The 2026 Zurich Classic of New Orleans format is unique for this PGA Tour event, the only event on the FedEx Cup schedule to be played as a two-man team competition.
The Zurich Classic field is 74 players as 74 teams of two. The top 72 players in the PGA Tour's priority ranking that committed to the field got to pick their partner, so long as they had some kind of PGA Tour status or garnered a sponsor exemption.
Zurich Classic of New Orleans format
The Zurich Classic format is still a 72-hole event. The first and third rounds will be played as best ball (fourballs) at TPC Louisiana. The second and final rounds will play under alternate shot (foursomes) rules. A 36-hole cut will be made down to the top 33 teams and ties (down from the top 35 and ties in 2019).
The players on the winning team will each get a two-year PGA Tour exemption and spots in the PGA Championship, The Players, the Sentry and the Signature events.
The team members will split the FedEx Cup points normally distributed for individual events, meaning the winning team will split the 500 points for first place and 300 points for second place -- or 400 points per player. They will also split the first- and second-place prize money from the $9.5 million purse.
In the case of a winning player who has no status on the PGA Tour, a win would mean that player earns PGA Tour membership. A win in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans goes in the record book as an official PGA Tour win.
Zurich Classic of New Orleans playoff format
A playoff to settle any ties after 72 holes will be played under PGA Tour rules. The Zurich Classic playoff format is a sudden-death format, with playoff holes being 18 played by any qualifying team.
A sudden-death playoff to settle any ties after 72 holes will be played under rules with format alternating on each hole (fourball to start, foursomes next, and so forth). This format changed from 2017, where fourballs were played in the second and fourth rounds, while alternate shot was the game for the first and third rounds.
The Zurich Classic of New Orleans playoff competitors compete hole-by-hole until a winner is determined by a player scoring the lowest among the remaining players.
