Tommy Gainey withdrew from the Korn Ferry Tour’s season opener in the Bahamas to allow a younger player to compete, Monday Q Info reported.
Gainey, 50, was eligible for the Jan. 11-14 Bahamas Golf Classic as a past champion of the tournament. His exemption for winning the 2020 edition expires after 2026.
He is sacrificing a shot at the Caribbean event’s $1 million purse, of which approximately $180,000 goes to the winner.
“It’s 10 times harder than when I came up. I didn’t want to take a spot from a guy,” Gainey told Monday Q Info.
Gainey won twice on the developmental Korn Ferry Tour, then known as the Nationwide Tour, in 2010 to gain promotion to the PGA Tour, where he achieved his lone career victory in 2012. He peaked at No. 84 in the world rankings.
Nicknamed “Two Gloves” for his signature course look, Gainey played in five PGA Tour Champions events in 2025, usually after sneaking in as a Monday qualifier. He became a full-time member of the senior tour with a two-shot triumph at the Constellation Furyk & Friends tournament in Jacksonville, Fla., in October.
The PGA Tour Champions schedule begins Jan. 22 with the Mitsubishi Electric Championship in Hawaii.
Gainey said he phoned Bahamas tournament director Josh Franklin to express that he respected the event but wanted to free up coveted space in the field.
“These young guys are so good, any one of them can win, even the last guy in the field,” Gainey told Monday Q Info.
–Field Level Media
