What is the Seminole Pro-Member tournament? History, format and other details explored

The 2025 Seminole Pro-member tournament will take place on Monday morning this week. The event sees top athletes, celebrities and businessmen making up the field.

The event takes place at the exclusive Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida. The golf course was designed by Donald Ross in 1929. The club was founded by New York investment banker, E.F. Hutton.

It was restored by Dick Wilson after WWII and has undergone a few renovations over the years. Many Presidents and members of the Royal Family have also either been members of the club or were hosted by it. Rory McIlroy's father, Gerry, is also a member at the club.

One of the key characteristics that make the Seminole Pro-member tournament all the more exclusive is that despite the presence of several influential personalities, it is not broadcast on TV. In fact, the club itself made it's TV debut rather late.

The event does not offer any World Ranking points and is not a part of any golf league. However, the tournament is supported by the PGA Tour, which is why no LIV Golf player has been invited since last year.

Ahead of the 2024 event, President of Seminole Golf Club, Jimmy Dunne, had spoken on the issue:

"We are doing what we have always done," he told Golfweek.

He further added:

"PGA Tour players get the first priority. This event has always been supported by the PGA Tour. We try to make this a special and unique day for tour players."

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Who is playing at the Seminole Pro-member event this year?

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy (Source: Getty)

Golf legends Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy have been confirmed to play at the Seminole Pro-member event this year. They will be joined by Ernie Els, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, NFL icon Tom Brady, former PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh, Keegan Bradley, former NBA star Shane Battier etc.

Since LIV Golfers aren't welcome, players like Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson and so on won't be a part of the exclusive field.

While fans may not be able to watch McIlroy competing at the Seminole Pro-member on Monday morning on TV, he will be seen in action at his TGL game that evening, which will be broadcast on ESPN and ESPN+ in the US.

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What is the format?

Jessica Korda (Source: Imagn)

The tournament features 90 pairings that will compete in the better-ball tournament. There will be Gross and Net titles. Generally, a pro player is paired with a club member.

Last year, Mark Flaherty and Patrick Cantlay won the Gross bout while Jessica Korda and Mike Troy won the Net title.

The Seminole Pro-member usually kickstarts with a cocktail and dinner party on Sunday night, before the proceedings move to a more competitive setting on the golf course on Monday morning.