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Country: gb Page generated at: Sunday, 24 May 2026 at 17:13:51 British Summer Time
tour
The Players
How do you qualify for The Players Championship?

published: Jan 29, 2025

How do you qualify for The Players Championship?

Matt ChiversLink

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How do you earn a spot at golf’s fifth major championship?

How to qualify for The Players Championship

Table of Contents

Jump to:

  • How do you qualify for the players championship?

It is a field every player wants to be part of.

There are few venues in the game with household status, such as Augusta National, the Old Course, and TPC Sawgrass.

144 players will descend upon Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, in mid-March, arguably the season’s kickoff period.

Despite the size of the field, it isn’t quite cut and dry earning a spot at the Stadium Course.

Winners of PGA Tour events and major championships, your FedEx Cup points standing. Many factors come into deciding the field for the feature event in Jacksonville.

Below is the full list of criteria used in 2024. If any of the bullet points change for 2025, this list will be updated.

Here are the criteria for the qualifications for The Players Championship in 2025:

How to qualify for The Players Championship

ALSO: The Players Championship Preview 2025

ALSO: What are the perks of winning The Players Championship?

ALSO: Players Championship field: Who is playing at TPC Sawgrass in 2025?

How do you qualify for The Players Championship?

PGA Tour tournament winner

If you win any event on the PGA Tour since the 2024 Players Championship, you will earn a spot to compete at The Players.

Top 125 in the previous season’s FedEx Cup through the FedEx Cup Fall

If you finished in the top 125 of the previous season’s FedEx Cup Fall standings, you’ll earn a spot at The Players.

Top 125 (medical extensions)

If players have been granted a medical extension in this category, such as Maverick McNealy and C.T Pan in 2024, they are also eligible.

Win the Masters

If you win the Masters, you earn a five-year exemption to compete at The Players.

Win The Players Championship

If you win The Players, you earn a five-year exemption to compete at The Players.

Win the PGA Championship

If you win the PGA Championship, you earn a five-year exemption to compete at The Players.

Win the US Open

If you win the US Open, you earn a five-year exemption to compete at The Players.

Win The Open

If you win The Open, you earn a five-year exemption to compete at The Players.

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Win the FedEx Cup

If you win the FedEx Cup, you will earn a five-year exemption at The Players.

Win the WGC Match Play

Recent winners of the WGC Match Play earn a three-year exemption into The Players.

Win the Arnold Palmer Invitational

If you win the Arnold Palmer Invitational on the PGA Tour, you earn a three-year exemption to compete at The Players.

Win the Genesis Invitational

If you win the Genesis Invitational on the PGA Tour, you earn a three-year exemption to compete at The Players.

Win Memorial

If you win the Memorial Tournament on the PGA Tour, you earn a three-year exemption to compete at The Players.

Be in the top 50 of the world rankings

If you are in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Rankings from the designated cut-off tournament, you will earn a spot at The Players.

The top 10 in the FedEx Cup

The top 10 of the FedEx Cup standings, by a designated cut-off point closer to the tournament date, will qualify for the Players.

Win the Kaulig Companies Championship

If you win the Kaulig Companies Championship on the PGA Tour Champions, you’ll qualify for The Players.

Race to Dubai

The leading player from the previous year’s Race to Dubai who earned a PGA Tour card will earn a spot.

Become the Korn Ferry Tour champion

If you win the Korn Ferry Tour Points list, you will gain entry to The Players.

FedEx Cup standings

The remaining positions and alternates are filled from the current FedEx Cup standings after a designated cut-off point.

NOW READ: Here is every player to have won The Players…

NOW READ: What is the prize money at The Players Championship?

NOW READ: Rattlesnakes and accidental island greens: The fascinating tale of how Sawgrass was built

How do you qualify for the Players Championship? Well, now you know! Follow NCG on X/Twitter!

About the author

Matt Chivers
Matt Chivers

Matt has been playing golf since the age of 13 and was largely inspired to take up the game by countless family members who played golf during his childhood.

Matt is a member at Royal Cinque Ports in Deal playing off a 5 handicap, just a pitching wedge away from his hometown of Dover where he went to school and grew up. He has previously been a member at Etchinghill and Walmer and Kingsdown in Kent.

Having studied history at the University of Liverpool, Matt went on to pass his NCTJ Exams in Manchester a year later to fulfil his lifelong ambition of becoming a journalist. He picked up work experience along the way at places such as the Racing Post, the Independent, Sportsbeat and the Lancashire Evening Post.

Matt joined NCG in February 2023 and is the website’s main source of tour news, features and opinion. He has reported live from events such as the Masters, The Open, the Ryder Cup and The Players Championship, having also interviewed and spoken to many of the biggest names in the sport.

Consuming tour golf on what is a 24/7 basis, you can come to Matt for informed views on the game and the latest updates on the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LPGA Tour, Ladies European Tour and LIV Golf.

What’s in Matt’s bag: Cleveland HiBore XL Driver driver, Cobra LTDx 3-wood, Benross BR-Pro irons, Ping Glide 4.0 wedges, Odyssey putter.

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