The PGA Tour on Tuesday morning knowledgeable its membership through memo that its Participant Advisory Council had proposed a number of modifications, primarily to area sizes and eligibility, that, if authorised by the coverage board subsequent month, could be applied for the 2026 season.
The modifications embody slicing the variety of absolutely exempt gamers and Korn Ferry Tour graduates, lowering area sizes of a majority of open tournaments and additional rewarding high amateurs chasing Tour standing via PGA Tour College.
After a deep dive into the 17-page memo, here’s a nearer take a look at the massive proposals and what they’ll imply:
Change: Lower variety of absolutely exempt gamers from high 125 to high 100 in FedExCup
What it means: For these wanting a extra cutthroat Tour, they get it. The variety of absolutely exempt PGA Tour members might be lowered by roughly 20-25%, in accordance with the Tour’s memo, with solely the highest 100 gamers on the FedExCup factors listing retaining full standing. That can then shift the conditional class from Nos. 126-150 to Nos. 101-125, and that amended class might be slotted on the precedence listing under the reorder class (DPWT/KFT/Q-College grads), PGA Tour College grads, top-70 non-members, career-money exemptions and life members. Main medicals and three-time KFT or DPWT winners (battlefield promotion) will break up the Nos. 101-125 class into two (Nos. 101-110 and Nos. 111-125).
With these modifications going into impact for 2026, that signifies that the primary top-100 cutoff will occur on the ultimate 2025 FedExCup factors listing. This isn’t nice information for the 2024 KFT and Q-College grads, as they are going to be enjoying by present guidelines in 2025 – guidelines that considerably deprived these additional down the preliminary reorder class, whether or not or not it’s begins afforded to them, particularly early within the 12 months, or factors accessible on the occasions they do get into – but these gamers should now end 25 spots increased in factors to earn absolutely exempt standing. Presently, solely 5 KFT/Q-College grads who began the 12 months within the reorder class sit inside the highest 100 in factors.
The PGA Tour revealed on Tuesday proposed sweeping modifications to its future area sizes and eligibility.
Change: Variety of Korn Ferry Tour graduates lowered from 30 to twenty gamers, and capping Q-College graduates at 5
What it means: The variety of absolutely exempt gamers wasn’t the one group that was minimize. The Korn Ferry Tour grads, which two years in the past switched to the highest 30 in season-long factors race might be minimize by a 3rd, which means 20 gamers is not going to graduate from the KFT, starting with the 2025 season. The ten DP World Tour grads will nonetheless be prioritized above Nos. 2-20 in KFT factors whereas Q-College’s remaining stage will now have a playoff to find out who will get the 5 PGA Tour playing cards, a change from the top-5-and-ties mannequin rolled out final 12 months.
Change: Cut back most area sizes for many open tournaments
What it means: With an growing variety of tournaments experiencing darkness suspensions and sluggish tempo of play, a widespread discount of area sizes will assist alleviate these considerations. Whereas the lower was not uniform from occasion to occasion, the highlights are: The Gamers going from 144 gamers to 120 gamers; a lot of the pre-Masters tournaments reducing to 120 gamers with the exceptions together with the AmEx (156) and Farmers (144); the opposite-field occasions via Myrtle Seashore taking place to 120 gamers; and the vast majority of the summer season occasions having 144-player maximums. The fields for the signature occasions will stay establishment, although these have been a part of preliminary discussions. Nonetheless, minimal area sizes of 72 gamers have been authorised for these occasions final June.
With the variety of exempt gamers additionally being minimize, these modifications received’t exacerbate an issue that we noticed in 2024, the place many reorder-category gamers couldn’t get into a number of full-field occasions within the first few months of the season. In truth, the preliminary thought is that starting in 2026, each KFT and Q-College grad ought to get begins in each open match apart from Phoenix. Nos. 101-125 finishers must also get right into a handful of tournaments, probably 15 occasions or so.
Change: Get rid of or scale back the variety of open qualifying spots for occasions with fewer than 144 gamers
What it means: This variation is already receiving essentially the most blowback. Whereas Monday qualifiers in the summertime and fall will nonetheless award 4 qualifying spots, the primary half of the calendar will expertise a seismic shift. Primarily based on the Tour’s new pointers, which might eradicate open qualifiers for all non-fall occasions with fewer than 144 gamers, these match would not have Monday qualifiers: Sony, WMPO, Mexico, Cognizant, Puerto Rico, Puntacana, Myrtle Seashore. Moreover, these three occasions – Valspar, Houston and Valero – would go from 4 open-qualifying spots to 2.
Change: Restrict restricted sponsor exemptions to subsequent eligible members on precedence listing
What it means: It’s necessary to notice that this doesn’t pertain to the unrestricted sponsor exemptions that tournaments are afforded. Nevertheless, for the restricted invitations that historically go to 2 PGA Tour members and two Korn Ferry Tour graduates, these will now be doled out based mostly on the precedence listing. So, let’s say if Phoenix cuts off with six KFT grads on the alternate listing; the 2 sponsor exemptions would go to the subsequent gamers up, not essentially whomever the match needs to pick from that group.
Change: Modify FedExCup factors distributions for majors, The Gamers and signature occasions
What it means: That is one other necessary change for the reorder class. This previous season, gamers who have been eligible for the signature occasions had the chance to play for vastly extra FedExCup factors than, say, a Korn Ferry Tour graduate who had hassle getting early begins – and that is mirrored on the factors listing, the place even the worst performances from top-50 gamers have been nonetheless adequate to make the playoffs. That factors hole is closed by the Tour’s choice to barely lower factors given to finishers outdoors the highest 10 in majors and The Gamers and outdoors the highest 6 in signature occasions. For instance, a participant who finishes solo seventh in a signature occasion in 2026 will earn 25 fewer factors. On the identical time, runner-up finishers in majors will earn 100 extra factors.
Change: Amateurs now eligible for top-10 exemptions
What it means: This one comes too late for Florida State’s Luke Clanton, who posted three top-10s on the PGA Tour this summer season, although he was not eligible to make use of an exemption that usually exempts gamers who end among the many high 10 and ties in a Tour occasion into the subsequent open-field occasion. Not solely will amateurs like Clanton be capable of use such exemptions starting in 2026, however faculty underclassmen will even obtain an extra level towards PGA Tour Accelerated for posting a top-5 end. Presently, these gamers can earn one level for making a PGA Tour minimize and one other level for ending within the high 10. The edge for incomes PGA Tour membership stays 20 complete factors.
Change: Signature occasions to be excluded from strength-of-field requirement
What it means: Presently, exempt PGA Tour members should play not less than one match per season that they haven’t performed within the earlier 4 seasons. The 4 majors, The Gamers, three playoff occasions, Ryder Cup, Presidents Cup and Olympics don’t rely towards this rule. Transferring ahead, the eight signature occasions is not going to rely, both, although gamers will now need to play a match that they haven’t performed within the earlier three seasons.
