THE PLAYERS Championship has historically billed itself as “the strongest field in golf.” However, many fans doubt that this will remain a feature of the event for the 2024 edition.
The fundamental reason is that the field for THE PLAYERS Championship, which begins this Thursday, March 14, will not include any of the players currently playing in LIV Golf. This will happen even though several of them would have qualified if they had not been banned from the circuit.
Recall that the PGA Tour issued a rule that penalizes the participation of players in “unauthorized events” such as LIV tournaments. The rule reads as follows (via Golf Monthly):
“Any player who has participated in an unauthorized tournament is ineligible to compete in any event sanctioned by the PGA Tour for a period of one year.”
This rule prevents several LIV Golf players from claiming a spot in THE PLAYERS Championship 2024. They are (their category of exemption is included):
- Jon Rahm (major champion in the past five years)
- Brooks Koepka (major champion in the past five years)
- Bryson DeChambeau (major champion in the past five years)
- Cameron Smith (major champion in the past five years)
- Phil Mickelson (major champion in the past five years)
- Dustin Johnson (major champion in the past five years)
- Joaquin Niemann (The Genesis Invitational winner in the past three years)
- Tyrrell Hatton (Top 125 past season FedEx Cup ranking)
Several of these players have been among the best in the world in recent times. Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka each won a major in 2023. That same year, the Spaniard won three other PGA Tour tournaments, while Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Cam Smith, and Dustin Johnson all won at least one on the LIV Golf.
Joaquin Niemann, meanwhile, has three wins in seven starts during the 2024 season (adding his performances on the DP World Tour, LIV Golf, and Asian Tour) and Tyrrell Hatton reached the top 20 of the world ranking, thanks to his good performances in Europe and America.
A glimpse of THE PLAYERS Championship field
Although LIV players will not be present at THE PLAYERS Championship, the event will have a very interesting field. The TPC Sawgrass will host nine members of the Top 10 and 47 members of the Top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).
Scottie Scheffler stands out. He leads the world ranking and, after his victory last week at Bay Hill, also leads the FedEx Cup ranking.
Scheffler is the defending champion of the event and is only the third player to hold the Arnold Palmer Invitational and THE PLAYERS trophies at the same time (Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods did it before). He will seek to be the first player in history to successfully defend his title at TPC Sawgrass.
