Alistair Docherty Secures PGA Tour Card After Korn Ferry Run

Alistair Docherty secured a PGA Tour card after a strong Korn Ferry Tour season, earning promotion before the season-ending championship in Virginia. The 32-year-old golfer reached the top tour after nearly 100 Korn Ferry Tour starts and several previous close attempts.

According to the source, Docherty was among 13 players in the field who had already locked up PGA Tour spots before the final Korn Ferry Tour Championship, where 20 total cards were scheduled to be awarded.

Docherty reached the milestone after a 2026 campaign that included a second-place finish in the Bahamas, a win at the Argentina Open, and another runner-up result at the Pinnacle Bank Championship in August after a playoff loss.

The golfer said his path included difficult moments, including narrowly missing qualification opportunities before finally earning his promotion.

"It was tough at the time; I kinda wanted to put the blame on other people. I had [a Tour card] in my fingertips in the final stage of Q-School and I guess I hit a 9-iron with a lot of adrenaline from 165 yards and flew the green. So you learn from it, you try to get better every day, but in the back of my mind I was trying to blame all of these other people for coming up a little short. That put me in a pretty dark spot," said Alistair Docherty.

According to the source, Docherty missed the PGA Tour by two spots at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship two years earlier, finishing 32nd when 30 players received cards. He later missed another opportunity by one stroke at PGA Tour Q-School.

After learning he had secured his card ahead of the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation, Docherty said the relief affected his play in the following events.

"I kind of backed off a little bit," said Alistair Docherty.

Docherty added that he was preparing for his first full opportunity on the PGA Tour after completing a season that changed his career outlook.