QUALIFICATION

There were a number of different qualification pathways into The 154th Open at Royal Birkdale.

The panels below provide further information on exemption categories for the Championship, which are reviewed each year to ensure that avenues are available for golfers around the world, along with the events that made up the Open Qualifying Series.

Final Qualifying took place on Tuesday, 30 June, with 20 players earning their places, and a new Last-Chance Qualifier event offered another route into The Open in the week of the Championship.

Our qualification tracker was updated throughout the year as players gained exemptions and earned a place at The 154th Open.

Last-Chance Qualifier

A new Last-Chance Qualifier event was staged in the week of the Championship.

This took place on Monday 13 July 2026 at Royal Birkdale, consisting of 18 holes stroke play.

Joe Dean's two-under-par round of 68 was enough to clinch the one remaining place in The 154th Open.