How it works: PGA TOUR Americas

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How it works: PGA TOUR Americas
Written by Staff

Reimagined circuit, integrating PGA TOUR Canada and PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, awards 10 exempt Korn Ferry Tour cards

PGA TOUR Americas is an international pathway tour spanning across North and South America where players have the opportunity to earn status on the Korn Ferry Tour.

With the second season starting in March 2025, two continents and eight different countries in Latin America, Canada and the United States will host players competing for the chance to earn their way onto the Korn Ferry Tour, and ultimately onto the PGA TOUR.

The 16 events are broken up into two competitive segments: six events in the Latin America Swing (Segment I) spanning from March to May, and 10 events in the North America Swing (Segment II), spanning from July to September.

All 16 tournaments will be a four-day, 72-hole stroke play competition featuring a 36-hole cut after two rounds. Play will be conducted per the traditional calendar scheme of Thursday-Sunday.

After the first 15 events, the top 120 players on the PGA TOUR Americas Points List will be eligible for the Fortinet Cup Championship. The top 10 players on the final 2025 Fortinet Cup Standings will earn exempt Korn Ferry Tour membership for the 2026 season, while the top 80 players will retain PGA TOUR Americas membership through Segment I of 2026.

In addition to 10 exempt Korn Ferry Tour cards via the season-long points race, up to five conditional Korn Ferry Tour cards are available to the top two finishers in the Latin America Swing and the top three finishers in the North America Swing, if these players do not finish in the top 10 on the final Fortinet Cup Standings.

The top two players from the Latin America Swing can upgrade to exempt Korn Ferry Tour status for the 2025 season with a top-10 finish in the final Fortinet Cup Standings.

Eligibility

Eligible competitors include all professionals and amateurs whose qualified course rating handicap index is two (2.0) or less. Players must be 18 years or older to obtain PGA TOUR Americas membership. Players below the age of 18 may qualify for a PGA TOUR Americas tournament; however, they will only become eligible for membership upon their 18th birthday.

Segment I will feature 144-player fields, incorporating the results from the 2024 season. Eligible players include the top 80 in the 2024 Fortinet Cup points list, in addition to medalists from First Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry, additional finishers from Final Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry, the next 10 finishers from the Second Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry, and the highest finisher on the APGA season-long points list. Open qualifiers, sponsor exemptions, current Korn Ferry Tour members and the PGA TOUR University Class of 2024 will round out the field.

Upon the conclusion of Segment I, fields will increase to 156 for Segment II. The top 60 finishers from Segment I will retain membership, in addition to the PGA TOUR University Class of 2025 (finishers 11-25), the NCAA DII Player of the Year and finishers one through nine from the six PGA TOUR Americas Q-School sites conducted across the month-long stretch between swings. Full eligibility for Segment II features similar categories to Segment I, including open qualifiers, sponsor exemptions and eligible Korn Ferry Tour members.

Points list

The PGA TOUR Americas Fortinet Cup Standings is modeled after the points lists used by the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR. .

Each PGA TOUR Americas tournament winner will receive 500 points. A solo runner-up finish will generate 300 points. If there is a tie in any position (barring a tie for first, which is remedied by a playoff), the points will be evenly distributed amongst the players in that position. (E.g., in a five-way tie for second place, the points allocation for finishers 2-6 will be added together and divided by five, with each second-place finisher receiving an equal points distribution.)

Points for the limited-field Fortinet Cup Championship will be higher, with 600 points awarded to the winner.

Additional benefits

Each PGA TOUR Americas event offers a $225,000 (USD) purse, with the winner earning $40,500 (USD).

Players who earn Korn Ferry Tour cards (up to 15) through PGA TOUR Americas will earn a spot in the Final Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry, post-PGA TOUR Americas season, for a chance to earn PGA TOUR membership.

Not only do top performers garner these benefits, but all PGA TOUR Americas members will gain access to Q-School in some capacity. Finishers 11-25 on the season-long points list, finishers 3-10 from Segment I and finishers 4-10 from Segment II will earn direct access to Second Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry.

All remaining members will be exempt into First Stage of PGA TOUR Q-School, bypassing the pre-qualifying stage.

Up-to-date news and information can also be found on PGA TOUR Americas social channels:

  • Instagram - @PGATOURAmericas (English) or @PGATOURAmericasESP (Spanish)
  • X - @PGATOURAmericas (English) or @PGATAmericasESP (Spanish)
  • Facebook - @PGATOURAmericas

FAQ


What Korn Ferry Tour status is earned through PGA TOUR Americas and the Fortinet Cup?


The top-10 finishers from the season-long points list receive “exempt” Korn Ferry Tour membership. The top-two finishers from the Latin America Swing receive “conditional” Korn Ferry Tour membership. The top-three finishers from the North America Swing receive “conditional” Korn Ferry Tour membership.


What is the difference between exempt and conditional?


Exempt status earns a player access into any open tournament on the Tour’s schedule, and players can choose their schedule as they see fit. 


Conditional players will be placed in a category that allows limited access to events. At various points along the schedule these players are repositioned in the field based on their performance.


How are points evenly distributed in a tie?


Given the finishes of the tied players, the points that are compiled of those positions will be added together and divided among the number of players in said position. (Example: If five players tie for second in an event, the total points for solo finishes 2-6 are added together and divided by six, with each player receiving equal points distribution.)


How does PGA TOUR Americas Q-School work?


Upon the conclusion of the Latin America Swing and prior to the start of North America events, there will be a “mid-season” PGA TOUR Americas Q-School series that will offer PGA TOUR Americas membership. Six sites in the United States, Colombia and Canada will offer exempt status for the North America Swing to finishers one through nine from each location with finishers 10-25 (and ties) earning conditional status.


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