When did the PGA Tour last play in Austin? It was in March 2023, when the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play wrapped up at Austin Country Club. The long wait ends this week as the Tour returns to the Texas capital for the inaugural Austin Championship.

Why does the Austin Championship matter?

Primarily, because the FedExCup Fall has two events left, with Austin first and the RSM Classic at Sea Island closing the schedule on November 22. Both weeks matter because the fall decides who has status in 2027. The top 100 in the standings keep their full cards and a place in the Players Championship.

Plus, players ranked 51st to 60th also earn spots in the Aon Next 10, securing places in the first two Signature Events of 2027. The Austin Championship itself is new, meaning there is no past champion or course record.

Here are five things you should know before the first tee shot. The tournament runs from Thursday, November 12, to Sunday, November 15, at the Fazio Canyons Course at Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa in Austin, Texas.

Who’s in the field?

The field includes several interesting names, including Blades Brown and Jackson Koivun. Brown arrives after earning his first PGA Tour win in Los Cabos on Sunday, becoming the youngest winner of the modern era. Koivun, meanwhile, was part of the winning Presidents Cup team. He first turned heads as an amateur when he finished T4 at the 2025 Procore Championship.

Beyond the notable names, several players have important goals to chase this week.

1. Austin Smotherman eyes third straight win

Austin Smotherman has won both of his starts this fall, taking the Bank of Utah Championship and the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. A win in Austin would give him three in a row. He is also the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 51 in the world.

The 32-year-old SMU alum lives in Dallas, making this something of a home-state event. There is also a bit of history to chase. Dustin Johnson won three consecutive starts in 2017, with the third coming at the Match Play at Austin Country Club. Smotherman could now match Johnson’s achievement in the same city.

His two victories have already changed his career. His exemption now runs through 2029, and he has earned a spot in next year’s U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. A year ago, he was on the Korn Ferry Tour, where he won twice to earn his PGA Tour card back.

2. Four former Longhorns

Beau Hossler would have made it five, but he withdrew on Monday.

Doug Ghim is one of the most interesting names among them. He played at Texas alongside Scottie Scheffler and is still looking for his first PGA Tour win after 194 starts.

He came close at the Bank of Utah Championship, where he finished second to Smotherman at 24 under. He was T6 in Mexico on November 1 and arrives with six straight top-20 finishes, the longest active run on Tour. He also ranks seventh on Tour in strokes gained off the tee this year, which should help on a course that stretches to 7,451 yards.

Pierceson Coody is another former Longhorn to watch. He enters at No. 60, the last spot inside the Aon Next 10. He is also one of three players who have been in that group every week this fall.

Two more Longhorns got sponsor exemptions, which are tournament invitations:

• Christiaan Maas: He finished second in the PGA Tour University Ranking and makes his PGA Tour debut. He played 10 Korn Ferry Tour events this year and recorded one top-10 finish.
• Tommy Morrison: He finished sixth in the same ranking and turned professional in June. He then strung together five straight top-10s on the Korn Ferry Tour, including a win at the Evans Scholars Invitational. He finished 10th on the points list, earning a 2027 card. This is his third career PGA Tour start.

3. Five veterans fighting for a spot

The 100th and final full card currently belongs to Chandler Phillips. Jason Day sits a fraction of a point behind him at 495.182 points but is not playing this week. Five players outside the top 100 are in Austin, and each needs a big finish to move up.

• Chris Kirk is the closest, sitting 102nd and roughly 17 points short. He has four top-12 finishes in his last six starts, has not missed a cut since the U.S. Open, and leads the field in strokes gained on approach over the last 20 rounds. A top-40 finish could be enough.
  
• Mackenzie Hughes is 103rd, about 29 points back. His T4 in Mexico moved him from 118th to 101st, but others have since passed him. He needs to tie for 28th to break into the top 100.
  
• Taylor Pendrith sits 104th and needs about 31 points. Kristoffer Ventura’s runner-up finish in Mexico pushed him outside the top 100.
  
• Brandt Snedeker is 105th, roughly 33 points short. The 45-year-old began 2026 with conditional status and is now trying to secure a full Tour card.
  
• A.J. Ewart has the biggest gap, needing about 35 points and a finish near the top 25. The first-year Tour member earned his card at Q-School and is fighting to keep it.

4. Max Homa sets eyes on Aon Next 10

To understand Homa’s week, you need to understand the Aon Next 10. The Tour’s top 50 players from the season standings have already secured places in every Signature Event next year. At the end of the fall, players ranked 51st to 60th make up the Aon Next 10. They earn entries into the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Genesis Invitational at Riviera.

Homa currently sits 11th in the race, just outside the projected cutoff. With Pierceson Coody occupying the 60th spot, Homa needs a strong week to break into the top 60.

The six-time Tour winner had a difficult 2025, finishing 111th in the season standings. He has made progress this year, with a runner-up finish at the John Deere Classic in July earning him 300 points. He also made the FedExCup Playoffs, finishing T24 at the St. Jude Championship.

5. Eight Withdrawals

The field has also undergone several changes this week. When a player withdraws, the Tour moves the next name on its alternate list into the field. Since last Saturday, eight players have dropped out of Austin, and the Tour gave no reasons for any of them.

The changes began on Saturday, November 7, when Denny McCarthy withdrew, and Hayden Springer replaced him.

On Sunday, Matt Wallace withdrew, and Ben Silverman took his place. Silverman then lost that spot when Alvaro Ortiz qualified with a top-10 finish. Harry Hall withdrew later that day, putting Silverman back in the field.

On Monday, Silverman then withdrew, and David Skinns took the spot.

Ben James was replaced by Jimmy Stanger, Michael Kim by Paul Peterson, Tom Hoge by Ben Martin, and Hossler by Tyler Duncan.

Ultimately, all four rounds will be available from 2 to 5 p.m. ET. PGA Tour Live on the ESPN app streams Thursday and Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET, while SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio provides coverage from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET.