The spectacular victory of Miguel Ángel Jiménez last night at the Kaulig Companies Championship, defeating Steven Alker on the second playoff hole, comes with a special reward for the golfer from Málaga. The tournament at the Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio, the successor to the Senior Players Championship, grants its winner a spot in the following season’s THE PLAYERS, meaning the ‘pisha’ could become the only Spaniard to play in what is known as the fifth Major in 2026.
After winning an edition of the Regions Tradition and another of The Senior Open Championship, both in 2018, his victory this Sunday, in addition to being his seventeenth on the U.S. senior tour, became the third major for players over 50 won by Miguel. A win that allows him to extend his lead in the Charles Schwab Cup standings, which he leads by more than $740,000 in earnings, and will allow him to compete with the best in the world next year.
The champ has arrived ✈️ pic.twitter.com/e7jIRhVQLC
— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) June 23, 2025
As of today, Jiménez is the only Spaniard with a guaranteed spot in the THE PLAYERS of the PGA Tour in 2026, at TPC Sawgrass. Until then, in the spring of next year, there are still chances that another member of the Spanish contingent joins the tournament. Pablo Ereño, who has just begun his journey on the Korn Ferry Tour, is one of them. There is also the possibility for a Spanish player from the DP World Tour to qualify if they secure a PGA Tour card by finishing in the top 10 of the Race to Dubai and starting the next season strong in the United States.
These are open, though realistically difficult, options, so everything points to Jiménez being the sole representative of Spanish golf at next year’s fifth Major. Now, after conquering the Kaulig Companies Championship, his next challenge is the US Senior Open taking place this week in Colorado Springs, which also offers an extra prize beyond the trophy and the check: a ticket to the US Open at Shinnecock Hills in 2026. Will Miguel manage to play two majors next year? It’s in his hands…
