PGA Tour fills out its 2010 schedule, with prize money a slight drop

PGA Tour has 1 fewer event, $4 million less money

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — The PGA Tour has one fewer tournament and a $3.9 million drop in prize money for next year.

The tour earlier announced the main portion of its schedule. On Friday, it released the dates for the four tournaments in the Fall Series, along with prize money for the regular tour events.

If the majors and The Players Championship keep their prize money even, the total purse for next year will be $270.8 million, down from $274.7 million this year.

The difference primarily is the loss of the Milwaukee tournament and its $4 million purse. And while 10 tournaments have purse increases, the Turning Stone Resort Championship has lowered its purse from $6 million to $4 million. That event is moving from the Fall Series to the same week as the World Golf Championship at Firestone.

The tour says it has 46 tournaments on its schedule that count toward official money. That presumably includes a tournament to be announced during the Fall Series.

For the second straight year, the HSBC Champions in Shanghai will not count toward the PGA Tour money list, even though it is a World Golf Championship recognized fully by every other tour in the world. That event has a $7 million purse, while another unofficial event sanctioned by the PGA Tour, the Asia Pacific Golf Classic in Malaysia, offers a $6 million purse.

The season begins Jan. 7 with the SBS Championship on Maui, and concludes Nov. 14 at Disney.