The PGA Tour has been told what needs to happen with the Cognizant Classic after this year’s event with many underwhelmed with the strength of the field at PGA National this week.

The Cognizant Classic is currently in a difficult place in the schedule. The last two weeks have seen the first two signature events of the season at Pebble Beach and Riviera.

Meanwhile, many of the PGA Tour‘s biggest names will be back in action at the Arnold Palmer Invitational next week. The tour’s flagship event follows, with TPC Sawgrass hosting The Players Championship.

The PGA Tour have been urged to move the Cognizant Classic in the revamped schedule

With that, a number of the biggest names are sitting this week out. Ryan Gerard is the only player inside the top 30 in the world rankings set to tee it up at PGA National.

It is concerning at a time when everyone is waiting to see what a condensed PGA Tour schedule looks like.

But speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast, Ryan Lavner believes that there is a perfect place for the Cognizant Classic on the new calendar.

“You mentioned the logjam in the schedule, where you have three signature events plus The Players in a five-week span. And of course, it’s pretty unreasonable, except for Shane Lowry who’s doing five weeks in a row, to ask a Rory or Scottie to do that sort of thing. But it’s an interesting dynamic because the PGA Tour owns and operates the Cognizant Classic. They are motivated to boost the stature of this tournament,” he said.

“To me, it is a no-brainer, whenever the PGA Tour remakes the schedule, and let’s say they kick it off with Phoenix, which is the rumour that you’re going to have it in mid-February, why would you not make this number two or number three on the PGA Tour schedule if you’re blowing up the idea of a West Coast Swing? I know you think it’s a little bit chilly, I know you’re wearing three layers right now. But that’s a great opportunity for players who have been deprived of playing opportunities for four or five months to kickstart it at a Doral, kickstart it at a PGA National.

“We have a bevy of stars who live locally. Just simply bumping it up in the schedule ahead of what could potentially be a West Coast Swing I think is the move here. And then all of a sudden, we’re not talking about zero top 25 players, we’re talking about this event redeveloping its stature that we saw in the early 2010s.”

Jack Nicklaus and Rory McIlroy among the Cognizant Classic’s most famous winners

There have been a number of notable winners over the years.

Jack Nicklaus won in both 1977 and 1978. Meanwhile, the likes of Nick Price and Vijay Singh won in the 1990s.

One of the most significant victories in the event’s history came back in 2012.

On that occasion, Rory McIlroy won by two shots. The victory meant that he moved to world number one.

It also remains the only time that McIlroy and Tiger Woods have finished in the top two places in a PGA Tour event. Woods was tied with Tom Gillis at PGA National for his best ever finish at what was then known as the Honda Classic.