The inception of Signature Events on the PGA Tour were initially designed as a way to combat the threat posed by LIV Golf and bring the best players together more often.
First introduced in 2023 and referred to as 'designated' or 'elevated events', there were eight tournaments on the PGA Tour with significantly enhanced prize money. The following year, they became knows as 'Signature Events' and were only open to a limited number of players, with most not including a cut.
The thought was that sponsors and broadcasters would pay more money knowing the likes of Rory McIlroy was guaranteed to play all four rounds and that there'd be more household names competing against each other more frequently.
For the first year, the PGA Tour allowed players to skip only one of those events without incurring a fine, though that rule was abolished the following year.
While there is no requirement for the top players to play these events anymore, the enhanced purses and fields still attract most of the best players each time, however this week's Cadillac Championship features a few big-name absentees, with McIlroy the most notable.
McIlroy hasn't been seen since his Masters win at the start of April, skipping the RBC Heritage, a Signature Event, and the Zurich Classic, which he's played the last two years with good friend Shane Lowry, and the thinking is he's taking an extended break to try and peak at the majors.
There now begins a run of another two Signature Events -- the Cadillac Championship held at Doral in south Florida, a short drive from McIlroy's Jupiter residence, followed by next week's Truist Championship -- before the PGA Championship from Aronimink.
McIlroy has a storied history at Quail Hollow, playing there for 14 straight years when it's held a tournament, including the PGA Championships in 2017 and 2025. It was also the site of McIlroy's first PGA Tour win (as well as three more since), and it's expected McIlroy will be back next week.
With the busy schedule of three Signature Events squeezed into the four weeks between majors, Ludvig Aberg, Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele and Robert MacIntyre are the other notable players not making the trip to Doral this week.
