The fall season of the FedEx Cup resumes this week at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.
The autumn season shines in the fire players rush for different things. Some are trying to keep their PGA Tour cards, others are working to enter the first two Signature Events in 2027, and some are exempt for next season, but hoping to either build on a successful year or regain their previous form.
With five events left on the fall slate, it’s time to take stock of where everyone stands as a critical 2027 season — one that will usher in the PGA Tour’s new two-tier system — approaches.
Here are those who have made the most of the fall season so far, and those who have work to do before the year.
The winners who win
Austin Smotherman
U the biggest winner of the fall season so far, Smotherman has won the Utah Bank Championship in his 100th PGA Tour career. The win earned him a two-year PGA Tour exemption, a spot in the 2027 PGA Championship and the Players Championship and a spot in the PGA Tour Champions Series in 2028. He entered the fall season ranked No. 80 and needed to play well to secure full playing privileges in 2027. He did that and more.
Jacob Bridgeman
Already exempt for 2027 after winning the Genesis and finishing T4 at the Tour Championship, Bridgeman opened the fall season. with a win at the Biltmore to cement himself as one of the PGA Tour’s rising stars.
Michael Brennan
Another of the PGA Tour’s young guns, Brennan won the limited-field Baycurrent Classic in Japan. It was his third win in the last 12 months. He won last fall’s Bank of Utah Championship to jump from the PGA Tour Americas to the PGA Tour. He added a win at the Wyndham Championship in August and then beat Bridgeman in Japan put himself on the Ryder Cup radar as we head towards 2027.
Winners Who Didn’t Win (Signature Event Edition)
Doug Pin
Ghim finished the regular season ranked 93rd in the FedEx Cup standings, missing the playoffs and entering the top-100 bubble. But Ghim posted three top-20 finishes in the fall, including a runner-up finish in Utah, to move up to 55th, all but securing his full-time status for 2027 and putting him in line to start in the first two Signature Events of 2027.
Well James
The Virginia product is completely exempt through 2027 after finishing No. 1 in the PGA Tour University ranking in 2026. But James opened the fall season with a final in Asheville and then posted a T5 in Utah to go from 108 to 62, putting him on the cusp of earning a place in Pebble2027a and Riviera.
Winners who did not win (Top 100 edition)
Billy Horschel
Horschel had a tough 2026 season after missing five months of the 2025 campaign to recover from hip surgery. The eight-time PGA Tour winner has yet to record a top 10 finish outside of the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. He finished the regular season as the bubble boy at No. 100. Horschel is not exempt for the 2027 season. He finished T43 in Asheville, but then went T13-T21 in Utah and Japan to move up to 90th in the standings. He is safer now than he was at the beginning of the fall, but he still needs good golf in the next month to secure his card. He is not on the field this week in Bermuda.
Ben Kohl’s
Kohles split his time between the PGA Tour and the Korn Ferry Tour this season. He won on the KFT and had the John Deere Classic in his grasp earlier this year up to a farm of 72 holes cost him the title. Kohles finished the regular season ranked 96th, but he went T15-T13-T17 through three fall starts to move to 80. That led him to skip the KFT Championship, finishing 23rd in the final classification, he believes that the FedEx Fall is his best for a card. A fine start to the fall has him well positioned to earn full playing privileges in 2027. Plays in Bermuda.
Trace Crowe and David Ford
Both players hope to avoid using medical waivers in 2027. Both posted high finishes in Utah to move into the top 125, give them a chance to sneak into the top 100, and avoid using their medical waivers next season.
The clock is ticking (fighting for his card)
Neal Shipley
One of a number of young talents who are in the danger zone this fall. Shipley earned his PGA Tour card through the Korn Ferry Tour last year, but struggled in his first full-time PGA Tour season, failing to post a top 25 from January to August. He entered the fall at 183, but posted a T3 in Asheville and a T10 in Utah to move to 123. He’s still on the outside, but moving in the right direction and playing good golf.
Luke Clanton
Another young gun, Luke Clanton he struggled during the 2026 season. He made only 9 cuts out of 19 and had only two top-20 finishes. He entered the fall at 147 and missed the cut in Asheville. A T7 in Utah bumped him up to 137, but he needs to step on the pedal in these final fall events.
Denny McCarthy
After a solid 2025 season that saw him finish 40th in the FedEx Cup, McCarthy’s game dropped a bit in 2026. He made 18 of 25 cuts, but only had one top-10, which came at the 3M Open. He missed the playoffs at No. 86 and then missed the cut in Asheville and Utah. A T29 in Japan has him at 91 entering the week in Bermuda. It is not exempt for 2027.
Joel Dahmen
Dahmen had conditional status in 2026 after losing his full-time charter last fall. He made just 12 of 22 cuts this season. He posted two top-10s earlier in the season, but didn’t finish better than T24 after April. He entered the fall at 121 before missing the cut in Asheville and finishing T62 in Utah to drop to 128.
Guys who are exempt for 2027 but looking
Tony controversy
The only six-time PGA Tour winner in the top 10 this season came at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. Finau finished 98th in the FedEx Cup standings and then missed the cut in Asheville and Utah to start the fall. He is exempt for 2027, but his game has not risen.
Nick Dunlap
Dunlap’s win at the 2024 American Express earned him PGA Tour exempt status through 2026. His 2024 Barracuda Championship win added a year to that exemption, keeping him exempt until 2027. Dunlap was lost in 2025 and has continued to struggle this season, making just nine of 20 cuts in 2026 and recording zero top-10s. Finished 76th in Asheville and T62 in Utah. He is at 166 in the FedEx Cup Fall standings. After a 63 in the first round in Utah, Dunlap said he was “finally on the right track.” He’s teeing it up in Bermuda this week.
