PGA Tour Champions Player Matt Gogel Suspended Six Months for Betting on Tour Events

Matt Gogel, a competitor on the PGA Tour Champions circuit, has received a six‑month suspension from the PGA Tour after wagering on Tour events.

These wagers breached the Tour’s Integrity Program, and the suspension took effect on Sunday. In a statement released by the Tour on Wednesday, Gogel explained that he placed bets on events in which he was not a participant, with the wagers occurring in 2024 and 2025.

Gogel said, “In 2024 and 2025, I unintentionally breached PGA Tour policy by making small, recreational wagers on golf. I want to emphasize that these bets were not placed on regular PGA Tour events, PGA Tour Champions events, or any tournament in which I competed.”

I would never knowingly compromise the integrity of golf. This was an honest mistake, and I look forward to returning to competition on the PGA Tour Champions in 2027.

The PGA Tour’s Integrity Program Manual, available online, outlines prohibited conduct, which includes betting on professional golf events.

The manual states that any covered person, directly or indirectly, is prohibited from betting on the outcome or any aspect of any PGA Tour event, any other professional golf competition, or any elite amateur competition (including Olympic golf) worldwide. It defines betting as placing any money or other valuable consideration on an uncertain outcome with the expectation of return, and expressly includes wagering or trading on platforms that the Tour deems analogous to sports betting, such as prediction markets and futures contracts.

On Sunday, Gogel finished tied for 30th place at the Rogers Charity Classic, a Champions Tour event reserved for players aged 50 and over.

This season, Gogel has competed in 18 Champions Tour events and earned $776,133.

Gogel recorded 179 starts on the PGA Tour between 1992 and 2022, accumulating $4,596,216 in earnings. His lone Tour victory came at the 2002 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro‑Am.

The following is the PGA Tour’s full statement regarding Gogel’s suspension:

The PGA Tour announced on Wednesday that PGA Tour Champions member Matt Gogel has been suspended for violating the PGA Tour Integrity Program. Gogel placed wagers on PGA Tour competitions without betting on events in which he participated.

Gogel is suspended from PGA Tour-sanctioned competition for six months, with the suspension effective Aug. 23, 2026, and running through Feb. 22, 2027.

Gogel has fully cooperated with the Tour throughout the investigation.

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