Mixed‑Team Fun and Q‑School Heartbreak: The Five Players Who Secured Their PGA Tour Cards on Sunday

With apologies to Bobby Jonesthere is hit-and-giggle golf and there is career-on-the-line golf, and they are not at all the same.

Sunday showcased the difference between them.

For the light-hearted former, fans had the pleasure of the Grant Thornton Invitational in Naples, Fla., a joint PGA and LPGA Tour production pitting 16 two-player teams in a mixed-format competition imbued with all the tension of a birthday party at a putt-putt course. In the third and final round of that feel-good affair at Tiburón Golf Club, Lauren Coughlin and Andrew Novak pulled away from the pack with a 9-under 63 in modified four-ball (each hitting their own drives, then playing the other’s ball and recording the better score on every hole), giving them a tournament total of 28-under and a three-shot win over three teams that included a trio of the LPGA Tour’s biggest names (Nelly Korda, Charley Hull and Jennifer Kupcho).

That was the fluffy, wallet-padding stuff.

For nail-biting action with no purse on the line, you had to turn elsewhere in the Sunshine State—Ponte Vedra Beach, to be precise—where the annual dogfight known as Q-School Finals was unfolding. At Q-School, the math is always unforgiving. This year, though, it was crueler than ever, as, owing to an offseason format change, only the top five finishers made it through. Previously, the top five finishers and ties earned their cards.

The stage was set for heartache and heroics on the Valley Course at TPC Sawgrass, and, per custom, Sunday’s final round delivered both. One especially agonizing moment involved the popular Tour veteran Camilo Villegaswho flubbed a short birdie putt on 18 that he knew he likely needed. Sure enough, the miss left him at 10-under, a torturous single stroke out of a playoff. (Villegas stuck around, though, to join a celebration that we’ll get to shortly.)

For Spencer Levin, a 41-year-old who has been grinding in the pro game for two decades with varying degrees of status, the pain came in slower drips throughout the day. After a 63 on Saturday, Levin was in position to regain the PGA Tour card he lost in 2017. But his Sunday was a frustrating 1-over struggle that dropped him into T13.

Then there was the case of Ben Kohles, who was tied for the lead when he went viral for all the wrong reasons. His unfortunate turn occurred on the par-4 8th hole, where Kohles blocked his drive into the trees and then was penalized for causing his ball to move while fussing with debris around his lie: double bogey. Kohles backed that up with a water ball on the next hole and another double bogey that drowned his hopes for good.

You know what they say, though: every shot in golf makes someone happy. And by day’s end, five players were especially pleased. Here’s a look at who got through and how they did it.

AJ Ewart

A 26-year-old Canadian and the son of a teaching professional, Ewart grew up in a cold climate but went on to play in balmy weather at Barry University in Florida. He won seven times in college and turned pro in 2023. This past year, Ewart lost in a playoff at the Victoria Open, bagged four top-10s on the PGA Tour Americas and narrowly missed his Korn Ferry Tour card. But by winning Q-School with a 14-under total, he now has something better.

Adam Svensson

Same country of origin as Ewart. Same college alma mater, too. But Svensson, 31, is older and more seasoned, with several Tour campaigns under his belt, along with a win at the 2022 RSM Classic. After finishing 167th in the FedExCup standings in 2025, Svensson needed a big week to regain full status in 2026. He delivered with a T2 finish.

Alejandro Tosti

True to his name, Tosti can get toasty. In his young career, the fiery Argentine has been caught up in confrontations with fellow players and tournament officials. At the 2023 Albertsons Boise Open, he was suspended for what was reported to be an expletive-laced outburst directed at his playing partner, Kyle Westmoreland. More often, though, Tosti’s play has spoken for itself—and it has held up under pressure. This is the second consecutive year that he has earned full Tour status by way of Q-School.

Marcelo Rozo

When his par putt dropped on 18, guaranteeing him a T2, Rozo pointed to the sky and broke into tears. It was the day’s most outwardly emotional finish, and no wonder. After a serious wrist injury in 2022, Rozo thought he might never play competitive golf again. He sat out all of 2023 and earned his real estate license as a backup career. A native of Colombia, Rozo is 36, and his triumphal moment Sunday was a long time coming.

One of the day’s most touching scenes followed soon after, as Rozo celebrated with family members alongside his countryman Villegas and Villegas’ family. Villegas had stuck around to share in Rozo’s moment after coming painfully close in his own bid.

Dylan Wu

The lone American to punch his card this week, Wu did so in emphatic fashion, with a birdie on the first hole of a two-man playoff against Ben Silverman. Since turning pro in 2019, Wu, 29, has toggled between the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour, gaining experience that came in handy Sunday. After two back-nine bogeys threatened his chances, Wu responded with an eagle on 16 and two gutty pars on the final two holes before coming up big in sudden death.

How does the “modified four-ball” format of the Grant thornton Invitational differ from customary stroke-play events?

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Wikipedia‑style Context

The Grant thornton invitational debuted in 2023 as a novel mixed‑team showcase that brings together PGA Tour and LPGA Tour players in a four‑ball format. Held at Tiburón Golf Club in Naples, Florida, the event features 16 two‑player teams-each comprising one male and one female professional-who compete over three days. The format is “modified four‑ball”: each competitor hits a tee‑off, than both players play the same ball for the remainder of the hole, and the lower score of the two is recorded. The tournament was conceived as a “feel‑good” choice to traditional stroke‑play events, aiming to highlight gender parity, increase fan engagement, and provide a lucrative purse without the pressure of Tour points.

While the Invitational draws attention for its festive atmosphere, the PGA Tour Qualifying School (Q‑School) Finals remain the sport’s most unforgiving gateway to the PGA Tour. Since the early 1960s Q‑School has served as the primary pathway for aspiring professionals,but its structure has evolved dramatically. In 2021 the PGA Tour reduced the number of stages and introduced a single‑week final at TPC Sawgrass, consolidating the process. A critical change for the 2025 season was the elimination of ties for card allocation: only the top five finishers earned full PGA Tour cards, whereas prior years granted cards to the top five plus ties. This heightened the stakes dramatically, turning the final round into a high‑pressure “dogfight” where every stroke could determine a player’s livelihood.

The 2025 Q‑School Finals, held on the Valley course at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, epitomized this pressure. After a dramatic weekend that featured a missed short birdie putt by veteran Camilo Villegas and a viral penalty incident involving Ben