a Major go far beyond prize money. Winning one carries historic weight, a career-defining achievement that elevates a player into golf’s highest tier. Individual tournament wins fade over time. Major championships do not. A Major winner is remembered forever.

The four Majors are: The Masters, the PGA Championship, the U.S. Open, and The Open Championship.

Masters Tournament

Dates: April 9^th – 12^th

Location: Augusta National – Augusta, GA

2025 Winner: Rory McIlroy

Majors season begins each year at Augusta National, the only Major that does not rotate venues. The Masters is one of the most sought-after tickets in all of sports, and attending typically requires winning a highly competitive annual lottery.

Despite its invitational status and slightly smaller field, The Masters has often served as a breakthrough moment. Of the last 15 winners, 12 captured their first green jacket, with Bubba Watson (2014), Tiger Woods (2019), and Scottie Scheffler (2024) standing as the lone exceptions. There has also not been a repeat winner since Tiger Woods did so in 2001 and 2002.

Augusta National itself is unlike any other Major venue, governed by strict rules and long-standing traditions. Patrons who run, use cell phones, or even bring chairs with armrests and you’ll be removed from the property.

The champion receives the iconic green jacket in a ceremony immediately following the final round and earns the honor of selecting the menu for the following year’s Champions Dinner. Jim Nantz famously describes The Masters as “a tradition unlike any other,” a phrase that continues to ring true year after year.

PGA Championship

Dates: May 14^th – 17^th 

Location: Aronimink Golf Club – Newtown Square, PA

2025 Winner: Scottie Scheffler

The PGA Championship heads to Aronimink Golf Club for the first time since 1962, when Gary Player won his first of two PGA Championships. Scottie Scheffler arrives as reigning champion, having overcome both his competitors and a brief police detainment.

Because the PGA Championship rotates venues annually, sustained player dominance at the event itself is rare. However, the host courses are typically familiar to professionals. Aronimink is no exception, having previously hosted PGA Tour events won by both Justin Rose and Keegan Bradley.

The PGA does a strong job balancing tradition with variety. Aronimink’s return comes more than 60 years after its last Major, while future sites continue to expand the rotation. PGA Frisco will host in 2027, followed by the Olympic Club in 2028, neither of which has hosted previously. Meanwhile, in addition to last year, Quail Hollow also hosted in 2017, and 2024 was Valhalla Golf Club’s fourth time hosting.

U.S. Open

Dates: June 18^th – 21^st 

Location: Shinnecock Hills Golf Club – Southampton, NY

2025 Winner: J.J. Spaun

Where other Majors primarily pit players against the field, the U.S. Open adds another opponent: the course itself. Known for long rough, fast greens, and tight fairways, the U.S. Open routinely produces winning scores closer to par than any other Major. In 2025, J.J. Spaun claimed the title at just one under par.

In 2026, the championship returns to Shinnecock Hills for the sixth time, its first visit since 2018. That year, Brooks Koepka won with a 72-hole score of +1, making it the most recent Major championship decided over par.

While the U.S. Open rotates annually, certain venues reappear more frequently. With its sixth hosting, Shinnecock will tie Oakland Hills, Pebble Beach, and Winged Foot for third-most all time, trailing only Baltusrol (7) and Oakmont (10).

Evaluating course history at Shinnecock is more challenging than at other sites, as its professional hosting has been almost exclusively limited to the U.S. Open (aside from the 1977 Walker Cup). Many top finishers from 2018 are expected to return, though with three of the top five from that year now being LIV (Dustin Johnson and Patrick Reed), or former LIV (Brooks Koepka), that’s not a given.

The Open Championship

Dates: July 16^th – 19^th 

Location: Royal Birkdale GC – Southport, England

2025 Winner: Scottie Scheffler

The Open Championship, sometimes referred to as the British Open, is the oldest tournament in golf, dating back to 1860. It remains one of the game’s purest tests, rotating among a select group of historic links courses within the territory of the R&A.

2026 marks the 11th time Royal Birkdale has hosted The Open and its first since 2017, when Jordan Spieth captured his third, and most recent, Major championship.

Although familiar to viewers, Royal Birkdale will be noticeably updated. Since its last Open, the course has undergone several changes, including new tees and bunkers, redesigned fifth and seventh holes, a new par-3, and a reordering of holes that now sees the former 15th played as the 14th.

As with many links championships, weather will play a critical role. Will conditions resemble 2017, when Spieth won at -12, or something closer to 2008, when Padraig Harrington prevailed at +3? That answer will come in July.

Glad Slam Watch

Winning a single Major is a career achievement. Winning all four is nearly unheard of. Only six golfers have completed the modern Grand Slam, with the most recent being Rory McIlroy in 2025, more than a decade after capturing his third leg at The Open Championship in 2014.

Before Rory, it was Tiger in 2000 and Jack Nicklaus in in 1966. However, there are a few players on the cusp, and golf may not have to wait another 25 years to see another player join this group.

Phil Mickelson

Tournament Needed: U.S. Open  

Lefty has won six Major championships but remains without a U.S. Open title, despite finishing runner-up six times. Having not made the cut in the event since 2021, the pursuit is starting to feel more like a longshot each year.

Jordan Spieth

Tournament Needed: PGA Championship

Spieth has won three Majors, one in each of the other championships. He caught fire from 2015 to 2017, collecting 10 of his 13 PGA Tour wins but has only won twice since then, once in 2021 and once in 2022. Injuries have slowed him in recent years, but at 32, time is still on his side.

Scottie Scheffler

Tournament Needed: U.S. Open

The newest and most likely candidate to complete the Grand Slam is Scheffler, who needs only a U.S. Open. He has consistently played well the last few years and, with a combined 13 PGA Tour wins across 2024 and 2025, few around the golf world expect the wait to be long.

Why We Care About the Majors

Even for fans who don’t watch 72 holes of every tournament, the Majors command attention. Opening rounds often draw viewership comparable to Sunday finishes at regular events, and playoffs become instant classics. If you’re only tuning in a handful of times each season, these are the weeks that matter.

Plus, for any amateur golfer reading, you’re technically only a few good rounds away from playing in the Masters, US Open, and Open Championship.

If you win your State Open, you qualify for the U.S. Amateur. Win the U.S. Amateur, and you have an automatic exemption into each of the Majors, besides the PGA Championship, the following year. Easier said than done, but possible.