Masters qualification reformed: More global paths, less PGA Tour focus

The Masters Tournament is changing its qualification criteria. In a surprising move, Augusta National Golf Club announced on August 26 that from 2026, the winners of the PGA Tour Fall Series will no longer automatically receive an invitation. Instead, the winners of selected international Opens will be rewarded with a starting place. This far-reaching change is the result of a cooperation with the Royal and Ancient Golf Club (R&A) and aims to make the Masters field even more global.

The end of the PGA Tour Fall Series

Until now, the PGA Tour tournaments held in the fall, such as the RSM Classic or the Sanderson Farms Championship, offered players a valuable chance to participate in the Masters. This route will now be abolished. In future, the official qualifying rule for PGA Tour winners will be limited to winners of tournaments with a full season-ending Tour Championship points total.

The new rule has tangible consequences: In recent years, several winners of fall events who were otherwise ineligible would have lost their Masters invitations. This segment of the PGA Tour, where players often fight to keep their Tour card, will lose one of its most attractive rewards.

New routes to the US Masters via national Opens

In return, the Masters is opening up to the winners of six traditional national Opens held on different continents. The winners of the following tournaments will now receive a guaranteed invitation:

• Scottish Open
• Spanish Open
• Japan Open
• Hong Kong Open
• Australian Open
• South African Open

This step is a reaction to the growing level of international golf. Fred Ridley, Chairman of Augusta National, explained the shared vision with the R&A in a statement:

"The Masters Tournament has long recognized the importance of international representation among its invitees. We, along with The R&A, have a shared commitment to the global sport and are proud to work together."

The expansion of the qualifying pathways to include tournaments on the DP World Tour, Asian Tour, Japan Golf Tour and PGA Tour of Australia is designed to recognize top talent from around the world and highlight the importance of these historic events. Ridley added:

"Today's announcement reinforces the shared vision of our organizations to reward the best talent around the world who rise to the top at historic National Open Championships. We hope this formal recognition shines a bright light on these players and the events they will represent at the Masters and The Open starting next year."

All Masters qualifying criteria at a glance

The changes to Masters qualification for 2026 are the most significant in over a decade. Augusta National and The R&A are responding to the dynamic nature of professional golf with new pathways opening up for LIV Golf Tour players to compete in the aforementioned national Opens.

Here are the full qualifying criteria for the Masters Tournament:

1. Masters Tournament Champions (Lifetime)
2. The last five U.S. Open Champions
3. The last five British Open Champions
4. The last five PGA Champions
5. The last three Players Champions
6. Current Olympic Gold Medalist
7. Current U.S. Amateur Champion and runner-up
8. Current British Amateur Champion
9. Current Asia-Pacific Amateur Champion
10. Current Latin America Amateur Champion
11. Current U.S. Mid-Amateur Champion
12. Current NCAA Division I Men's Individual Champion
13. The top 12 players (including shared places) from the previous year's Masters
14. The first 4 players (including shared places) of the U.S. Open of the previous year
15. The first 4 players (including shared places) of the British Open of the previous year
16. The first 4 players (including shared places) of the PGA Championship of the previous year
17. Winners of PGA Tour tournaments that have a full points award for the season-ending Tour Championship
18. Players who qualified for the previous year's Tour Championship
19. Current Scottish Open Champion
20. Current Spanish Open Champion
21. Current Japan Open Champion
22. Current Hong Kong Open Champion
23. Current Australian Open Champion
24. Current South African Open Champion
25. The Top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking at the end of the previous calendar year
26. The Top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking published the week before the current Masters