For many players, the rigors of the year are firmly behind them after months of high-intensity action in competitive events.
However, for some PGA Tour players, the most consequential tournament of the season is yet to come.
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For other stars, though, there remains uncertainty as they head to Georgia’s Sea Island Golf Club for the RSM Classic.
Ryo Hisatsune (95th)
Ryo Hisatsune has some breathing space ahead of the RSM Classic
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The Japanese player, who earned his PGA Tour card in 2023 as one of the 10 highest non-exempt DP World Tour players in the Race to Dubai, has shown flashes of what he can do on the US-based circuit, including four top-10 finishes this season.
That gives him a little breathing space ahead of the RSM Classic, but he will be looking for a flying start to avoid having to look over his shoulder as the tournament progresses.
Thorbjorn Olesen (96th)
Thorbjorn Olesen is looking to stay on the PGA Tour for the third season
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The Dane made his way to the PGA Tour via as part of the same crop of 10 DP World Tour players that included Hisatsune.
The eight-time DP World Tour winner has found titles more difficult to come by on the PGA Tour. Indeed, he is still looking for his first win on the circuit, but he has come close on several occasions, including T3 at the Bank of Utah Championship.
Like Hisatsune, he has a degree of leeway ahead of the RSM Classic, but his precarious position of 96th in the standings means he won’t be able to rest on his laurels.
Takumi Kanaya (99th)
Takumi Kanaya could have secured his PGA Tour future at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship
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It could have been so different for Japan’s Kanaya had he been able to apply the pressure on Adam Schenk for the whole of the final round at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.
Kanuya, who was in the final group with Schenk, was just one shot behind heading to the 72nd hole.
Schenk finished with a par, meaning a birdie for Kanaya would have forced a playoff, but his fortunes went the other way with a bogey to leave them stranded in T3 and giving him another week to fret over his PGA Tour future.
Matt Wallace (102nd)
Matt Wallace has work to do to secure his card for next season
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Will the Englishman rue his decision to dedicate his time to the FedEx Cup Fall rather than attempting to confirm his PGA Tour card via the Race to Dubai rankings?
Wallace’s last appearance on the DP World Tour was at the BMW PGA Championship. At that point, he was 50th in the Race to Dubai rankings, meaning that, while he still would have had work to do to force his way into the reckoning for a PGA Tour card via that route, it wasn’t inconceivable.
Instead, the 2023 Corales Puntacana Championship winner chose to play in six of the seven FedEx Cup Fall events.
So far, he’s just a little short of what’s required, in 102nd, despite a T10 at the Baycurrent Classic, meaning he needs one final push in Georgia.
Victor Perez (108th)
Victor Perez needs a good performance at the RSM Classic to keep his PGA Tour card
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The third PGA Tour player from the 2023 DP World Tour Race to Dubai rankings on the list is Perez.
The highlight of 2025 for the Frenchman was T9 at the RBC Canadian Open, but that is his only top 10 so far.
He heads to the RSM Classic just eight places below the top 100, but with over 60 points to make up on the player in the final spot, the already exempt Karl Vilips. That means he’ll need another big performance at the event, and possibly even another top 10.
Matt Kuchar (113th)
Matt Kuchar is a long-time member of the PGA Tour
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A year ago, finishing in the top 125 of the FedEx Cup rankings was enough to secure full playing privileges for the following season.
Back then, Kuchar placed 109th to keep his card, but it won’t be enough this year, with the nine-time PGA Tour winner 13 places below the new threshold.
Kuchar can retain his card via another route, such as his place in the PGA Tour career money list or as a player who has made 300 career cuts.
However, they are one-time uses, so, first and foremost, his focus will be on achieving it via the FedEx Cup standings.
Kuchar has one top-10 finish this season, a T5 at the John Deere Classic. He’ll need a similar performance at Sea Island if he’s to get into the top 100.
Taylor Moore (115th)
Taylor Moore won the 2023 Valspar Championship, but now he might lose his PGA Tour card
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In 2023, Taylor Moore won the Valspar Championship to secure his PGA Tour future for the next two seasons, but another title hasn’t been forthcoming.
The season started brightly for Moore, with top 10s in The American Express and the WM Phoenix Open, but those proved to be high points, rather than a sign of things to come. As a result, it’s crunch time for the 32-year-old.
To retain his full playing privileges, only a high placing at the RSM Classic will do.
Joel Dahmen (117th)
Joel Dahmen needs to perform well at the RSM Classic for the second year running to keep his PGA Tour card
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Joel Dahmen came within a whisker of removing any doubt over his PGA Tour status at April’s Corales Puntacana Championship.
Unfortunately for the fan favorite, three successive bogeys to complete his tournament left him T2 rather than with his second title at the event.
Last year, Dahmen only guaranteed his PGA Tour card at the RSM Classic with a T35, but he’ll need to finish a lot higher this time around if he’s to clamber into the top 100.
Harry Higgs (132th)
Harry Higgs faces an uphill battle to retain his PGA Tour card
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Harry Higgs begins the RSM Classic over 167 points short of Vilips in 100th place, and that means a minimum of a top-three placing is needed.
Like Dahmen, he will likely spend the build-up with some thoughts as to what might have been, having come desperately close to a maiden PGA Tour win at the Myrtle Beach Classic, only to lose to Ryan Fox in a playoff.
Adam Hadwin (138th)
Adam Hadwin’s 10-year run on the PGA Tour could be about to end
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Adam Hadwin has been a PGA Tour regular for a decade, but that run is in serious danger of ending after the RSM Classic.
The Canadian will need to finish no lower than second to force his way into the top 100, but his form suggests it’s not likely, with just one top-10 placing all season.
Even for those who fail to make it into the top 100 after the RSM Classic, all is not lost, with players finishing between 101st and 125th earning conditional PGA Tour status.
Those who miss out can also redeem the situation at Q-School, with the top five at the final stage all earning a card.
