PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLORIDA – The 2026 PGA TOUR Season and 20th year of the FedExCup will begin at this week’s Sony Open in Hawaii (Jan. 15-18) featuring previously announced eligibility enhancements and updates to the season-ending stretch. Top 100 exempt status and field size adjustments will be in effect as players compete over 37 official events with the top 30 players advancing to the season-ending TOUR Championship in August where the FedExCup Champion will be crowned.
The 2026 season features eight Signature Events – including a return to Trump National Doral for the inaugural Cadillac Championship – with the Sony Open in Hawaii serving as the first opportunity for players to qualify for Signature Events via the Aon Swing 5.
In the third year since the TOUR’s return to a calendar year schedule, players will look to get off to a quick start in the FedExCup. Defending champion Nick Taylor claimed his fifth TOUR title at the Sony Open in Hawaii in 2025 and went on to qualify for the TOUR Championship for the second time in his career.
FedExCup Playoffs points and bonus distributions
As a result of the update to the TOUR Championship format in 2025 with the elimination of Starting Strokes, the 2026 season will feature updates to the FedExCup Playoffs points and bonus distributions. The FedEx St. Jude Championship and BMW Championship will now offer 750 FedExCup points to the winner (previously 2,000) – the same as THE PLAYERS and majors. Additionally, a pool of nearly $100 million in FedExCup Bonus Money will be paid out following the BMW Championship. The $40 million purse at the TOUR Championship will be considered Official Money and is separate from FedExCup Bonus Money.
Aon Next 10 and Aon Swing 5 pathways to Signature Events
The 2026 season will feature eight Signature Events with the top 50 players in the 2025 FedExCup exempt into each Signature Event. Players who did not finish inside the top 50 in the previous season’s FedExCup continue to have opportunities to play their way into Signature Events via the Aon Next 10 and Aon Swing 5 pathways.
The Aon Next 10 – which is determined by the top 10 players, not otherwise exempt, in the FedExCup standings leading into each Signature Event – is set for the first two Signature Events (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Genesis Invitational) via the FedExCup Fall standings.
For the Aon Swing 5, the Sony Open in Hawaii is the first event of the season’s first swing – impacting eligibility at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, The Genesis Invitational and Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard.
The full schedule for the Aon Swing 5 is below.
| FIRST SWING | ||
| AON SWING 5 | SIGNATURE EVENT | |
Sony Open in Hawaii The American Express Farmers Insurance Open WM Phoenix Open | AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am The Genesis Invitational
| |
| + Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches | Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard | |
| SECOND SWING | ||
| AON SWING 5 | SIGNATURE EVENT | |
Puerto Rico Open Valspar Championship Texas Children’s Houston Open Valero Texas Open | RBC Heritage
| |
| + Zurich Classic of New Orleans | Cadillac Championship Truist Championship | |
| THIRD SWING | ||
| AON SWING 5 | SIGNATURE EVENT | |
ONEflight Myrtle Beach Classic THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson Charles Schwab Challenge | the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday
| |
| + RBC Canadian Open | Travelers Championship | |
Priority Ranking
The 2026 Priority Ranking has been updated to deliver fair and equitable playing opportunities for all who earn exempt status on TOUR.
For the first time, the top 100 from the previous season’s FedExCup standings have exempt status on TOUR (previously 125). Players finishing between Nos. 101-150 will have conditional status and be broken into three different categories on the Priority Ranking: 101-110, 111-125 and 126-150. These three categories will have varying levels of access to Full-Field Events.
Field sizes for several Full-Field Events in 2026 will also be adjusted, with the maximum number of players in a Full-Field Event being 144 players, down from 156. Due to circumstances such as daylight, some events will have field sizes of 120 or 132. This week’s Sony Open in Hawaii will feature 120 players, down from 144. Notably, THE PLAYERS Championship will feature a 120-player field.
About PGA TOUR
By showcasing golf’s greatest players, the PGA TOUR engages, inspires and positively impacts our fans, partners and communities worldwide.
The PGA TOUR, headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, co-sanctions events on the PGA TOUR, PGA TOUR Champions, Korn Ferry Tour, PGA TOUR Americas and administers PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry and PGA TOUR University. PGA TOUR members represent the world’s best players, hailing from 28 countries and territories. Showcasing the biggest moments in the sport with history and legacy on the line, the PGA TOUR operates PGA TOUR Studios–a state-of-the-art production studio redefining golf content for fans worldwide—and has long-term domestic distribution partnerships for broadcast coverage on CBS, NBC and Golf Channel, with video streaming service on ESPN+ and additional coverage on multiple Free Ad-Supported Television (FAST) channels. Internationally, the PGA TOUR Studios-produced World Feed is available across 200+ countries and territories in 30 languages via 39 broadcast and digital partners. To date, events across all Tours have generated more than $4 billion in charitable giving. Fans can follow the PGA TOUR at PGATOUR.COM, on the app and in multiple languages across their favorite social media pages.