The pro loses his tour card. Then 4 minutes of raw, emotional talk
Justin Lore looked to his right and shook his head. He looked away. His feet shuffled. His face turned into a grimace.
He was asked what he was thinking, and his body reflected the thoughts that followed.
disappointment? That Friday afternoon, the RSM Classic took place. As the final event of the PGA Tour season, the event has a unique ending. The year is over, and so is the chance to secure qualification for the tournament. There is one last chance to win. This is the last chance to move up the Tour’s season standings, with only the top 100 players receiving full tournament privileges next year.
Friday’s decline was higher than that. He also failed to advance after rounds 69 and 68 and had no chance to improve his ranking.
Lore knows this. The what-if thoughts began.
“Obviously I’ve had the worst year,” he said. “I mean, I missed a lot of cuts, I missed a lot of opportunities to make the cut by one shot. I shot 27 over two days at the U.S. Open.
“Like, did I have the best stuff this year? Absolutely not. But I gave it my all this fall and it came out so short, which sucks. Like, did I need a great weekend, a great day, a great weekend to have an absolute chance of finishing in the top 100? Yeah, I did. I think I needed to finish seventh in everything.
“To get into the top ten like that? I mean, unless you’re Scotty [Scheffler] or tiger [Woods] Or a really, really good player, like it’s not just going to happen.
“I’ve been playing pretty well the past few days. My putting has been terrible all year.”
Lore was also outraged.
A year ago, he might have retained his Tour card via the points standings, however, as part of a series of changes for the 2026 season, the cutoff number rose from 125 to 100. Of course, Lower is aware of this. He’s even talked about these moves before.
However, the feeling is the same.
“To be honest, I was really angry,” he said. “I don’t really have anything to say. Anything I seem to say or any time I speak my mind, people tend to not like it, so I don’t say too much.
“There’s a lot I could say about the changes and everything, but obviously in the situation I was in, I felt threatened and I totally understand.
“I completely understand the need for change. Do I agree with them? No. I don’t think our product is so bad that we have to ruin everything, and that’s what it seems like.”
About halfway through the roughly four-minute interview, Lore also became emotional.
What rounds has he just played? He wants them. and will continue to want them. Grind. He’ll be playing somewhere in 2026. He’s also been on the road. Lower played golf at the NAIA level in college. When he was 15, his father and brother were killed in a car accident while picking him up for a golf game.
Thinking of all this, he began to choke.
“For me to be here for four years,” Lore said, “I don’t really know what to say.
“I mean, I love it here. I love it here. I love everyone here, I love everyone on the tour. Are there some people that I hate? Yes, absolutely. Are there things that I hate? Yes.
“I’m human and I don’t know what else to do, but God, I’m so angry right now. Like, if I could somehow turn things around this year, but I obviously can’t. This game is really hard. I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what to say. I need to figure out how to get better.”
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