• Charl Schwartzel won the $4 million first-place prize in London, plus another $750,000 for being part of the winning team. Sure, he’s a former Masters champion. But that was 11 years ago. More relevant: He was, statistically, the 198th-best player on Tour this season, and he just won the inaugural LIV event. Yikes.
Current LIV players will still be able to tee it up this week at the U.S. Open, but a close reading of the USGA’s statement seems to suggest that might not be the case moving forward. The USGA didn’t alter its qualifying criteria for this year’s event because it’d be unfair to the competitors who had already earned their way into the “open” championship. Fair enough. But there’s nothing keeping the blue blazers from shutting out LIV players next year or closing any potential Asian Tour loophole – you know, for the “good of the game.” Another important step is what happens with the Official World Golf Ranking. LIV officials plan to file an application this week, despite boasting 48-man fields with the likes of Phachara Khongwatmai and Andy Ogletree. The board deciding its fate consists of … the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, Augusta National, R&A, USGA and International Federation of PGA Tours. Good luck!
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