Dustin Johnson gets special invitation to PGA Championship in surprise decision
When the final list of participants for next week’s PGA Championship was revealed Tuesday, there was a notable name on it.It was a name not expected to be among the 156 completing at Quail Hollow in the season’s second major. Dustin Johnson, whose status on the PGA Tour and in the World Rankings has disappeared since he joined LIV Golf, was invited by the PGA of America via special exemption, and he accepted the invite. Johnson, 40, is a two-time major winner, capturing the 2016 U.S.
Open and the 2020 Masters.His Masters win allowed him to participate in the next five PGA Championships regardless of qualification status, but that exemption ended last year. His best PGA Championship finish was a second place in both 2019 and 2020. Johnson hasn’t made a lot of noise on LIV, finishing in the top 10 in two events this season, and he missed the cut at the Masters in April. The U.S.
Open and British Open have created a category for LIV players to get into their respective fields.The PGA, however, does not.
Similar to the Masters, the PGA can invite players through its special exemptions. “That’s what we have done the last three years and continue to do so,” Kerry Haigh, the championships director for the PGA of America, said recently.“We have that flexibility to be able to invite those players who are deserving from whichever tour.” Ways into the PGA include being in the top 70 in PGA points — a PGA Tour money list from the past 12 months. The world ranking formula was changed in 2023 and is more heavily weighted toward PGA Tour events, because of stronger fields than LIV, and it doesn’t award any points to LIV players.
Because of this, the LIV players have tumbled down the rankings. Saudi-funded LIV Golf will have 16 players in the 156-man field at Quail Hollow — the same number as last year.That includes John Catlin, a LIV reserve who’s played three LIV tournaments this year.
But he qualified through his Asian Tour performance. Oth...