Scottie Scheffler will never forget it. 

In 2018, Scheffler needed an up and down from 50 feet on his final hole of Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying School to secure status on the developmental circuit for the following year. 

It’s a feat he’d pull off, and years later, even after becoming one of the world’s top players, he admitted he’s never faced that amount of nerves on the golf course. 

“I’ll always remember that time,” Scheffler said in 2022. “There’s more pressure when you’re fighting for your career. There’s less pressure now where I’ve had some success now. I would say there’s more pressure going into the final round of Q-School than there is Masters Sunday because, if I fail at Q-School, I’ve got a whole ‘nother year where I don’t have anywhere to play.”

That’s a feeling 176 players could relate to this week. The final stage of 2025 PGA Tour Q-School at TPC Sawgrass' Dye's Valley Course offered Tour cards to the top 5 finishers (no ties) and KFT status to the top 40 for next year. 

It was Canadian A.J. Ewart, who claimed medalist honors by finishing atop the leaderboard. A few months ago, the world’s 488th-ranked player fell in a playoff at the PGA Tour Americas penultimate tournament, in his home province, where a win would have gotten him a KFT card. 

Now, he’s instead going straight to the big leagues. 

“Things happen for a reason and I think that’s just what it was supposed to be,” the 26-year-old said. “It kind of just pushed me a little harder to work a little harder and want it a little bit more and here we are.”

Fellow Barry College golfer Adam Svensson, 31, finished T2, two strokes behind Ewart at 12 under, with Alejandro Tosti. Both return to the Tour, as Tosti, a 29-year-old from Argentina, made it through Q-School last year. 

Marcelo Rozo, a 36-year-old Colombian ranked No. 455 in the world, also finished T2 with a par on the last after what he called “The hardest tee shot I’ve ever hit in my career.”

“I cried before leaving my house this morning,” said Rozo, who has made 255 career Tour-sanctioned starts but has never held PGA Tour status. “Emotions were running. I told myself, like you have to see the emotions, recognize them, hug them and then just move on, because they’re there. I cannot lie to myself that I was—it’s probably the biggest, it was the biggest round of my golfing career.”

His final-round 1-under 69 kept him out of a playoff for the final Tour card by a mere stroke. So instead, it was Dylan Wu and Ben Silverman dueling for the final card. 

Playing the par-4 18th, Silverman, a 38-year-old Canadian, who finished No. 140 in the FedEx Cup last season, missed a 35-foot birdie putt. Then, Wu sank his 25-footer. 

Just like Scheffler seven years ago, the 29-year-old American clutchly holed the putt of his life. One he’ll certainly never forget. 

More Golf from Sports Illustrated


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Emotions Run High As Five Players Dramatically Earn PGA Tour Cards at Q-School.

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