The 2026 Valero Texas Open has seen weather issues since the opening bell. It began with a 90-minute delay on Thursday due to morning rain and thunderstorms, keeping 24 players from finishing their opening rounds. While play resumed at 7:45 a.m. on Friday to finish the first round another 45-minute delay in the afternoon, left Luke Clanton to return Saturday morning to complete his second round. Anticipating a cold front, officials moved third-round tee times earlier into the morning, but to no avail.

Bad weather forced a mandatory suspension at 11:51 a.m. CT. While the Tour initially targeted restarts for 3:45 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., heavy rain saturated the Oaks Course fairways. Play was officially called for the day at 5:52 p.m. CT. The third round will now resume at 7:45 a.m. CT on Sunday. The final-round tee times will run from approximately 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. off split tees. Golfers will remain in the same groupings for the final round as they are in for the third round.

The field is re-paired by score after 54 holes to ensure the leaders play together in the final group for maximum drama. But by abandoning this, the Tour is trying to avoid a Monday finish. This wouldn’t be the first time either.

In 2018, 2022, and 2023, the Tour used this exact method to complete 36 holes on Sunday following significant rain delays at the ISCO Championship. It will still not be enough.

The delay is a nightmare situation for the 22 players in the Valero field who are already qualified for the Masters, as it disrupts their preparation. The hectic situation affects players like Tony Finau, who is facing the end of his streak of 33 consecutive major starts. The 30 percent chance of rain in the Sunday forecast only makes the situation more bleak, but better management can prevent it from worsening.

TPC San Antonio’s Oaks Course uses a complex network of corrugated drainage pipes similar to TPC Sawgrass, designed to handle heavy moisture. If the sheer volume of “sheets” of rain Saturday morning stalled the system, there is one more way to save the $9.8 million event: reduce the tournament to 54 holes, permitted under PGA Tour Rule 33-1.

Most recently, the 2024 Pebble Beach Pro-Am was shortened to 54 holes due to extreme wind and rain. The 2024 Alfred Dunhill Links also reverted to a 54-hole score due to a washout. So, with less than one week left before the biggest event of the golf season, the event can easily be shortened.

PGA Tour’s hesitation in San Antonio is agitating the fans

One fan even asked, “How many players are WD and heading to Augusta?” While another wrote thinking of their plans, “Cancel the 4th round and let these guys get to Augusta.”

Players already in the Masters field have no incentive to risk injury in a 36-hole marathon in cold, 40-mph winds. We have seen this before.

Collin Morikawa already withdrew earlier in the week due to back concerns. Ludvig Aberg, who is making his Masters debut and already has high stress from contending at The Players is a prime candidate for a strategic WD if they feel the physical toll of 36 holes on Sunday will compromise their performance at Augusta.

Another fan from a nearby location argues, “It stopped raining hours ago. Never any lightning or thunder. I live 6 miles from the course, and there is 0 flooding here. Have walked TPC SA many times. How come they were unprepared for this???”

PGA Tour rules official Ken Tackett clarified that the course reached a saturation point. The fairways simply could not absorb more water without damage to the turf or creating unfair lies. Another fan argued, “Players have Masters next week, and you’re making them finish on Monday lmao.”

Masters has a well-known rigid schedule, including the Tuesday Champions Dinner and Wednesday Par 3 contest. Now, a Monday finish in San Antonio means players won’t arrive in Georgia until late Monday night. For past champions like Jordan Spieth and Hideki Matsuyama, this leaves less than 24 hours to recover before the Champions Dinner and less time than the others before the Par 3 Contest.

Another added, “Literally the worst to ever do it. Would never happen on LIV.”

LIV’s shotgun start model is objectively better at navigating weather windows. Because all 54 players start and finish simultaneously, they can fit a full round into a 4.5-hour window. Plus, they have a history of proactive shifts at LIV Bangkok 2022. They moved the shotgun start up by an hour to 9 a.m. to beat a storm. Similarly, the International Series India (supported by LIV) used shotgun starts on both Saturday and Sunday to catch up after massive delays. 

While it is unlikely that the PGA Tour will start shotgun, weather has influenced many of its events this season already. It remains to be seen how the event will cope with the rains to allow the golfers to fly to Augusta on time.