The process of getting PGA Tour playing privileges

The immediate question I get when I tell people I am going back on the professional golf circuit is “how does that work?” Being so close to the sport, I never looked at it from another perspective. This is an attempt to briefly explain how it works. This would be the part where a nice power point presentation or video would be cool. So as you read this, imagine all sorts of technowizardry in a coherent powerful slide show.

Point 1: The PGA Tour is different from the PGA of America. The PGA Tour is the competitive arm of the PGA of America. The PGA of America are all the hard working club pro’s who give lessons, keep the golf course in playing shape, and help will all equipment needs.

The PGA Tour is the world’s elite competitive tour for professional golfers. The PGA Tour sanctions 45 plus tournaments around the United States including the President’s Cup, Ryder Cup and PGA Championship. Pioneers of the sport like Arnold Palmer, Sam Sneed, Byron Nelson laid a foundation for not only the level of competition, but also the purses. Now that Tiger Woods has been on the scene for 10 years, all players have been able to reap the rewards of increased purses, sponsorship and viewers. Today’s winner’s share of tournament money equals what the entire purse was 20 years ago. On average, a win on the PGA Tour will earn you about $1 million, numerous endorsements and invitations to other lucrative events.

So, with all that money, how does one get there? The two primary ways one earns PGA Tour playing privileges is by competing in the PGA Tour Qualifying School or through the Nationwide Tour. Qualifying School is held each year beginning in October and runs through December. There are 4 stages and you must finish in the top 20 at the first stage to advance to the next stage. Players with certain statuses and credentials from the PGA Tour and Nationwide tour earn exemptions into the 2nd, 3rd, and Final Stage, making the field extremely competitive. The final stage consists of 6 rounds of competitive golf on 2 golf courses. Only the top 25 earn PGA Tour “cards” for the following year. You are literally playing for your job and one stroke can be the difference in millions of dollars the following year.

Those that make it to the final stage but finish outside the top 25 earn their Nationwide Tour card. Think of this as minor league baseball except a manager isn’t going to call you up to the “majors.” The Nationwide Tour is the only direct gateway to the PGA Tour other than Q school. This tour was designed to develop players to a point where they can compete on the PGA Tour. The reality is that most of the Nationwide Tour Members are as good, if not better than the PGA Tour players. They just have not played well at the right time.

The purses are still funded through corporate sponsorship and some TV money, but only 20% of the money on the PGA Tour. Still, one can make a very good living. I will address the money in a later blog. From the Nationwide Tour, there are 2 ways to earn a PGA Tour card. The first is to win three times in a calendar year. That is called a “Battlefield Promotion.” Jason Gore accomplished this 3 years ago, then won a PGA Tour event 2 weeks later. This sport is about getting on a run at the right time. The other way is to be inside the top 25 on the year end money list. This rewards steady play throughout a season and helps the player when they get to the PGA Tour.

Feel free to email questions about this process.