LA JOLLA, CALIFORNIA | News of Patrick Reed’s impending return to the PGA Tour rippled through the Torrey Pines grounds and lit up social media by the time Adam Scott finished his nine-hole pro-am at the Farmers Insurance Open on Wednesday.
Scott is one of six players on the PGA Tour’s all-powerful policy board and is deeply involved in the tour’s affairs, but as of midday he had not heard the Reed news.
After briefly summarizing the key points regarding Reed’s return, Scott, as he usually does, took a moment to consider the situation before providing an answer.
“It sounds like he’s using the path that was in place for player returns,” Scott said, cutting through the clutter that surrounded Reed during his sometimes tumultuous career.
Whether more players attempt to return to the tour – Pat Perez, Hudson Swafford and Kevin Na have reinstated their tour memberships and face varying wait times before returning to competition – the cycle of expiring LIV contracts has created opportunities.
Reed’s return is about one player — Brooks Koepka’s return from LIV Golf came about through a one-time offer to four recent major championship winners — but its impact extends beyond what happens when the 2018 Masters champion returns to PGA Tour eligibility on August 25 of this year.
It’s about optics and options. It’s a second recent example of LIV Golf losing a key player, a turnaround in fortunes for a league that created itself by luring players away from the PGA and DP World tours. It doesn’t necessarily call LIV’s future into question, but it does reinforce the idea that the PGA Tour has a plan for this eventuality.
Whether more players attempt to return to the tour – Pat Perez, Hudson Swafford and Kevin Na have reinstated their tour memberships and face varying wait times before returning to competition – the cycle of expiring LIV contracts has created opportunities.
The Koepka path – which was open only to him, Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cam Smith, with a hefty financial penalty attached – was a quick response to a sudden opportunity to re-sign one of the game’s best players of the past decade.
Reed’s case is more fundamental: a player looking to come back after fulfilling his obligation while cashing in on LIV Golf’s largesse. The ground rules of the tour, Scott said, were put in place long ago in anticipation of such a moment.
“I think we’re only dealing with it for the first time in this cycle. It’s hard to have a crystal ball and look ahead to how things are going to work out. Honestly, they had a way back for guys on tour. Patrick could be the first to get through that again. The other one is made for this small group of people,” Scott said.
“I think this may still happen with the way the LIV tour is structured, guys with contracts. Contracts end when they end. I feel good as part of the tour that we had a policy in place that’s getting used now. Hopefully it works well.”
The Reed story has the added element of his controversial backstory. He had problems with the rules (five years ago this week he was embroiled in a firestorm after an embedded ball call at Torrey Pines) and his brashness rubbed some the wrong way.
Reed sued multiple people, including media members, and when he joined LIV, he cited the league’s reduced schedule as an opportunity to spend more time with his family, yet he played more than 30 global events last year.
However, his return is based on the rules set by the players and their leadership, understanding that not everyone will like the second chances on offer.
Reed made a choice that not every PGA Tour player had, and many of those who did made a different choice.
“If you do it the right way (trying to get back to the PGA Tour) and you want to come back, then I have no problem.” – Ludwig Åberg
“I understand that certain situations will be a little different, everyone will look at it a little differently and I think everyone will make the best decision for their personal career. When [joining LIV] was an option for me, I didn’t like it. It wasn’t something I wanted to be part of,” said Ludvig Åberg.
‘If you do [seeking to return to the PGA Tour] in the right way and you want to come back, I have no problem.
That was paramount, Scott suggested, in developing a re-entry plan for players leaving the tour. There are several factors to consider – 11 players have sued the PGA Tour, while several others canceled their tour memberships before accepting LIV’s offer – and perhaps the biggest is how the grassroots feel that players who have turned their backs on the tour can be guaranteed to take money from LIV and find their way back with limited resistance.
“As one of the player directors, we are really aware of how sensitive that is for the entire membership. Things were said a few years ago and now, four years later, you have to look at what is best for the tour and the membership going forward,” Scott said.
“Not everything can last forever. We have to remain open-minded. As player directors, we are certainly primarily aware of the entire membership, but we also listen to what people want to see on the PGA Tour.”
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