In December 2024, Corey Shaun opened the PGA TOUR Q-School Final Stage with a 61 at the Dye's Valley Course, a course record at TPC Sawgrass. The next day he shot 76 at Sawgrass Country Club, a windswept course where no one in the field broke par that Friday. He finished at 1-under, tied for 14th, and left without a card. That week's best round and that week's hardest lesson both happened a short drive from Sawgrass Players Club front doors.
THE PLAYERS draws the crowds every March. The week with the most at stake per stroke comes later in the year, and it returns Dec. 10–13, 2026. To get the most from it, it helps to know how the fall calendar builds toward it.
The Stadium Course Closes First
TPC Sawgrass's fall season starts with a closure. The Stadium Course is closed for maintenance from Oct. 19 to Nov. 8, and outside tours of the property aren't offered during that window. TPC posts its full 2026 maintenance schedule on its tee time page. The Stadium Course had already closed June 1–28 and again Aug. 10–14, so this fall stretch is its third closure of the year.
Dye's Valley follows its own schedule. Its last 2026 closure runs Dec. 5–15. Q-School practice rounds start Dec. 7 and the final round ends Dec. 13, so that window brackets the whole tournament week. TPC's separate events calendar lists nothing for October through December. Golfers planning a December round should go by the tee time page and the PGA TOUR schedule.
What Is Actually on the Line in December
Q-School has four stages. Pre-Qualifying ran at eight sites in September and early October. First Stage plays at 14 sites from Oct. 20 to Nov. 6, and Second Stage plays at five sites Dec. 1–4. Everyone left after that comes to Ponte Vedra Beach.
The math at Final Stage is tight. The top five finishers earn PGA TOUR membership for 2027. If players tie for fifth, a hole-by-hole playoff decides the last card or cards. The rest of the field is playing for 2027 status on the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA TOUR Americas. The prize carries more weight now because the TOUR cut fully exempt status from the top 125 to the top 100 in the FedExCup standings starting in 2026. The PGA TOUR says that gives Q-School graduates more certainty about their schedule.
The last two Decembers in Sawgrass show how close it gets:
| 2024 Final Stage | 2025 Final Stage | |
|---|---|---|
| Medalist | Lanto Griffin, 9-under 271 | A.J. Ewart, 14-under 266 |
| Signature round | Griffin closed with a 63 | Ewart went 66-67-67-66 |
| Cards awarded | Six, after a tie for fourth | Five |
| Final card | Shared through the tie | Dylan Wu, sudden-death playoff over Ben Silverman |
In 2024, Hayden Buckley, Takumi Kanaya, Alejandro Tosti, Will Chandler and Matthew Riedel earned cards alongside Griffin. A year later, Tosti eagled No. 16 on Sunday and earned his card through Q-School for the second year in a row. Adam Svensson and Marcelo Rozo also got cards. Ewart, a Canadian, earned his first TOUR card without ever having made a Korn Ferry Tour start. Five strokes separate the two winning totals. That shows how much December conditions can change the scoring from one year to the next.
How the Two Courses Split the Week
Each player plays two rounds at Dye's Valley and two at Sawgrass Country Club. In 2025, groups stayed together for the first two rounds and switched courses after round one. After 36 holes, the top half of the leaderboard played round three at Sawgrass Country Club and finished at Dye's Valley. The bottom half did the reverse. There was no cut.
That rotation affects where to watch. Sawgrass Country Club is private, and spectator access has been at Dye's Valley. If the 2025 format holds, Sunday's leaders finish at Dye's Valley, so the cards get settled on the course the public can walk. The 2024 opening day was chilly, and on that Friday no player broke par at Sawgrass Country Club. Bring a layer.
Sawgrass Country Club's membership approved a $55 million capital plan that includes renovating its 27-hole course. A related application has been under St. Johns County review since Aug. 4, 2026, and the club's earlier goal of starting construction in November 2025 has passed without a revised schedule in that reporting. The PGA TOUR's June announcement still names the club as a 2026 host.
Getting In at Dye's Valley
The Florida Times-Union reported that fans had free admission and parking for Dye's Valley rounds in 2025. The official Q-School tickets page still shows the 2024 offer, a free Grounds Pass that required advance registration. Details for 2026 haven't been posted yet. Based on past years, here's what to expect:
- Entry: In 2024, spectators came in through either of TPC Sawgrass's two gates, told the attendant they were there for Q-School, and followed directions to parking.
- Registration: Check the tickets page in late November to see whether the free pass has to be claimed ahead of time.
- Phones: PGA TOUR policy requires phones on silent with the flash off. Personal photos, video and texting are fine. Live-streaming and real-time shot-by-shot posting are not allowed, and calls belong in designated areas.
- Bags and chairs: The TOUR's general entry rules limit regular bags to 6 by 6 inches and clear bags to 12 by 6 by 12 inches. Collapsible chairs are allowed without chair bags.
- Practice days: Practice rounds run Dec. 7–9, and competition runs Thursday, Dec. 10, through Sunday, Dec. 13.
If you'd rather watch from home, Golf Channel is scheduled to carry eight hours of live weekend coverage through a mix of telecasts and livestreams.
The Rest of the Sawgrass Calendar Around It
Plenty else is going on within a mile or two of TPC Boulevard while the course heads toward December:
- Oct. 15, 5:30–7 p.m.: The First Coast Cultural Center at 6000B Sawgrass Village Circle opens its "Best Of" Juried Artist Member Group Exhibition with a reception. The show runs through Jan. 2, 2027.
- Oct. 19–Nov. 8: The Stadium Course closes for maintenance, and outside tours stop.
- Nov. 13–15: The cultural center holds its Holiday Shoppes market. A private preview runs Friday evening, with public shopping Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Nov. 27: Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort & Spa lists its annual Tree Lighting Celebration, with holiday crafts, treats and photo opportunities. The resort also advertises Teddy Bear Tea on select dates in late November and December, but hasn't posted the specific dates.
- Dec. 5–15: Dye's Valley closes to regular play for the tournament window.
- Dec. 10–13: The Q-School Final Stage decides the last 2027 PGA TOUR cards.
For a quick stop between holes or errands, Soothies Café at the Marriott, 1000 TPC Boulevard, is open daily from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Over at Sawgrass Village, Monkee's of Ponte Vedra opened Aug. 13 at 280 Village Main St., Suite 930, and gives the holiday shopping stretch a new stop.
The final round of the 2026 Final Stage is Sunday, Dec. 13. If the 2025 rotation holds, the leaders will play their last holes at Dye's Valley.
We live and work around these fairways, and we follow the calendar at TPC Sawgrass as closely as we follow the market. If December's Q-School week has you thinking about life near Dye's Valley, or about what a home along TPC Boulevard is worth today, Tyler Ackland and Susan Fort are glad to talk it through. Schedule Your Private Consultation.
