Brooks Koepka\u2019s decision to leave LIV Golf<\/a> and get a pathway back to the PGA Tour via its newly-created Returning Member Program.<\/p>\nBecause Koepka had won a major championship (the 2023 PGA) during the 2022 to \u201925 timeframe, he was allowed to return this year, with restrictions.<\/p>\n
Reed\u2019s situation was more complicated, but he said it came at a point where it made more sense. And it came together when he was in contention at the Dubai event.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt definitely happened quickly, but it was one of those that, when I was over there in Dubai and playing, I really just kind of was sitting back and realizing that I wanted to get back and not only join\u2014have an opportunity back on the PGA Tour, but get back to the traditional way of golf and playing,\u201d Reed said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I stood there in Dubai, that Saturday, the entire range was full, and then guys just started disappearing, and you\u2019re the last man on that tee box. Then you\u2019re walking to the tee, you\u2019re the last name announced, and you\u2019ve lost the lead because someone is 5-under through 8. All those just rushes and those scenarios, kind of going back into playing golf that way, where you\u2019re going out there, and you\u2019re having the battles between not just yourself, but the other guys on the leaderboard.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, I wanted that back, I wanted that adrenaline back, and those feelings, especially with the way I played those last three weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I got done, I knew this would be a perfect time for me since I didn\u2019t have a contract signed with LIV at the time, so I knew it would be kind of an easier transition. To be honest with you, it was one of those decisions that I felt like was the best, not just for the golf game, but also for my family to spend more time with them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reed has no current status on the PGA Tour aside from being a past champion and won\u2019t be allowed to play events until after August. He can accept sponsor invites into fall events and compete as a non-member, which also allows him to attempt to qualify via Mondays.<\/p>\n
It will also be interesting to see if he gets consideration for the U.S. Presidents Cup team. Captain Brandt Snedeker said recently that he\u2019d have no problem picking Reed.<\/p>\n
In 2027, he will be eligible to reinstate his membership and can play out of the past champion\u2019s category. But his best avenue is via the DP World Tour\u2019s exemption for the top 10 players on the Race to Dubai who are not otherwise exempt.<\/p>\n
\u201cDriving up Magnolia Lane, you always sit there and feel really good about it, especially as a past champion. But, hopefully, we can make some more memories. The one jacket is getting a little lonely. Might need one more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patrick Reed<\/p>\n
Leading the standings, Reed has already accumulated more points than necessary to earn a PGA Tour card for 2026. And with no ability to play on the PGA Tour, DP World Tour events are his best avenue anyway.<\/p>\n
Although he said he was unsure of his schedule going forward, there are only three events between the Masters and the PGA Championship, one of which is two weeks prior in Turkey, which would seem likely. After the PGA, there are three more events before the U.S. Open, including one in Austria.<\/p>\n
He did say he plans to play the Scottish Open\u2014a co-sanctioned event\u2014the week prior to the British Open.<\/p>\n
The PGA typically invites anyone in the top 100 in OWGR, while the U.S. Open has two top-60 cutoffs, and The Open has a top-50 exemption in late May. Reed appears to be a lock for all the majors.<\/p>\n
And pretty much a given to be on the PGA Tour next year, too.<\/p>\n
For now, his focus is on the Masters, where he finished third last year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI always feel really good coming in,\u201d Reed said. \u201cIt\u2019s one of these things that, being the first major, you always try to come in and obviously be in great form, but it\u2019s very easy to kind of put too much pressure on yourself being the first major.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first time I actually kind of decided just to let go and play golf was \u201918, and that got the job done. That being said, that\u2019s what I plan on doing. I try it every time I play majors. I try to treat it like another event. It definitely is a special place. Driving up Magnolia Lane, you always sit there and feel really good about it, especially as a past champion. But, hopefully, we can make some more memories. The one jacket is getting a little lonely. Might need one more.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"AUGUSTA \u2014 If he felt slighted, overlooked or even scorned, Patrick Reed was not letting on. He took…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":569037,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71],"tags":[427,99],"class_list":["post-569036","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-golf","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/569036","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=569036"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/569036\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/569037"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=569036"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=569036"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=569036"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}