Skins Game returning after 17-year hiatus

Field Level Media|published: Fri 13th December, 11:22 2024

Apr 11, 2024; Augusta, Georgia, USA; Fred Couples won more than $4.4 million in Skins Game prizes.

The Skins Game, once an annual highlight during the PGA Tour season, will be returning in 2025.

The event will be held next Black Friday and staged by Pro Shop, a golf media company.

The first Skins Game was played in 1983 and featured four of the game's biggest names in history: Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Tom Watson. The players vied for cash prizes on each hole -- also known as a "skin" -- and trash talking became a staple. Player won the first Skins Game and $170,000.

As the contest grew through the years, so did the prizes, with Fred Couples hauling in five victories and more than $4.4 million before the final event in 2008.

"The Skins Game embodies everything we strive for at Pro Shop -- celebrating the rich traditions of golf while creating premium experiences that resonate with today's modern audience," said Chad Mumm, the executive producer the Netflix documentary "Full Swing" and the head of Pro Shop.

The exact format hasn't been disclosed. Neither has the location for the Skins Game, which traditionally was held in a desert location, nor who will compete and for how much in prizes.

One PGA Tour official is happy to see the event return

"Reimagining an iconic event like the Skins Game in a retro-modern way that engages today's sports fans is exactly why the PGA Tour has partnered with Pro Shop," said Chris Wandell, the senior vice president of media for the PGA Tour. "We look forward to seeing how the newest iteration of the Skins Game unfolds."

--Field Level Media