A Cut Away from a PGA Tour Card

There are plenty of reasons to watch the WM Phoenix Open this week. Scottie Scheffler is making his second start of the new season, and the world No. 1 has become must-see TV. In fact, 29 of the world’s top 50 players are in this week’s field, three of which are past winners of the People’s Open: Scheffler (2022, 2023), Hideki Matsuyama (2016, 2017), and defending champion Nick Taylor (2024). Justin Thomas is also teeing it up and has four top-10 finishes since 2019 at TPC Scottsdale. The Phoenix Open has been decided by a playoff in six of the last nine years. It’s an entertaining event inside and outside the ropes.

But me? I’ll be locked in on amateur Luke Clanton. The Florida State junior – playing this week on a properly used sponsor exemption – can earn PGA Tour membership if he makes the cut via PGA Tour University Accelerated, a program that offers amateurs direct membership via a points system based on career accomplishments. Clanton enters the week with 18 points, two shy of the 20 points necessary to qualify. He earns one more point today, Wednesday, February 5, after spending 26 weeks as the top-ranked player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. If he makes the weekend cut, he’ll earn another point to reach the threshold.

Clanton would then be able to officially accept PGA Tour membership after his college season ends in May. Vanderbilt’s Gordon Sargent was the first player to earn his card via the program in the fall of 2023, but instead of turning pro for this season, he elected to return to college for his senior season and will accept membership after the NCAA Championship this spring. Clanton could also defer his membership and return to college for his senior season (2025-26), then turn pro next spring.

We pride ourselves on being tough but fair here at Fried Egg Golf, and two of our biggest gripes with the Tour have been the misuse of sponsor exemptions and a lack of pathways for young talent. This week addresses both of those complaints.

Clanton has made eight cuts in 10 starts on Tour over the last eight months with two runner-up finishes and four top 10s. He’s outperforming card-carrying members each time he tees it up and has shown he’s already got what it takes to compete on Tour. The WM Phoenix Open is one of a few events known for giving star amateurs opportunities. Guys like Clanton and Nick Dunlap, who won on Tour as an amateur at last season’s American Express, continue to prove how young players are able to contend at the highest level. Auburn sophomore Jackson Koivun, who was named college golf’s player of the year last season after his runner-up finish at the NCAA Championship, is also currently on 18 points and well within striking distance of a PGA Tour card this spring. Ideally, the Tour would’ve done something like this years ago, but it’s better late than never.

Given the current state of the PGA Tour’s product – for example, world No. 84 Jordan Spieth just got another free pass into a Signature Event – an injection of meritocracy is desperately needed.

This piece originally appeared in the Fried Egg Golf newsletter. Subscribe for free and receive golf news and insight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.