Sergio Garcia reflects on becoming the first-ever to qualify for The Open Championship via the Saudi tour

In February, the R&A announced a new qualification category to provide a pathway for LIV Golfers to qualify for The Open Championship. On Sunday, Fireballs GC Captain Sergio Garcia became the first-ever LIV player to gain entry into the major championship via the Saudi Tour. The Spaniard has now come out to laud the opportunity.

For the unversed, the R&A had earlier allowed an exemption which lets the leading player (not already exempt) in the top five of the 2025 LIV Golf Individual Standings to qualify for The Open. The standings at the final round of LIV Golf Dallas on June 29 was considered for the same. Garcia finished T25 in the contest and gained the exemption as a top-5 points finisher.

The 2017 Masters champion took to X to reveal his excitement for the final major outing of the year, which he also dubbed “favorite” among the four majors.

Sharing a video of selected highlights from his season so far, Sergio Garcia wrote on X:

“I continue to enjoy some incredible moments in my career—and earning a spot in The 153rd @TheOpen through my 2025 @livgolf_league campaign is definitely one of them. Can’t wait to tee it up at my favorite Major in front of some of the best golf fans next month. ¡Vamos!”

For the unversed, Garcia is currently fifth on the 2025 LIV Golf Individual Standings. He sits behind the likes of Joaquin Niemann, Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Patrick Reed. Notably, all four of the top point scorers were already exempt for The Open Championship, making the European Ryder Cupper eligible for the new exemption announced earlier this year.

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Sergio Garcia's 2025 season so far

Fireballs GC Captain Sergio Garcia secured the coveted LIV Golf Open Championship exemption by edging out the competition which included his teammate, David Puig. The 45-year-old is now set to tee it up at The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland on July 17. Interestingly, the ace golfer goes into the final major of the year on the back of mixed season.

For the unversed, Garcia has so far managed three top-10 finishes in 10 starts this LIV season. His win in Hong Kong and a third-place podium finish in Miami highlights his year so far. However, these came in the early half of the season and his best finish in the second half of the year came in Dallas last week, where he finished T25.

On the majors’ front, the 11-time PGA Tour winner missed the Masters cut at Augusta and finished a forgettable T67 at the PGA Championship. He earned just $24,927 from the two outings and failed to qualify for the US Open.

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Listed below is the complete breakdown of Sergio Garcia season so far (including Major outings):

• LIV Golf Riyadh – T6
• LIV Golf Adelaide – T18
• LIV Golf Hong Kong – 1st
• LIV Golf Singapore – T32
• LIV Golf Miami – 3rd
• Masters Tournament – Missed Cut
• LIV Golf Mexico City – 50th
• LIV Golf Korea – T42
• PGA Championship – T67
• LIV Golf Virginia – T38
• LIV Golf Dallas – T25

It’ll be interesting to see how Sergio Garcia fares in the final major of the year at Portrush.