The 2026 Korn Ferry Tour Finals begin this week at the Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation, and the stakes are about to rise considerably.
The tournament, scheduled for Sept. 10-13 at Vanderbilt Legends Club in Franklin, Tennessee, is the first of four season-ending Finals events.
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The field features 156 players competing on the par-70, 7,197-yard North Course for a $1.5 million purse, with $270,000 going to the winner.
The bigger prize, though, is positioning for PGA Tour membership.
Among the biggest names in the field are three-time PGA Tour winners Cameron Champ and Chez Reavie, while the event also includes 66 players who have won previously on the Korn Ferry Tour.
One of the most compelling players to watch is Blades Brown.
The 19-year-old Nashville-area standout enters the week No. 10 on the Korn Ferry Tour Points List and is trying to become the youngest graduate in tour history, surpassing the mark set by Jason Day in 2007.
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Brown has already earned Special Temporary Membership on the PGA Tour this season and owns two PGA Tour top-10 finishes, including a third-place result at the Puerto Rico Open.
He also arrives in Franklin riding three consecutive Korn Ferry Tour top-10s.
Several other players are positioned to make significant moves.
Hunter Eichhorn, currently seventh in points, leads the tour with nine top-10 finishes. Cole Sherwood sits fifth after winning the Colonial Life Charity Classic and is closing in on securing PGA Tour status for the first time.
Meanwhile, Davis Shore enters at No. 13 after finishing inside the top five in each of his last two starts, including a runner-up at the Albertsons Boise Open.
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Experience won’t be lacking, either.
Former Simmons Bank Open champions Lanto Griffin, Robby Shelton and Paul Peterson are all back in the field. Defending champion Zach Bauchou set the tournament’s 72-hole scoring record last year, winning at 23-under 257.
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With only four tournaments remaining, every birdie carries more weight.
For players safely near the top of the standings, Franklin offers a chance to lock up their future. For everyone near the cutoff, the Korn Ferry Tour Finals are where an entire season can change in one week.
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