Masters officials confirm they won’t be creating exemptions for LIV golfers

New exemptions have been created for LIV players to get into two of the four majors, but the biggest of the lot is holding firm.

Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley won’t be offering exemptions to LIV players. Picture: Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Special invitations to the Masters will remain available to LIV Golf players, but Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said he wouldn’t be following the US and British Opens and creating an exemption for players on the Saudi-backed league.

Twelve months after inaugural LIV chief executive Greg Norman was forced to buy a ticket to get into the Masters, his replacement, Scott O’Neil, is a guest at Augusta as golf pushes towards potential reunification.

Both the USGA and R&A, which run the US and British Opens respectively, have created a pathway for LIV players not already exempt to get into their tournaments, avoiding qualifying, to ensure the best fields possibe are assembled.

Greg Norman was just one of the crowd at the 2024 Masters. Picture: Warren Little/Getty Images

For the second year in a row, Masters officials extended an invitation to Joaquin Niemann to play at Augusta, his 2024 invite coming off the back of his win at the 2023 Australian Open, which Ridley recognised as one of the “world’s great tournaments”.

No such invitation, however, was extended to 2024 Australian Open champ Ryggs Johnston, but Niemann was invited back again.

The Chilean, leading the LIV standings, is one of 12 LIV players at Augusta, a number that doesn’t included the tour’s most recent winner, Marc Leishman, who is fourth on the points standings

Cam Smith is one of 12 LIV players at the Masters. Picture: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

In his pre-tournament press conference, Ridley was asked about following the two other majors to create exemptions for leading LIV players and was confident that Masters rules allowed them to “handle” the situation.

“Some of the issues that have been raised in connection with world golf rankings, and that is pathways for players to come and go on the LIV Tour as well as the team aspect of the LIV Golf, certainly creates some concern in that regard,” he said.

“As it relates to the USGA and the R&A, they certainly act independently. We respect their decisions.

“We are an invitational tournament. We have historically considered special cases for invitations for international players, which is how Joaquin Niemann was invited, or why he was invited, the last couple years.

“We feel we can deal with that issue, whether it’s a LIV player or a player on some other tour that might not otherwise be eligible for an invitation, that we can handle that with a special invitation.”

Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley won’t be offering exemptions to LIV players. Picture: Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Ridley was reluctant to suggest what the future landscape of golf should or could look like, with the PGA Tour in continuing talks with the Saudi Public Investment fund, which has spent $3bn on LIV.

“I’m not really in a position to say what form that should take as far as how the two organisations should come together,” he said.

“But what I would do and what I am doing is just encouraging again ... sometimes if you start kind of at eye level, and that is to encourage co-operation and trying to figure out a way to get something done, regardless of what the structure of it is, to where everyone can play together again.

“But I think we all agree that four times a year is not enough to have the great players of the game together.”

Ridley said he had no plans to meet with O’Neil.

“Scott is here, and we’re pleased to have him as our guest,” he said.

“Although I don’t have any specific plans to meet with him, I know that we will have some discussions with him, and we’re happy that he’s here.”