PGA Tour’s 2028 overhaul could slam the door on DP World Tour players. The PGA Tour’s two-tier system follows promotion and relegation. Players will move up and down each year based purely on results, with no exemptions. Notably, the ripple effect of the changes will also impact players trying to reach the PGA Tour from outside, including DP World Tour players, who currently qualify through Race to Dubai points. NBC Golf analyst Smylie Kaufman thinks the route could become considerably longer if the PGA Tour tightens its exemption criteria as part of the broader overhaul.

“I don’t think it’ll be top 10. I think they’re gonna go down to five, would be my guess,” he said, speaking on The Smylie Show with Charlie Hulme.

Kaufman suggests the Tour may tighten eligibility with the Challenger Series launch. He doubts the current 10-card deal will survive more than a year. Furthermore, the Tour has confirmed that DP World Tour eligibility for the Championship Series remains one of the last unresolved pieces of the 2028 plan. ESPN, Golf Digest, and CBS Sports analysts have flagged the same gap in recent conversations. Without a number attached, it’s very reasonable that the cut could be up to five players.

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The Race to Dubai ranks DP World Tour players by season-long earnings and results, and it decides far more than the European Tour title. Since 2020, the strategic alliance existing between the two tours has guaranteed PGA Tour cards for the top 10 Race to Dubai finishers who aren’t already exempt. That gives players outside America a direct route to the biggest stage. The caveat is that the arrangement runs until 2027. And that timeline lines up almost exactly with the 2028 launch of the Tour’s new model.

Notably, Patrick Reed currently leads the 2026 Race to Dubai points by a wide margin. He’s already passed the points total that secured the final card a year ago. Furthermore, he’s on track to rejoin the PGA Tour as early as this fall. Under today’s rules, his path is nearly guaranteed.

Tightened eligibility will also expose financial disparities: Challenger purses ($4M) are a fraction of Championship Series ($20M). The player relegated or dropped from the Championship Series will play more events and travel more for considerably less money, only to fight back where they once started.