Speaking at the LIV Golf event in Bangkok last weekend, Cam Smith talked about how “heartbroken” he would be if not invited to play in The Masters next April. That made me think more on the issue of why we need LIV golfers to play in the Majors, whether we’re in favour of the renegade circuit or not.
Imagine The Masters without the defending Open Champion, a man who has finished in the top-10 at Augusta in four of his last five appearances, including a tie for third last year. Imagine The Masters without six of the last 12 champions in the field… That’s what we’ll have if LIV Golf players are not invited to Augusta in 2023.
The Masters Tournament is yet to confirm whether LIV players will be invited to play next year. Although there was no official announcement, reports suggested Augusta was in support of the PGA Tour and, according to a lawsuit originally filed by 11 former PGA Tour players back in August, Augusta National threatened to uninvite LIV golfers from next year’s event if they left the PGA Tour. It remains to be seen if that will happen but, if it did, the 90-odd field for the 2023 Masters would be missing some 15 or so players who would have previously met the criteria for an invitation. That would be disappointing for golf fans and, I think, damaging for the sport.
The Majors are, and should remain, the very pinnacle of golf in both the men’s and women’s games. There has to be an event or events in sport that offer the winner the chance to be the undisputed best – For instance, in golf, the winner of The Open Championship is declared “The Champion Golfer for the Year.” There should be no caveats to that. The man who dons the Green Jacket at Augusta next April should feel only elation at his success, not face lingering questions that 10 or more potential winners were not in the field.
The LIV players need to be included, otherwise the Majors will lose credibility
(Image credit: Getty Images)
LIV Golf has already divided golf to a certain extent, with battle lines drawn on both sides. I think The Majors should stand…
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