The PGA Tour is changing its exemption rules, reducing fully exempt players from the top 125 to just the top 100 on the FedExCup points list. This shift has heightened the pressure on golfers fighting to secure their spots, with players like Peter Malnati and Lanto Griffin sharing their thoughts. Discover how this new benchmark is reshaping strategies, intensifying competition, and creating uncertainty for those ranked outside the top 100. Stay informed on what this means for your favorite golfers as they navigate a more challenging fall season.
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A seismic shift is about to hit the PGA Tour. And for many players, it could mean the difference between chasing their dreams or watching them slip away. What’s causing this ripple of anxiety? Next season, the number of fully exempt players, those guaranteed a place on tour thanks to their FedEx Cup points, will drop dramatically from 125 to just 100. That might sound like a minor adjustment, but for those hovering near that fateful cutoff, every stroke, every weekend, and every ranking point now carries even more weight. But here’s where it gets controversial. For years, reaching the top 125 meant safety. Now, players at the Silverado Resort and across the fall schedule find themselves under unprecedented pressure. As Peter Malnati candidly puts it, “We all know there’s fewer spots and we all know what we’re playing for. It’s a smaller number than it used to be. Malnati can rest a little easier for now.” His exemption from the 2024 Valpar Championship win secures his status for next season. He admits though that without that victory, the challenge ahead would feel almost insurmountable. Many can relate. A mere 114 point gap separates 100 from 125th place. Just about the equivalent of finishing in the top five at a standard tour event. That’s a razor thin margin with massive implications. And this is the part most people miss. The stress isn’t just about the numbers. Psychological tension is mounting too. Malnati, who is currently ranked 179th, acknowledges that the intensity of fighting for fewer spots amplifies the familiar pressure of career survival. The feeling is the same. It’s just a little magnified now, he explains, making it clear that every decision and every finish counts more than ever. Lanto Griffin knows this battle all too well. Last fall, he finished 171st, a position many might consider bleak, before clawing his way through Q school and earning back his card. But with the top 100 now being the new standard, Griffin and others recognized the walls closing in even tighter. Griffin summed it up after an excellent opening round at the Procore Championship. With everything going smaller, it feels like the walls are a lot tighter. But everybody has to do it. He points out that solid seasons could now leave players just short. Ending up 105th or 110th might once have sufficed, but no longer guarantees safe passage. Griffin plans to play nearly every fall event to improve his position, but he also highlights the uncertainty swirling around these changes. Previously, finishing between 126th and 150th granted players conditional status and a decent shot at getting into events the next year. Now, no one really knows what finishing 101st to 125th will mean. I don’t think anybody really knows what 110 120 will get you, Griffin muses, explaining that while the tour promises some starts for those just outside the top 100, the landscape is shifting. Here’s a hot take. Could this new standard raise competitiveness or might it undercut the opportunities for talented late bloomers? The gulf in points from 150th to 70th is vast. Sustained highlevel play has never been more essential. So, what do you think? Is tightening the exemption criteria good for the sport, fostering elite competition, or does it risk making the PGA Tour less accessible and more cutthroat? Drop your thoughts below. Do you agree with this new direction or do you think it goes too far?
