How tough is the Concession? Senior PGA players describe ‘treacherous’ course
There are 21 major champions, seven World Golf Hall of Famers and 10 former Ryder Cup captains teeing it up at The Concession Golf Club in East Manatee this week for the Senior PGA Championship.
The star-studded field will encounter a golf course that requires precision, both in decision-making and with shot execution. The Concession’s greens can penalize the wrong shot.
“It’s a very tough course with the first shot from the tee and the small greens,” defending champion Angel Cabrera said through a translator. “You have to be very cautious when you’re striking to the green.”
The 56-year-old Argentine won the 2007 United States Open, the 2009 Masters and has three PGA Tour Champions victories.
“I would emphasize ... how difficult and treacherous the greens are,” two-time Masters winner Jose Maria Olazabal said. “All the greens are elevated. You have a lot of runoffs, and actually, you know, it demands a lot of distance control and accuracy with your irons on the greens. Otherwise, you’re going to end up in bad spots, and it’s going to be very difficult to save par from those places.”
Olazabal, who was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2009, also captained Europe to a 2012 Ryder Cup victory.
The 60-year-old, who joined the PGA Tour Champions in 2017, missed the cut at The Masters last week.
This year’s Senior PGA Championship is the first of three that the oldest senior major will be contested on The Concession’s elevated green complexes.
“You need a different touch around the greens this week compared to last week,” Olazabal said. “I have to somehow adapt myself to the new conditions this week.”
New beginnings at the Senior PGA
Adapting to new conditions is something a few players in the field will do. Pat Perez and Henrik Stenson are making their debuts on the senior circuit this week.
“You never want to turn 50,” Stenson said. “It beats the alternative, but yeah, time flies, right? I never saw myself playing a whole lot of senior golf, but I’m probably not the first one that says that, and here we are.”
Perez added: “I’ve been excited about it for seven months now, counting down, counting down. It got here fast.”
The course will play as a par-72 measuring 6,936 yards.
Padraig Harrington, who tied for second place in the 2025 Senior PGA Championship, Stewart Cink, Zach Johnson, Steven Alker and more are vying for the senior’s oldest major championship when play begins Thursday.
For more information, visit SrPGAChampionship.com.
