PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said Tuesday the tour is still not planning to bring back a Returning Member Program for LIV Golf players, echoing comments he made last month at the Tour Championship.
“We are not currently contemplating a Returning Member Program like the one you saw in January,” Rolapp said on a call to discuss the tour’s new eligibility structure. “Everyone at the PGA Tour, myself included, has been focused on what’s best for the organization. The items approved by the boards are part of the progression in building the optimal competitive model for the future.”
Brooks Koepka used the one-time Returning Member Program in January to leave LIV Golf and rejoin the PGA Tour, giving up equity earnings for five years and this season’s FedEx Cup bonus money in the process. Rolapp offered the same three-week window to Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Smith. All three stayed with LIV.
RELATED: PGA Tour Reveals Championship Series and Challenger Series Beginning in 2028
Rolapp’s comments came a day after the PGA Tour’s Policy Board approved sweeping new membership and eligibility rules for the two-tier competitive model launching in 2028. Here’s the full breakdown of how players qualify for each level.
PGA Tour Championship Series membership categories
- Retained Players: top 90 players who held Championship Series membership the year before
- Promoted Players: top 20 players promoted from the Challenger Series
- Two-Time Winners: players who win twice on the Challenger Series in a season
- Two-Year Winner Exemptions: winners of Championship Series events, including the Players and majors, earn membership for the current season plus the following two seasons. Multiple wins in a season do not extend the exemption further
- Medical Extensions: granted on a limited basis for injuries or conditions that materially prevent competition, as determined by an outside review committee of independent medical experts
- Career Milestone Exemptions: players with exceptional careers, currently recognized through the Career Money List, get a one-time exemption starting in 2029. They must have held Championship Series membership the season before and use the exemption the year immediately after losing that membership
- Pathways: the No. 1 player from PGA Tour University after the NCAA Championship earns Championship Series eligibility for that season and the next. Three additional cards come through the Last Chance Series
PGA Tour Challenger Series eligibility
The Challenger Series will feature 144-player fields, with an alternate list.
- Players relegated from the Championship Series the previous season
- Nos. 21-90 on the previous season’s Challenger Series points list
- Top 20 finishers from the previous season’s Korn Ferry Tour points list
- Winners of Challenger Series events get membership for the current season plus the next. Winners of Championship Series events, including the Players and majors, in the previous four years are also exempt on the Challenger Series. Multiple Championship Series wins in a season extend that exemption up to a maximum of five seasons
- Players ranked 2-5 in the PGA Tour University Ranking earn Challenger Series membership after the NCAA Championship through the following season. Players who accept PGA Tour University Accelerated earn membership starting a future season
- Top five finishers from the previous season’s Q-School
- Top two finishers at Open Qualifying for Challenger Series events held the same week as Championship Series events. There’s no Open Qualifying for standalone Challenger Series events
- Up to two designated exemptions
- Medical extensions granted on the same limited basis as the Championship Series
“Last Chance” Series eligibility
The Last Chance Series runs a minimum of four events each fall, held after Q-School, with three Championship Series cards available. Players in the eligible pool must compete in all four events to stay eligible, barring a medical exclusion, and tournaments won’t backfill withdrawals or hand out sponsor exemptions.
- Players relegated from the Championship Series the season before
- Nos. 21-90 on the Challenger Series points list the season before
- Top 20 players promoted from the Korn Ferry Tour
- Players ranked 2-5 in the PGA Tour University Ranking that current season, following the NCAA Championship
- Top five finishers from the Q-School immediately preceding the Last Chance Series
The 2027 season will be the last run under the current FedEx Cup system, with those results determining who plays in the 2028 Championship Series, which will carry $20 million purses. The full 2028 Championship Series schedule is due out February 22.
With no Returning Member Program currently in place, Rahm, DeChambeau and Smith would need another exemption or to qualify through the standard process to get back on the PGA Tour.
RELATED: LIV Golf Has Officially Filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
The comments come with LIV Golf’s future murkier than ever. The league filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last week and is working on a leaner “LIV 2.0” model without its Saudi backing. DeChambeau’s LIV contract runs through the end of this year, and he has reportedly sought a new deal worth close to $500 million to stay with the league, though that remains speculation. Rahm already secured a DP World Tour membership in May to preserve his Ryder Cup eligibility.
— Today’s Golfer (@TheTodaysGolfer) September 15, 2026
At East Lake last month, Rolapp laid out why the Tour won’t offer a shortcut back for LIV players. “The PGA Tour is built on meritocracy. Every player has to earn their place based on their performance and their success,” he said. “The PGA Tour is a membership organization. It has rules. Those rules exist for a lot of reasons, for fair, competitive reasons. Rules matter.” He added: “Rules only matter if they’re enforced. So accountability and discipline are essential to any organization and certainly for the integrity of the tour and for the game.”
