JACKSON, Miss. — The first weekend of October is considered to be a dead period for the golf world.
For many, the months after the TOUR Championship wraps up at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, and after the Americans had yet another disheartening Ryder Cup performance, is the time of the year to tune out the sport my dad used to refer to as “pasture pool.”
As the calendar flips to the month of pumpkin spice-flavored drinks and slasher movie marathons on television, everyone’s sports-centric attention shifts to college football, the NFL, and the Major League Baseball postseason.
Apologies to the NBA, but you’ll have to wait until around Christmas for folks to start caring about your game.
Essentially, this is the time of the year that golf gets put on the back burner for many, until TPC Sawgrass welcomes in a star-studded field for The Players Championship in March.
Yet, it didn’t feel like a dead period at the Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Mississippi.
Even though many golf fans may not even be aware, there is an annual PGA Tour stop in Mississippi, of all places. In fact, it has long been a fixture on the tour as it has been around since 1968. It was known for decades as the Magnolia Classic, and it has been played in Hattiesburg, then Madison, and in Jackson since 2013.
The reason many folks don’t necessarily recognize the event is that for many years, it was an “alternate event.” That means it was played opposite one of the majors, in this case, The Masters, or one of the big-time limited field events on Tour.
It was later moved to the fall schedule, but there have been several big names that have not only played in the event but won it, like the late Payne Stewart, Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia, and, more recently, former LSU All-American Sam Burns.
Now that the brief history lesson has commenced, let’s get back to how the tournament did not feel like a dead time event.
Yes, the crowd on Saturday paled in comparison to watching Scottie Scheffler at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson earlier this year. But there was still a decent crowd on the grounds.
A hundred kids were trying to score an autograph from Max Homa after he walked off the 18th green, and the merchandise tent had a constant stream of people swiping plastic for official tournament polos, hats, and more. Those cash registers got themselves a workout.
I would be remiss to not mention that the Michelob ULTRA Fan Pavilion was packed to the gills, with maybe a few fans having a few too many low-calorie cold ones. In particular, one fella was yelling at a photographer friend of mine, “Hey, camera guy, take a photo of me catching the alligator. Come on, camera guy.” He was having a really good time — the guy and not the photographer or alligator for that matter.
Rory McIlroy, Bryson DeChambeau, and Scottie were not in the field, but the event still felt like a legit sporting event. It felt important, and the reason was that it is.
For any golfer who finished in the Top 50 in the FedEx Cup Standings last season, they have secured a spot for the 2026 season. That means you don’t need to take part in the fall swing, unless you want to work on your game, which Xander Schauffle did this past week in Japan by winning the Baycurrent Classic.
But with only 100 fully exempt cards available, there are not that many spots to be earned. This means that winning one of the fall swing tournaments can secure job security.
PGA Tour rookie Steven Fisk fired a final-round 64 to win the tournament at the Country Club of Jackson. How important was winning the Sanderson Farms Championship?
The former Georgia Southern star catapulted from 135th to 65th in the FedEx Cup rankings, secured his PGA Tour Card for the next two seasons, earned a spot in The Masters, and bagged prize winnings of more than a million. It was a moment made even more emotional as Fisk had lost his father to cancer earlier this year. What a day indeed.
Even for those who may have come up short, it was an important weekend in Mississippi.
Amongst a field of well-known Korn Ferry Tour names, there was also the older gentleman of the field — Matt Kuchar. Even though the galleries weren’t as large for the 47-year-old as during his heyday when “KUUUUUCCCHHH” was yelled loudly, there was still a decent crowd following him throughout the course.
The nine-time PGA Tour winner, who was looking for his first win since the 2019 Sony Open, needed a good showing to keep his PGA Tour card. He had entered the Sanderson Farms Championship ranked No. 115 in the PGA Tour Fall rankings.
Kuchar needs to find a way into the Top 100 to earn his PGA Tour card for the 2026 season. Kuchar finished tied for 18 in Jackson, which helped him, but he still finds himself this week ranked 136th.
There was also Homa, who finished tied for 18 with Kuchar in Jackson. Like Kuchar, Homa, a six-time PGA Tour winner, who finished tied for third place at last year’s Masters, is also on the outside looking in for next season as he currently stands 127.
Yes, the Sanderson Farms Championship may not move the needle for everyone, but it is hard to quantify how important the so-called antiquated fall schedule is for golfers — emerging youngsters trying to get the biggest stage, and for those still trying to stay on it for a little while longer.
So maybe it isn’t a dead time of year for golf after all.
Raymond Partsch III is the co-host of “RP3 & Meche” which is broadcast weekdays (11-1) on ESPN 103.7 Lafayette and 104.1 Lake Charles — Southwest Louisiana’s Sports Station.
