The cut is a foundation of professional golf and is a system used in the majority of PGA Tour events as well as those on other global tours.
Players teeing it up in a PGA Tour event know that historically you need to play well over the first two rounds to make the weekend otherwise you won't score well enough to qualify for the final two rounds and earn a paycheck.
Not all PGA Tour events have cuts, though, with five of the eight Signature Events not using them as well as the three tournaments that make up the FedEx Cup Playoffs.
The topic of cuts on tour is a controversial one, as fans enjoy watching players battle to make it into the weekend, but sponsors and TV networks tend to prefer having all of the stars playing every day, with cuts risking that some big names might not be there come Sunday.
No-cut events can also be seen by fans as 'money grabs', as players are guaranteed to earn money even if they don't play well. The LIV Golf League doesn't have cuts in its tournaments, with the last-place player guaranteed to earn $50,000. However, organizers of no-cut events know that fans on-site and viewers on TV will be able to watch their favorite players in each round.
“It keeps the stars there for four days," Rory McIlroy said on the proposals for more no-cut events at the 2023 Arnold Palmer Invitational.
"You ask Mastercard or whoever it is to pay $20 million for a golf event, they want to see the stars at the weekend. They want a guarantee that the stars are there. So, if that’s what needs to happen, then that’s what happens.”
How the PGA Tour cut rule works
For the majority of PGA Tour tournaments, the cut sees the top 65 players and ties make it through to the weekend.
Field sizes are usually between 120-156 so the cut sees around half of the players head home early.
As there are fewer players for the final two rounds, Saturday and Sunday's play - weather dependent - usually sees the golfers paired in twos vs the usual three-balls for rounds one and two.
Do players get paid for missing the cut?
Players do not receive a paycheck for missing the cut in almost all elite professional golf events, with some exceptions.
The exceptions come at the Majors, where players earn somewhere between $1,000-$10,000 depending on which Major and where they finished. The Majors are difficult to qualify for so just making it into the field is an achievement and rewarded with some money to cover your expenses.
USGA Mike Whan said just that at the 2024 US Open: "Those competitors won't be playing for $150 like 130 years ago, but they'll be playing for $21.5 million, which means our winner's purse will be a $4.3 million check to the winner and, as we always go $10,000 even, if you miss the cut because as I say every year, we really believe making the cut at the US Open is about getting into the field, over 10,000 people playing for 156 spots."
PGA Tour signature events cut rule
Three Signature Events operate a cut, and it works slightly differently to the regular full-field events due to the lower number of players teeing it up those weeks.
Signature Events are the tour's big money, limited-field events where only 70-72 players qualify. After 36 holes, the top 50 and ties make it through to the weekend, which usually means around 15-or-so players go home early.
The Signature Events that have cuts are the Genesis Invitational, Arnold Palmer Invitational and Memorial Tournament.
Which PGA Tour events don't have a cut?
- The Sentry (Signature Event)
- AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (Signature Event)
- RBC Heritage (Signature Event)
- Truist Championship (Signature Event)
- Travelers Championship (Signature Event)
- FedEx St Jude Championship (FedEx Cup Playoffs)
- BMW Championship (FedEx Cup Playoffs)
- Tour Championship (FedEx Cup Playoffs)
- Zozo Championship
