Two of LIV Golf‘s brand new signings have lost their expected exemptions into the 151st Open after the R&A removed the Presidents Cup exemption for this year’s tournament.
R&A Chief Executive Martin Slumbers has categorically ruled out banning LIV Golf players from future Opens at St Andrews last year but hinted that the criteria and qualification process for this year’s Championship may be changed.
“Looking ahead to The Open next year, we have been asked quite frequently about banning players,” he said. “Let me be very clear. That’s not on our agenda. But what is on our agenda is that we will review our exemptions and qualifications criteria for The Open.”
Two exemptions have been removed from the qualifying criteria – with the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup teams exemption removed as well as the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup exemption, which isn’t being played this year.
Both Mito Pereira and Sebastian Munoz will now have to find other ways to qualify for the year’s final Major, while PGA Tour players Taylor Pendrith and Cameron Davis find themselves in the same boat.
Pereira and Munoz find themselves suspended from the PGA Tour so a route into the world’s top 50 will be very difficult, with the top 50 by Week 21 all earning spots. Their best bets – along with other LIV players who aren’t in The Open yet – will be to earn one of the four places available at the World City Championship in Hong Kong in March or the two spots available at the Korea Open in June. Both events are either fully or co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour.
A total of 34 places are available via various events on the PGA, DP World, Japan and Asian Tours.
Any golfer earning a qualifying place who then becomes exempt under one or more categories before the closing date of entries will result in that place being awarded to the next non-exempt golfer, which will determined by a reserve list for each event played before 1 June. That reserve list will be made up of the leading players who make the cut the tour events where spots are available and are not already exempt as of the closing date of entries for The Open on 1 June.
Final Qualifying for Royal Liverpool takes place on 4th July, where 16 places in total will be up for grabs at Burnham and Berrow, Dundonald Links, Royal Cinque Ports and West Lancashire.
A new exemption has been added for elite amateurs in which the player who accumulates the most points awarded by the World Amateur Golf Ranking in the St Andrews Links Trophy, The Amateur…
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