Cognizant Classic Preview: Field, Course, History, Tee Times, How to Watch

The PGA Tour’s Florida swing kicks off with the Cognizant Classic at PGA National. Here's what you need to know,

The Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches at PGA National kicks off the PGA Tour's Florida swing. | Jeff Romance / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Hello, Sunshine State. 

The PGA Tour’s Florida swing kicks off with the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches at PGA National. The event, first played in 1972, was formerly known as the Honda Classic for 41 years until Cognizant took over the title sponsorship in 2024. 

A 123-player field will play for part of a $9.6 million purse, with the winner collecting $1,728,000. 

From its field, course, history and tee times, here’s what you need to know for the 2026 Cognizant Classic.

The field: Opportunity knocks

The Cognizant field has taken a hit due to its spot on the calendar, sandwiched between three signature events and the Tour's flagship Players Championship. 

But for lower-ranked players, this is a life-changing opportunity. 

The field is highlighted by Brooks Koepka, who is making his third start since leaving LIV Golf and being reinstated by the PGA Tour. Other than him, eight of the top 50 players in the world are teeing it up, with Ryan Gerard the highest ranked at No. 26. 

Other notables include Will Zalatoris, Daniel Berger, Max Homa, Billy Horschel, Tom Kim, Luke Clanton, Nick Dunlap, Nicolai Højgaard, Rasmus Højgaard, Gary Woodland and Neal Shipley. 

There are also six past champions: Joe Highsmith (2025), Austin Eckroat (2024), Chris Kirk (2023), Keith Mitchell (2019), Camilo Villegas (2010) and Matt Kuchar (2002). 

Sponsor exemptions include Adam Hadwin, Harry Higgs, Villegas and 18-year-old phenom Blades Brown, who nearly shot 59 in Round 2 at the American Express and played in the final pairing Sunday with Scottie Scheffler before finishing T18.  

Going lower at PGA National

“I miss the old PGA National.”

That was a tweet by Joel Dahmen during the first round of last year’s Cognizant Classic. 

That day, Jake Knapp shot 59. And several more players had shot 65 or lower. 

Years ago, the thought of someone doing that on PGA National’s Champions course would have been inconceivable. It was often one of the top 10 most difficult courses on Tour. Sometimes it was even in the top 5, like in 2018 when it boasted the second-highest scoring average on Tour.

What changed? 

“The rough has been cut back,” Rory McIlroy said in 2024. “There has been a couple of bunkers taken out in certain spots. Yeah, maybe it’s not quite the test that it was 10 years ago. Still, you got hit the shots and all the hazards are in the same places. But the rough isn't quite as penal. It seems right now that they’re keeping the greens a little softer.”

How did the course—a 7,167-yard, par-71 with 7,000 square feet greens, 60 bunkers and water in play on 15 holes—fare in 2025?

It was the 35th toughest course on Tour (out of 50), with a scoring average of 69.26 (1.73 strokes under par).

In 2025, the hardest hole was the 479-yard, par-4 6th, yielding a scoring average of 4.25, making it the 52nd hardest hole on Tour (out of 882). Its easiest hole, meanwhile, was the 538-yard, par-5 3rd, playing .606 strokes under par as the 28th least difficult hole on Tour. 

Of course, PGA National is best known for the “Bear Trap.”

The Bear Trap at PGA National shows no mercy.

32 balls found the water on holes 15-17 @The_Cognizant. pic.twitter.com/DKFtm0gQG2

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 1, 2024

Nicknamed after Jack Nicklaus, who redesigned the course 35 years ago, the Bear Trap is the three-hole stretch of Nos. 15, 16 and 17—some of the course’s hardest. 

The par-3 15th is 179 yards, the par-4 16th plays 434 yards and the par-3 17th stretches 190 yards. All three holes have a heavy water presence—and a lively crowd surrounding them. 

“You just try and hit the best shots you can and keep it away from the water and manage yourself around those holes,” Shane Lowry said in 2023. 

Maybe, the Bear Trap helps return the “old” PGA National this year. 

History: Trophy to toothache 

McIlroy, who’s not in the Cognizant field this year, has described his 2012 Honda Classic victory as one of the most memorable in his career. 

Standing on No. 13 at PGA National, he heard the crowd erupt. Why? Tiger Woods made an eagle on No. 18 and was within a shot of McIlroy after the lowest final round (62) of Woods’s career.

The 22-year-old Northern Irishman, however, held on for a two-stroke victory to become world No. 1 for the first time in his career. 

Who can forget Rory’s impossible shot at the 2014 Honda? pic.twitter.com/6AuJRohRpL

— Skratch (@Skratch) February 24, 2020

But a year later, fortunes changed. 

McIlroy, the defending champion, was 7 over and a shoo-in to miss the cut, so he walked off the course on the 9th hole of his second round. 

In the parking lot afterward, he told reporters, “I can’t really say much, guys. I’m just in a bad place mentally” and cited wisdom tooth pain for withdrawing. Then, he issued a statement, saying the pain left him “simply unable to concentrate.”

Roughly 48 hours later, McIlroy expressed regret over how he handled the situation. 

“What I should have done is take my drop, chip it on, try to make a five and play my hardest on the back nine, even if I shot 85,” he said. “What I did was not good for the tournament, not good for the kids and the fans who were out there watching me—it was not the right thing to do.”

How to watch (all times EST)

• Thursday-Friday: 2-6 p.m. (Golf Channel)
• Saturday-Sunday: 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel); 3-6 p.m. (NBC)

ESPN+ will also have coverage during each round. 

First- and second-round tee times 

Tee times for the first and second round of The Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches pic.twitter.com/p9gh9GURqL

— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) February 24, 2026