PGA Tour’s Cognizant Classic improves fan experience at PGA National
Executive Director Todd Fleming touts fan experience for 2026 Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches.
Record-cold temperatures in Palm Beach County did not damage the course for the Cognizant Classic.PGA National Resort’s agronomy team took precautionary measures, including watering the course before the cold snap.The use of winter rye grass overseed helped protect the course from the freezing temperatures.
Wicked wintry weather may have brought record cold to Palm Beach County in February, but golf fans won’t have to worry about lingering impacts this week at PGA National Resort for the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches.
The month’s worst cold snap saw temperatures drop to an official low of 30 degrees on Feb. 1 at Palm Beach International Airport, shattering the previous daily record of 36 degrees, which had stood since 1909.
Things got even chillier at PGA National, which saw temperatures fall to 27 degrees, prompting course directors to take precautionary measures with the PGA Tour event less than four weeks away.
“With the combination of high wind and cold, our team actually watered the night before the cold arrived to make sure everything was hydrated beforehand,” said Keith Einwag, director of agronomy at PGA National Resort.
“Thankfully, the cold snap we recently experienced didn’t significantly PGA National Resort courses because of our use of winter rye grass.”
The Champion course’s rye grass overseed is the key to durability even amid record cold temperatures in South Florida.
Where other common Florida grasses, such as Bermuda, falter with lower temperatures, the cool season rye grass “thrived” and would only suffer with approximately eight hours of sustained sub-freezing temperatures, according to Einwag.
The overseed also has an impact on player scoring, which tends to improve as fairways play wider and balls tend to sit up a little higher in the rough. The rye grass overseed has become a point of discussion in recent years as tournament organizers have sought ways to make the Champion course a little bit easier to attract more top PGA Tour players into the field.
For fans simply hoping to see lush fairways, however, the overseed can certainly be considered a savior.
“Fans should not expect to see any difference in course conditions due to the cold snap,” Einwag said. “In fact, the Champion looks better than ever.”
Eric J. Wallace is deputy spots editor for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at ejwallace@gannett.com.