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5 Things To Know About Bandon Dunes & the PGA Professional Championship (PPC)
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It's almost time for the 2026 PGA Professional Championship. This is one of the most exciting Championships on the PGA schedule, and it'll be exciting to watch the field of PGA of America Golf Professionals from all 41 PGA Sections compete for the Walter Hagen Cup and a spot to play at the 2026 PGA Championship.
Here are the things you need to know!
1. The Competition
The 2026 PGA Professional Championship, presented by Club Car, Corebridge Financial and Rolex, will be contested April 26–29 at the iconic Bandon Dunes Golf Resort along the Oregon coast.
Now in its 58th edition, the championship adds a new chapter to its nearly 60-year history as it heads to Bandon Dunes and Pacific Dunes for the first time. Established in 1968, the event brings together a 312-player field of PGA of America Golf Professionals representing all 41 PGA Sections.
Follow along on the journey to Bandon with the Bid for Bandon and Road to Bandon video series!
The Champion and top 20 finishers will earn spots in the 108th PGA Championship, scheduled for May 11–17 at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, where they will compete as members of the Corebridge Financial Team.
Defending Champion Tyler Collet of Vero Beach, Florida—one of 14 past champions in the field—will make his seventh appearance in the PGA Professional Championship.
Don't miss any of the action — find everything you need to know HERE.
2. The Defending Champion
Remember the name: Tyler Collet. In 2025, Collet made history with his dominant performance at PGA Golf Club. The PGA Assistant Professional from John's Island Club in Vero Beach, Florida, won the 2025 PGA Professional Championship with a final score of 15-under par, besting Jesse Droemer by 10 shots to claim the Walter Hagen Cup. It's the largest margin of victory for a Champion since Matt Dobyns in 2012, who won by 8 strokes.
After the win, he shared, “My mindset all week was not to play, not to win,” Collet said. “We had a game plan, and we stuck to it religiously. We played the smart, safe shots. Tiger (Woods) won 82 championships by playing to the middle of the greens, and that’s what we did this week.”
Bandon Dunes will pose a new challenge for Collet and the rest of the competitors.
"It's going to be a special venue. Bandon Dunes is just such an iconic name in golf and venue. It'll be really cool to get there and potentially have a chance to win a national championship there." said Collet.
3. The Courses
While Bandon Dunes boasts 7 different courses on the property, the 2026 PGA Professional Championship competitors will split their first two rounds between the David McLay Kidd-designed Bandon Dunes and Tom Doak’s Pacific Dunes layout, and the two courses are next to each other on the oceanside dunes.
Plenty of players in the field have seen Bandon Dunes on a casual trip, but the PGA Professional Championship will present a very different test. Greens will be mowed and rolled to championship speeds, and select tee boxes and hole locations — typically avoided in everyday play — will be in use throughout the week.
On Pacific Dunes, two short par 4s could prove pivotal for players fighting to make the cut. The 6th and 16th holes may be drivable depending on the wind, creating a wide scoring range from eagle to double bogey.
At Bandon Dunes, the closing stretch offers opportunity and danger. While Nos. 17 and 18 present birdie chances, the tournament could hinge on Nos. 15 and 16. The 15th, a demanding par 3, has consistently ranked among the course’s toughest holes in past USGA championships. Its angled design complicates wind reads, often requiring a controlled long iron into an elevated green guarded by a deep, punishing bunker.
Next comes the par-4 16th, perched dramatically along the Pacific coastline. With shifting winds influencing strategy, officials may opt for a forward tee in later rounds, potentially turning it into a drivable risk-reward hole that could play a decisive role down the stretch.
Jeff Simonds, PGA General Manager at Bandon Dunes stated, "I think it’s going to make for a fascinating Championship. The course setup is going to be very interesting, and we’ll have to be very flexible – and so will the competitors."
4. The Prize
In addition to the coveted Walter Hagen Cup, the Championship also features an $850,000 purse, with $75,600 awarded to the winner. The Champion and top 20 finishers will also earn spots in the 108th PGA Championship, set for May 11–17 at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, where they will compete for Major Championship glory with the world's best golfers as members of the Corebridge Financial Team.
5. PGA Championship
Major championship golf returns to the Philadelphia area in just a few weeks, as the PGA Championship—the second major of the year—takes center stage.
The 108th edition will be played May 14–17 at Aronimink Golf Club, a classic Donald Ross design known for its demanding 7,237-yard, par-70 layout. Aronimink has a proven championship pedigree, having hosted the 1962 PGA Championship won by Gary Player and the 2020 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship claimed by Sei Young Kim.
Scottie Scheffler enters the week as the defending PGA Champion, coming to a venue that will demand precision, patience and complete control from tee to green. He will be joined by a world-class field that includes the 20 PGA of America Golf Professionals as part of the Corebridge Financial Team and will compete for the Wanamaker Trophy, named after department store magnate Rodman Wanamaker and awarded annually to the PGA Champion.
It's going to be an unforgettable week!
