The European Golf Association (EGA), in collaboration with its member federations, has announced the launch of a new European Amateur Order of Merit (EAOM) concept. Set to debut with a pilot season in 2026, the initiative will introduce new men’s and women’s order of merits designed to strengthen the landscape of elite amateur golf in Europe.
The EAOM aims to enhance the appeal of the international calendar for elite amateur players wishing to compete in Europe and promote the continent’s most prestigious amateur events. Both series will run annually and feature approximately 15 established elite amateur championships each, hosted at leading venues across Europe in collaboration with national golf federations.
In addition to the European Amateur Order of Merit titles, and medals for the top three finishers, the EAOMs will offer attractive rewards in the form of playing opportunities. For example, the EAOMs will facilitate a direct, performance-based qualification method to some of Europe’s major amateur events such as the EGA European Amateur and Ladies’ Amateur Championships.
Furthermore, each EAOM event will award the winner an invite to a tournament on one of Europe’s first or second-tier professional tours, with close to 40 (men and women combined) total exemptions to professional events available during the 2026 pilot season. A full overview of available rewards will be published by the EGA in due course.
The first counting events for both EAOMs will be the Portuguese International Amateur Championships in January and February, launching a competitive schedule that runs until late September. The pilot season will be divided into three phases, the Front-Nine, Back-Nine, and Final Sprint. The concluding Final Sprint series will offer elevated points and additional rewards to promote a compelling finish to the season.
“The EGA is delighted to launch this exciting new project in collaboration with our member federations” said EGA General Secretary Michael Thannhäuser. “By introducing a truly European order of merit, we’re providing a fair, consistent, and aspirational platform for elite amateurs in Europe. The EAOM will offer new motivation for players that wish to compete in Europe and bring added coherence to the European amateur schedule. We’d like to extend our thanks to the EGA’s member federations, who are the driving force behind this concept, for their support and collaboration.”
The EAOM is open to players of all ages and nationalities, provided they meet all amateur status criteria. Points will be awarded at each counting event according to finishing position, following a distribution model inspired by professional tours. Each player’s six best results will determine their final ranking, and any player earning points in a counting event will appear automatically in the standings.
The complete schedules of counting events for 2026 are as follows:
MEN'S 2026 SCHEDULE
WOMEN'S 2026 SCHEDULE
The official Men’s EAOM and Women’s EAOM rankings will be published on the EGA website following each event, with top 10 standings featured regularly across EGA’s digital channels.
