F-16: Top player on the 2026 DP World Tour Race to Dubai, not previously exempt

Schaper will make his U.S. Open debut after being the leading player on the 2026 DP World Tour Race to Dubai, not otherwise exempt. The South African has claimed a pair of DP World Tour titles: the 2025 Alfred Dunhill Championship and the 2025 AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open, both events co-sanctioned with the Sunshine Tour. As an amateur, Schaper represented the International Team in the 2017 and 2019 Junior Presidents Cup. Schaper turned professional in 2020.