The PGA Tour announced membership categories on Tuesday for its new Championship Series and Challenger Series, which will serve as a feeder circuit for the top tour starting in 2028.
The tour's boards also approved a new "last chance" series, which will include at least four tournaments in the fall with three cards available for the Championship Series.
"From the beginning, we set out to preserve the meritocracy that makes our sport unique by creating a system where performance dictates opportunity," PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said in a statement. "Through new eligibility criteria and supporting pathways into the PGA Tour, the new competitive model is designed to reward excellence and ensure there is always a clear path for top performers at every stage of their career."
A new points system will feature a flatter curve, according to the tour, and will reward winning and top finishes while emphasizing making the cut. Starting in 2028, winners of each Championship Series event, The Players and the four major championships will receive 300 points, runners-up get 200 and third-place finishers earn 150.
"For fans, this means a clear understanding of what is at stake during each PGA Tour competition, whether that is at an event or across a season," Rolapp said.
Beginning in 2028, the tour's new model will include two separate series of tournaments -- the PGA Tour Championship Series and PGA Tour Challenger Series -- that will run concurrently during the season. The Challenger Series will be the primary pathway to the Championship Series, with golfers competing to advance to the top track, including in-season elevation with two victories.
Golfers are allowed to compete on only one track of events.
PGA Tour members who earn a two-year exemption this season by winning tournaments or finishing in the top 30 of the FedEx Cup points list will have access to the Championship Series through 2028.
Additionally, the top 70 golfers in the final 2027 FedEx Cup points list through the Tour Championship will earn Championship Series membership for 2028, along with the top 95 players in the final FedEx Cup Fall points list.
Golfers who finish Nos. 96-175 in the final FedEx Cup Fall points list in 2027 will earn Challenger Series membership in 2028.
Starting in 2028, membership categories for the Championship Series will include the top 90 players who retain their Championship Series membership; 20 golfers who will be promoted from the Challenger Series; golfers who won twice on the Challenger Series; and winners of Championship Series events, including The Players and four majors, who will receive exemptions for the current season and next two seasons.
Medical extensions will be granted on a limited basis, according to the tour.
Golfers can utilize a one-time career money exemption for 2028 if they are in the top 50 on the PGA Tour career money list at the end of the 2027 season. Golfers electing to use the exemption will be required to play in at least 15 tour events in 2027.
PGA Tour University will continue to be a pathway for top college golfers. The No. 1 golfer from PGA Tour U. following that season's NCAA Championships will be eligible for the Challenger Series that season and the next.
Challenger Series events will include fields of 144 golfers, although some could be reduced for reasons such as daylight. The fields will include golfers who were relegated from the Championship Series the previous season; golfers who finished Nos. 21-90 on the Challenger Series points list the previous season; top 20 finishers from the previous season's Korn Ferry List; and winners of Challenger Series events, who will receive Challenger Series membership for the current season and next.
Golfers who win Championship Series tournaments will receive a four-year exemption on the Challenger Series, if they are relegated from the top tour.
The PGA Tour will continue to operate Q-School, with the top five finishers from the qualifying tournament earning spots in the Challenger Series. Challenger Series events that are played the same week as Championship Series events will have open qualifying tournaments with two spots available in the field.
The tour's boards are still discussing how to incorporate DP World Tour golfers into the new model.