No matter whether you are a casual golf fan or a true die-hard aficionado, the dates of the four majors are among the most important in the golf calendar. The powers that be have shifted the order of the majors around many times over the years. However, since the US PGA Championship was moved in 2019, things have stayed largely the same, aside from COVID-related disruption.
That means that the US Masters gets things started in mid-spring, with the PGA around a month later in mid-May. Roughly a month after that comes the US Open, before we have the final major of the year, The Open Championship, in mid to late July. All of this means that we now have a condensed major season in which the game’s biggest events are all played within a window of just over three months.
Major Dates in 2026
In fact, as we can see below, in 2026, just 105 days will separate the start of the first major and the conclusion of the last. It provides a nice rhythm to the early part of the year, with a major more or less every month once things begin with the Masters. However, an alternative take is that all the biggest events are over and done with almost as soon as they get going, and the US PGA Championship was better as the final major of the season towards the end of August.
| Tournament | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|
| US Masters | 9th April | 12th April |
| US PGA Championship | 14th May | 17th May |
| US Open | 18th June | 21st June |
| Open Championship | 16th July | 19th July |
Where will The Majors Take Place?
The Masters will, of course, take place at its permanent and only home, the iconic, beautiful, Augusta National in Georgia. The full list of host venues can be seen below. As always, three of the majors take place in the US, with just one on this side of the Atlantic:
- US Masters, Augusta National, Georgia
- US PGA Championship, Aronimink, Pennsylvania
- US Open, Shinnecock Hills, New York
- Open Championship, Royal Birkdale, Southport
US Masters, 9th to 12th April, Augusta National, Georgia
As usual, the US Masters gets the majors of the year underway, taking place in mid-April. Given so much has been said and written about Augusta, there isn’t too much to add here. There will be the usual tweaks here and there to the course and the odd new pin position. The weather will play its part, with rain making the course longer but vulnerable, with receptive greens, and a dry spell through early spring providing more of a challenge.
Rory McIlroy won, unforgettably, in 2025, completing the career Grand Slam after so many years of heartbreak. In April 2025, he would have given almost everything to win just once at Augusta, but with the title now in the bag, he will be almost as desperate to defend it in 2026. And who knows, with the pressure off, he might just do it.
A world-class field will, as at all the majors, make his task tough. World number one Scottie Scheffler will almost certainly start as the favourite and the dominant force of the last few years will be looking to seal a hat-trick of Masters victories. He won here in 2022 and 2024 – can he do so again in 2026?
US PGA Championship, 14th to 17th May, Aronimink, Pennsylvania
The PGA Championship has moved around the calendar more than the other majors, and has had various slogans over the years in an attempt to increase its prestige, but it will always be viewed as the least glamorous of the big four for most fans. Scheffler will be defending his crown this year, while Rory will be looking to claim a third win. The Northern Irish legend won here in 2012 and 2014.
Aronimink will host the 2026 tournament, having also hosted way back in 1962 when Gary Player triumphed. Since then it has held the Senior and Women’s PGA Championships, as well as various other high-profile events.
Aronimink is located a little west of Philadelphia, in Pennsylvania, in the northeast of America. The course is often ranked among both the best and most testing in the US. That said, Keegan Bradley won the 2018 BMW Championship there with a score of minus 20. The course, which was designed by Scot, Donald Ross, and opened in 1896, will be set up a whole lot harder for the major, though.
US Open, 18th to 21st June, Shinnecock Hills, New York
Shinnecock Hills is also located in the northeast US, in New York. It is on Long Island and is another hugely challenging and yet wonderfully beautiful course. It will host the US Open for a sixth time in 2026 and the third time this century. It has staged this famous old event in the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries, with Brooks Koepka the most recent winner in 2018.
The man who was runner-up then, Tommy Fleetwood, will feel he is in with a chance of ending his major drought at Shinnecock. The challenging course and need for precision irons really suit his game, while J.J. Spaun will be the defending champion after his win at Oakmont. Spaun won with a score of one under last year, while Koepka was champion at Shinnecock despite shooting one over, which illustrates the sort of challenge the players will face.
Open Championship, 16th to 19th July, Royal Birkdale, Southport
The final major of the year is, for most UK fans, the biggest and best. Even Americans have to accept it is the most historic, predating the US Open by some 35 years. As usual, one of the courses on the roster does the honours and this time it is the turn of the Southport links course, Royal Birkdale. Founded in the 19th century, it is a classic links course and favours accuracy over power.
We don’t want to make this article all about Tommy Fleetwood, but as a Southport native, this is another of the big four he will surely be eyeing up for 2026. He was second in the Open in 2019 and tied for fourth in 2022 and will surely receive huge support on home soil in 2026. It has also hosted the Ryder Cup twice, another factor which could inspire Fleetwood.
Birkdale has already hosted The Open ten times, with Jordan Spieth winning in 2017, Padraig Harrington in 2008 and Mark O’Meara in 1998. Those victories came with scores of 12 under, three over and level par respectively and if the wind blows, there is no doubt that Royal Birkdale will provide a really stiff test.