The 2017 PGA Championship field is the deepest in the majors, with exemptions in 10 different categories that wind up getting the overwhelming number of top-100 players in the Official World Golf Ranking in the field.
A golfer has to be one of the best on the planet to qualify for the PGA Championship, or they can be one of the best competing PGA of America professionals in the United States. They can get a PGA Championship exemption if they meet one of these criteria to get an invitation.
PGA Championship qualifying and exemption categories
- Former PGA Champions
- Winners of the last five U.S. Opens
- Winners of the last five Masters
- Winners of the last five Open Championships
- The 2017 Senior PGA Champion
- The top 15 and ties from the 2016 PGA Championship
- The 20 low scorers in the 2017 PGA Professional National Championship
- The 70 leaders in official money standings on the PGA Tour, starting from the week prior to the 2016 RBC Canadian Open through the 2017 RBC Canadian Open
- Members of the 2016 United States and European Ryder Cup Teams, provided they are in the top 100 of the Official World Golf Ranking as of one week before the start of the tournament
- Winners of PGA Tour events since the 2016 PGA Championship
- To fill the field of 156, additional players can be invited beyond 70th on the special PGA Championship money list
