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In a momentous announcement, the Masters announced on Tuesday, December 20, that LIV Golf members will not be barred from competing in the tournament. The Masters will be held in early April next year at Augusta National.
Players who defected to the controversial LIV Golf series from the PGA Tour this year were banned from participating in any of the latter's events. The Masters notably does not come under the Tour. However, whether or not LIV Golf players will be permitted to play at Augusta National was still in the dark until this week.
Previously, the US Open and the Open Championship had allowed LIV Golf players to compete.
In a recent announcement, the Masters clarified that all LIV Golf players who have qualified for the tournament according to the criteria will be allowed to compete. At least 16 members of the Saudi-backed league will be seen in action in April.
Former Masters champions such as the USA's Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Bubba Watson, Patrick Reed, Spain's Sergio Garcia and South Africa's Charl Schwartzel have a lifetime exemption. All of them will be eligible to play in the tournament.
Australian golfer Cameron Smith will be invited after winning the 2022 Open Championship. US golfers Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka will also feature at Augusta National as they have won the US Open in the past five years.
Chilean golfer Joaquin Niemann has also qualified for the tournament. This is because he was in the Top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings prior to leaving the PGA Tour in September.
Talor Gooch, Kevin Na, Abraham Ancer, Harold Varner III, Jason Kokrak and Louis Oosthuizen are in the top 50 of the current Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR). This means they will also be in the race to bag the coveted green jacket at Augusta National.
"At the end of the day, golf is bigger than any tour or players" - Louis Oosthuizen
The LIV Golf players were naturally elated with this big development involving the Masters. US golfer Bryson DeChambeau told Golf Channel that the Augusta National have taken the right decision. He believes the upcoming tournament will be the most exciting edition in quite a while.
"As long as you meet the criteria established by the tournament committee, you should be eligible to play," DeChambeau said. "I believe they made the right decision. This Masters will be one of the most exciting Masters in many years."
Louis Oosthuizen, who is expected to finish it the 50th position in the OWGR by the end of the year, was grateful to be able to play in the tournament. He said:
"Very happy and grateful. At the end of the day, golf is bigger than any tour or players."
Last month, LIV Golf CEO and Commissioner Greg Norman said that major tournaments, including the Masters, should remain neutral.
"I would say my comment about the majors, I just hope they stay Switzerland," Norman said.
"They want the best field. They don't want to miss out on a Cam Smith or a Dustin Johnson or any of the players. They want the best players in the field because they have a responsibility to their broadcasters."
He added that the major tournaments had a responsibility towards their institutions:
"They have a responsibility to their institution, which is the Masters, the Open, the U.S. Open or the PGA of America. They should not take sides. If they do take sides, it tells you that maybe there should be a bit of a look into the way the structure of their boards are."
Norman further stated that neutrality would work towards the betterment of golf. He feels the Masters should always be one of the top four elevated tournaments and believes that will only happen when they have the best field. This would in turn mean allowing all eligible competitors to play.
"But at the end of the day, they should stay Switzerland for the betterment of the game, and the game of golf, that's the most important thing coming out of all this, competition is the best thing.
"The Masters should always be among the top four most elevated events, and they're going to have the best competition when they have the best competitors, all the competitors playing in their events."
Can the qualifying criteria for future Masters tournaments change?
Augusta National Golf club chairman Fred Ridley said in the announcement on Tuesday that they were disappointed by recent developments that have "divided" golf. However, Ridley also stated that their focus is to respect the tradition and bring together a world-class field of players.
"Regrettably, recent actions have divided men’s professional golf by diminishing the virtues of the game and the meaningful legacies of those who built it," he said.
"Although we are disappointed in these developments, our focus is to honour the tradition of bringing together a preeminent field of golfers this coming April."
The statement further stated that all eligible players will be sent invitations next week. Any changes or modifications to the qualifying criteria for future tournaments will be announced in April:
"Therefore, as invitations are sent this week, we will invite those eligible under our current criteria to compete in the 2023 Masters Tournament.
"As we have said in the past, we look at every aspect of the Tournament each year, and any modifications or changes to invitation criteria for future Tournaments will be announced in April."
The statement added that the tournament will hopefully "endure" through the challenges of this year the way it always has:
"We have reached a seminal point in the history of our sport. At Augusta National, we have faith that golf, which has overcome many challenges through the years, will endure again."
It certainly promises to be an interesting tournament this time around with a mix of players from both ends of the spectrum playing for the green jacket. Scottie Scheffler of the PGA Tour is notably the reigning champion.
