The Desert Classic, a PGA Tour event held in southern California, is currently known as The American Express due to sponsorship reasons. It's part of the tour's early-season "West Coast Swing," performed in the Coachella Valley (greater Palm Springs) in the middle of winter.
Over the years, the tournament's sponsorship has changed on several occasions. Originally, the Palm Springs Golf Classic, which was first held in 1960, was derived from the Thunderbird Invitational, which took place in Palm Springs six years before, from 1954 to 1959. However, the Thunderbird Invitational had a far larger purse.
In 1965 and 1986, the tournament was renamed the Bob Hope Desert Classic and the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, respectively. The Bob Hope Classic ran from 2009 to 2011, and the Humana Challenge ran from 2012 to 2015. The CareerBuilder Challenge ran from 2016 to 2018, followed by the Desert Classic in 2019 and the American Express from 2020 to 2023.
It was well-known for its celebrity pro-am and used to include five rounds of competition (90 holes) instead of the usual four rounds. The event had a lot of famous attendees and was named for and hosted by entertainer Bob Hope for many years.
Similar to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the Desert Classic dropped its celebrity pro-am in 2012 and switched to a standard 72-hole format across three separate courses with a 54-hole cut. The charity Impact Through Golf, which replaced Desert Classic Charities in 2020, is in charge of organizing the tournament.
Who won the PGA American Express 2023?
Jon Rahm, the 2023 American Express winner, was continuing his then-incredible streak of victories on the PGA Tour, having won at the PGA West in La Quinta, California. In the 2023 American Express, of the $8,000,000 purse, Rahm took home the $1,440,000 winner's share.
In the last round, Rahm found himself in a match against Davis Thompson, but Rahm was excellent in his gameplay, and he took home the victory with a birdie on 27-under 261. On a 25-under score, Xander Schauffele and Chris Kirk tied for third place.
Who won the PGA American Express 2024?
Nick Dunlap won the 2024 American Express, the first championship of his PGA Tour career, at the Dye Stadium Course at PGA West in Palm Springs, California. He became the second amateur to win a PGA Tour event since Phil Mickelson in 1991.
If Dunlap had been a professional golfer, he would have received the $1,512,000 winner's share of the $8,400,000 purse, but as he was not, the winner's share moved to the runner-up, Christiaan Bezuidenhout.
Dunlap made a 6-foot par putt on the final hole to finish the tournament with a 29-under-259 score, winning by one stroke. He triumphed over Christiaan Bezuidenhout with a final-round birdie. Two strokes behind the lead, Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele, and Kevin Yu tied for third place.
PGA American Express Winners List Year-by-Year
| Year | Winner | Score | To par | Margin of victory | Winner'sshare |
| 2024 | Nick Dunlap | 259 | -29 | 1 | - |
| 2023 | Jon Rahm (2) | 261 | −27 | 1 | $1,440,000 |
| 2022 | Hudson Swafford | 265 | −23 | 2 | $1,368,000 |
| 2021 | Si Woo Kim | 265 | −23 | 1 | $1,206,000 |
| 2020 | Andrew Landry | 262 | −26 | 2 | $1,206,000 |
| 2019 | Adam Long | 262 | −26 | 1 | $1,062,000 |
| 2018 | Jon Rahm | 266 | −22 | PO | $1,062,000 |
| 2017 | Hudson Swafford | 268 | −20 | 1 | $1,044,000 |
| 2016 | Jason Dufner | 263 | −25 | PO | $1,044,000 |
| 2015 | Bill Haas (2) | 266 | −22 | 1 | $1,026,000 |
| 2014 | Patrick Reed | 260 | −28 | 2 | $1,026,000 |
| 2013 | Brian Gay | 263 | −25 | PO | $1,008,000 |
| 2012 | Mark Wilson | 264 | −24 | 2 | $1,008,000 |
| 2011 | Jhonattan Vegas | 333 | −27 | PO | $900,000 |
| 2010 | Bill Haas | 330 | −30 | 1 | $900,000 |
| 2009 | Pat Perez | 327 | −33 | 3 | $918,000 |
| 2008 | D. J. Trahan | 334 | −26 | 3 | $918,000 |
