Masters unlikely to regulate exemption standards for LIV Golfers

LIV golfers, reminiscent of Talor Gooch, hope to achieve entry into the key championships in 2024 via a particular exemption made obtainable to them.

Bryson DeChambeau has proposed an concept on the right way to make this doable—he recommended the highest 12 gamers on the finish of LIV Golf’s season ought to obtain an invite to the next 12 months’s majors.

Though the R&A, which facilitates The Open Championship, is open to that concept, the Masters, nevertheless, will not be.

At the least for 2024.

“As you recall, final 12 months, there was some hypothesis as as to whether or not we might invite LIV golfers, and we stayed true to our qualification standards, and we invited everybody who was eligible,” mentioned Fred Ridley, the chairman of Augusta Nationwide, forward of the Asia Pacific Novice Championship.

“And so, whereas we don’t at the moment anticipate making any adjustments in 2024… we do at all times have a look at them, and we’ll proceed to do this. I’d simply reply by saying that… our {qualifications} are very a lot dynamic, and we regulate to what we really feel is one of the best pursuits of the match representing one of the best gamers on the planet, so we at all times have a look at that.”

Picture by Andrew Redington/Getty Pictures

Final April, when Jon Rahm outdueled Brooks Koepka on Sunday to say his first profession inexperienced jacket, 18 LIV golfers have been current, together with Koepka.

Some gamers, reminiscent of Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Bubba Watson, and Charl Schwartzel, obtained an invite as a result of that they had received the Masters earlier than. Recipients of the inexperienced jacket are welcome again to the Masters any 12 months they please.

Others obtained invites as a result of that they had received a serious championship throughout the previous 5 years, notably Cameron Smith, Koepka, and DeChambeau.

Any winner of the PGA Championship, U.S. Open, and Open Championship receives a Masters invite for the following 5 years after their victory.

So what concerning the different 9 LIV Golf gamers who competed within the 87th Masters?

Abraham Ancer, Gooch, Jason Kokrak, Kevin Na, Joaquin Niemann, Louis Oosthuizen, Thomas Pieters, and Harold Varner III all gained entry into the sphere as a result of they have been ranked throughout the high 50 of the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) on the finish of the 2022 calendar 12 months.

Mito Pereira, in the meantime, completed within the top-4 of the 2022 PGA Championship.

He held the lead on the 72nd gap, however he hit his tee shot into the creek, paving the way in which for Justin Thomas outlasting Will Zalatoris in a playoff.

Regardless, the Masters invitations all gamers ranked throughout the high 50 on the finish of a given 12 months, in addition to these gamers who might have entered into the highest 50 the week earlier than the match.

Any participant who finishes throughout the high 4 of every other main from the 12 months earlier than receives an invitation too.

Augusta Nationwide additionally invitations anybody who finishes in a tie for twelfth or higher on the prior 12 months’s Masters.

Picture by David Cannon/Getty Pictures

However since LIV Golf won’t obtain OWGR factors, it is vitally possible that many of those gamers who obtained an invite to the 2023 Masters won’t be invited again for 2024.

Koepka and Smith are the one LIV golfers ranked throughout the high 50, as they at the moment sit at 18th and nineteenth, respectively.

But, Ridley doesn’t take situation with that, since he and the Augusta Nationwide board set up the standards year-in and year-out.

“They made choices based mostly on what they thought was in one of the best pursuits of their golf careers, and we actually respect that,” Ridley mentioned of LIV gamers.

“We do have in our invitation standards, it does say that we reserve the proper to ask particular exemptions to worldwide gamers, though we did situation a particular exemption to an beginner final 12 months. So we’re at all times taking a look at that. However these choices have been made, and we’ll should do what’s in one of the best pursuits of the Masters, and we’ll proceed to do this.”

Jack Milko is a golf employees author for SB Nation’s Enjoying Via. You’ll be able to comply with him on Twitter @jack_milko for extra golf protection. Be sure you take a look at @_PlayingThrough too.