One of the more unique elements of professional golf is how fields are reduced within tournaments.
While most sports see competitors go head-to-head in one-off matches with losers eliminated, golfers are all playing against each other.
However, by the halfway point of the tournament, it's clear to see that only so many players still have a realistic chance of victory; that's where the cut comes in.
On the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, the cut is limited to the top 65 players and ties (excluding limited-field events where there is no cut) and typically takes place after two rounds (with some tournaments, such as the American Express, taking place over three rounds before the cut is made.
On rare occasions when there are an exceeding amount of players who finish in the top 65 after the first two rounds, an additional cut can be made after the third round. This is often marked as 'MDF', meaning 'made the cut; did not finish'.
The cut does vary in other tournaments, however. The Masters is a smaller field; as such, only the top 50 players get to play the weekend. In previous years, the 10-shot rule was in effect, whereby any player within 10 shots of the leader after two rounds would make the cut.
The cut also greatly affects prize money. On the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, only players who make the cut receive any prize money, meaning the approximately 90 players who don't make the cut, leave without making a penny.
