Requirements for a Tour Card
You can earn a PGA Tour Card by:
- being in the top 50 in a four-tournament play-off series to be played by the top 75 players from the Web.com Tour along with the players who finished 126 through 200 on the PGA Tour.
- winning three Web.com Tour tournaments in a season.
- being a former major champion.
- being a former multiple tournament winner.
-Earning enough FedEx Cup points as a non-PGA Tour member to rank in the top 125 if the golfer was a member.
Benefits of a Tour Card
By having a PGA Tour card, a golfer can play in PGA Tour events. Many players also receive sponsor endorsements and advertising contracts. The PGA Tour card provides the player the opportunity to win large purses in tournaments.
History
In 1965, the first PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament (called Q-School) was held and John Schlee won the event. The tour was played annually since 1965. In 1968 and 1969 and from 1975 to 1981, there were two tournaments each year.
In 2013, Q-School was used to grant membership to the Web.com Tour, with PGA Tour Cards handed out only after the Web.com Tour Championship.
Misconceptions
Many people think that if a player holds a PGA Tour Card, he can play in any event on the PGA tour. However, new PGA tour players are eligible for tournaments based on their ranking in the final round of the qualifying tournament. Players can also get sponsor exceptions for tournaments.
