How Does the Champions Tour Q-School Work? Explaining the Qualification Process For the Senior Circuit

The PGA Tour is one of the most coveted leagues in the sport of golf. But while the younger players perform in this league, the PGA has a separate tour for the older legends. The PGA Tour Champions serves as the best way to keep the older players, who can no longer compete with the young crowd, still playing golf. John Daly and Bernhard Langer are some of the players on the tour.

The age limit for the tour is 50 years old. But it’s not as simple as just turning 50.

How can one qualify for the PGA Tour Champions Q-School?

The first step is undoubtedly to verify your age. Candidates would have to submit the relevant documents that deem that they are over the age of 50. But that doesn’t mean just any 50-year-old can play.

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The person applying also needs to be a professional golfer or a highly skilled amateur. Their handicap cannot exceed 0.8. Any amateur player will also need to forfeit their amateur status upon entering the first event on the Tour or the qualifying event.

All the players, except those exempted, will then compete in a 72-hole Regional Qualifying Stage. From there, the players who qualify join the exempted players in the Final Qualifying Stage. The field size for the final stage is 78, and no cuts are made. Hence, all players play all 72 holes.

The top 12 players in the Final Qualifying Stage receive exemptions to play on the PGA Tour Champions. The top five receive a full exemption, while the other seven receive a conditional one based on their availability for an event.

Exemptions that allow players to skip to the final stage

There are several exemptions that players can avail of to skip directly to the final stage and try to place in the top 5. Players who have played in an official event awarding money on the Champions Tour are exempt for a year.

Also, players who are in the top 100 of the all-time money list of the PGA Tour Champions receive an exemption to the final stage. They are also joined by the player who is placed in the top five at the most recent Senior PGA Professional Championship. The exemption can be used at the discretion of the player whenever he is no longer exempt from playing on the Champions Tour.

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Do you know any other golf pros who play on the senior tour other than Daly or Langer? Let us know in the comments below.