| 2007 | Charley Hoffman | 343 | −17 | PO | $900,000 |
| 2006 | Chad Campbell | 335 | −25 | 3 | $900,000 |
| 2005 | Justin Leonard | 332 | −28 | 3 | $846,000 |
| 2004 | Phil Mickelson (2) | 330 | −30 | PO | $810,000 |
| 2003 | Mike Weir | 330 | −30 | 2 | $810,000 |
| 2002 | Phil Mickelson | 330 | −30 | PO | $720,000 |
| 2001 | Joe Durant | 324 | −36 | 4 | $630,000 |
| 2000 | Jesper Parnevik | 331 | −27 | 1 | $540,000 |
| 1999 | David Duval | 334 | −26 | 1 | $540,000 |
| 1998 | Fred Couples | 332 | −28 | PO | $414,000 |
| 1997 | John Cook (2) | 327 | −33 | 1 | $270,000 |
| 1996 | Mark Brooks | 337 | −23 | 1 | $234,000 |
| 1995 | Kenny Perry | 335 | −25 | 1 | $216,000 |
| 1994 | Scott Hoch | 334 | −26 | 3 | $198,000 |
| 1993 | Tom Kite | 325 | −35 | 6 | $198,000 |
| 1992 | John Cook | 336 | −24 | PO | $198,000 |
| 1991 | Corey Pavin (2) | 331 | −29 | PO | $198,000 |
| 1990 | Peter Jacobsen | 339 | −21 | 1 | $180,000 |
| 1989 | Steve Jones | 343 | −17 | PO | $180,000 |
| 1988 | Jay Haas | 338 | −22 | 2 | $180,000 |
| 1987 | Corey Pavin | 341 | −19 | 1 | $162,000 |
| 1986 | Donnie Hammond | 335 | −25 | PO | $108,000 |
| 1985 | Lanny Wadkins | 333 | −27 | PO | $90,000 |
| 1984 | John Mahaffey (2) | 340 | −20 | PO | $72,000 |
| 1983 | Keith Fergus | 335 | −25 | PO | $67,500 |
| 1982 | Ed Fiori | 335 | −25 | PO | $50,000 |
| 1981 | Bruce Lietzke | 335 | −25 | 2 | $50,000 |
| 1980 | Craig Stadler | 343 | −17 | 2 | $50,000 |
| 1979 | John Mahaffey | 343 | −17 | 1 | $50,000 |
| 1978 | Bill Rogers | 339 | −21 | 2 | $45,000 |
| 1977 | Rik Massengale | 337 | −23 | 6 | $40,000 |
| 1976 | Johnny Miller (2) | 344 | −16 | 3 | $36,000 |
| 1975 | Johnny Miller | 339 | −21 | 3 | $32,000 |
| 1974 | Hubert Green | 341 | −19 | 2 | $32,048 |
| 1973 | Arnold Palmer (5) | 343 | −17 | 2 | $32,000 |
| 1972 | Bob Rosburg | 344 | −16 | 1 | $29,000 |
| 1971 | Arnold Palmer (4) | 342 | −18 | PO | $28,000 |
| 1970 | Bruce Devlin | 339 | −21 | 4 | $25,000 |
| 1969 | Billy Casper (2) | 345 | −15 | 3 | $20,000 |
| 1968 | Arnold Palmer (3) | 348 | −12 | PO | $20,000 |
| 1967 | Tom Nieporte | 349 | −11 | 1 | $17,600 |
| 1966 | Doug Sanders | 349 | −11 | PO | $15,000 |
| 1965 | Billy Casper | 348 | −12 | 1 | $15,000 |
| 1964 | Tommy Jacobs | 353 | −7 | PO | $7,500 |
| 1963 | Jack Nicklaus | 345 | −13 | PO | $9,000 |
| 1962 | Arnold Palmer (2) | 342 | −17 | 3 | $5,300 |
| 1961 | Billy Maxwell | 345 | −14 | 2 | $5,300 |
| 1960 | Arnold Palmer | 338 | −20 | 3 | $12,000 |
Multiple PGA American Express Champions
Arnold Palmer has been the winner of the PGA American Express five times and leads the closest opponent in wins overall by three victories. Phil Mickelson, the 2019 event host, is one of seven players who have won the tournament twice.
| No. of Wins | Name | Country | Years |
| 5 | Arnold Palmer | United States | 1960, 1962, 1968, 1971, 1973 |
| 2 | Billy Casper | United States | 1956, 1969 |
| 2 | John Cook | United States | 1992, 1997 |
| 2 | Bill Haas | United States | 2010, 2015 |
| 2 | John Mahaffey | United States | 1979, 1984 |
| 2 | Phil Mickelson | United States | 2002, 2004 |
| 2 | Johnny Miller | United States | 1975, 1976 |
| 2 | Corey Pavin | United States | 1987, 1991 |
| 2 | Hudson Swafford | United States | 2017, 2022 |
| 2 | John Rahm | Spain | 2018, 2023 |
FAQs
A. The PGA Tour event held in southern California, previously known as the Desert Classic, is currently known as The American Express due to sponsorship circumstances.
A. The Palm Springs Golf Classic, now called The American Express, first took place in 1960.
A. The 2024 PGA American Express was won by Nick Dunlap, who secured victory with a birdie on 29-under 259.
A. The PGA American Express was named for and hosted by entertainer Bob Hope for many years.
A. Arnold Palmer won the PGA American Express five times. Phil Mickelson is one of the other eight two-time champions.
