Ben Griffin is on the long list of success stories to come from the Korn Ferry Tour. 

In 2021, Ben Griffin stepped away from professional golf for most of the year. He then joined the Korn Ferry Tour in 2022, and three years later, Griffin was playing alongside Bryson DeChambeau at the Ryder Cup.

Until recently, 30 players from the Korn Ferry Tour’s season-long standings earned a PGA Tour card for the following season. That number has now been reduced to 20.

Griffin, who finished eighth in the 2022 Korn Ferry Tour standings, weighed in on whether more players should be given an opportunity to earn a PGA Tour card.

Ben Griffin reacts to PGA Tour limiting the number of Korn Ferry Tour players who can earn tour cards

The PGA Tour has had a significant problem with its Korn Ferry Tour graduates in recent seasons. Around 20% of players who earned tour cards on the Korn Ferry Tour have retained them in the past few years.

Rookies start the season with low priority in tournament fields, making it hard to get enough starts to earn points. And changes to the season structure also give new players fewer starts before the re-rank.

The PGA Tour hope that by cutting down the number of players coming from the Korn Ferry Tour per season, they will have an opportunity to play bigger events more often, and therefore be more likely to retain their card.

Griffin was largely supportive of the idea, saying, “It’s interesting the policy changes that happened. What we’ll see is better access from those 20 players on the Korn Ferry Tour and on the PGA Tour on next year’s season.

“They will have more playing opportunities, especially early in the season, because the guys that finished 101 to 125 are now going to be behind them on the commitment sheet.

“The Korn Ferry players that are in the top 20 are going to have a much better opportunity than maybe the past few seasons to play well and keep their PGA Tour cards. Now, as for going from 30 to 20, that’s 10 less guys that would have had a chance to play in a PGA Tour event.

“So in a way you’re limiting the amount of players that are now going to be on the PGA Tour, the new and up-and-coming players maybe.

“But at the same time, there’s 20 players who are playing a little bit better than the guys that are 21 to 30 are now going to have a way better chance of playing in not only more events but playing against the best players in the world, and having a chance to showcase their games from that standpoint.

“So I can’t really speak on whether I think 20 or 30 is right or wrong. I think the ultimate goal this season was to make sure those guys off the Korn Ferry Tour are going to play in a lot more events.”

Ben Griffin gives advice to golfers who are close to giving up

Griffin’s journey to becoming one of the best golfers on the planet is an inspirational one. Leaving the sport in 2021 wasn’t a planned hiatus. He had no intention of returning to the sport. Only a few years later, Keegan Bradley trusted Griffin as one of America’s 12 Ryder Cup players.

Griffin is now a two-time winner on the PGA Tour, and had two top 10 finishes in major championships in 2025. He gave some advice to players who are close to giving up on their professional dream.

“It’s important to always chase your dreams but it’s also really healthy to take a break sometimes during those dreams and just take a step back and look at it holistically in a way and be able to learn from what your journey has been,” he said.

“For me, I did quit the game fully. I was working a job for a few months there and it was a great time for me to honestly get my mind completely off of golf. I had no intentions of coming back to golf.

“And it’s crazy that it’s worked out the way it has. It’s been quite the journey, and you know, I’m just trying to soak it all in and also at the same time just continue to work hard and let things happen as they come.

“It’s a very difficult challenge making it to the top in this sport. There’s a lot of different pathways and a lot of it is playing golf in tournaments and places all across the world starting out and not making very much money, and then just kind of trusting the process.

“I’m lucky that I had so much support from not only my family and friends but sponsors to give back to golf, and it gave me an opportunity to play not only for myself but felt like I needed to play for them and work hard and make sure I was doing the right things off the golf course to make sure I was doing my best.

“It was a lot of sacrifices and change in lifestyle, but it’s ultimately, definitely paid off, and it’s been, yeah, quite the journey.”

That’s something that the fresh faces joining the PGA Tour next season can also learn from, as they face the mammoth task of retaining their cards for 2027.