Patrick Reed dramatically announced his exit from LIV Golf on Wednesday, with a return to the PGA Tour pencilled in for the 2027 season.
The PGA Tour released a statement regarding Reed, immediately after he confirmed he would be leaving LIV Golf.
Reed can return to the PGA Tour from August 26th onwards, playing out of the ‘past champion category’ as a ‘non-playing member’.
The American will then be eligible to play a full schedule in 2027, although he will be ineligible for participation in the Player Equity Program through 2030.
He will also have to earn his way into the Signature Events.
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It was majorly surprising when the 35-year-old revealed just last week in Dubai that he was actually out of contract with LIV ahead of the 2026 season.
In spite of that, it still came as a huge shock when Reed announced his departure from LIV on Wednesday.
The 2018 Masters champion won comfortably in Dubai last week – a victory that vaulted him inside the top-30 in the world rankings.
There is no question that Reed is one of the best players in the world, and losing him will unquestionably be a big blow for LIV Golf.
On the flip-side, the PGA Tour will be boosted by the American’s return, and LIV only have themselves to blame.
The Saudi-backed outfit have left themselves in a ridiculously weak position now, with little to no leverage against the PGA Tour.
LIV Golf’s unforgivable Patrick Reed mistake
LIV Golf only have themselves to blame after the nine-time PGA Tour winner’s exit.
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Reed is a real character, and is one of the most divisive figures in the professional game right now.
Whether you like him or not, the 35-year-old has always created storylines wherever he has been, and there is a real sense that LIV failed to appreciate that.
The 2018 Masters champion is a sensational golfer, and he has caused plenty of controversy with his actions out on the golf course throughout the years.
LIV failed to recognise his importance to their setup and were instead far too focused on the futures of Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.
They lost Koepka and are still yet to tie DeChambeau down to a new deal, as things stand.
The fact that Reed was still not signed up for another few years with LIV’s opening event just weeks away from starting was an unforgivable mistake from their hierarchy.
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The Koepka issue was completely different for LIV Golf, as he was still under contract for the 2026 season.
However, the fact that Reed has been allowed to move on as a ‘free agent’, so to speak, just shows how amateur their organization is.
The only way this ends up being a good thing for LIV is if they learn from the mistakes they made with Reed and ensure that it doesn’t happen with any more of their star players moving forward.
Patrick Reed’s PGA Tour decision was made for him by LIV
The painful reality for LIV Golf is that they themselves drove Patrick Reed into his decision to rejoin the PGA Tour.
The fact that they allowed his contract to run down without attempting to tie him down to a longer-term deal sooner was negligent in the extreme.
If LIV Golf are ever to be taken as a serious outfit in the professional game, they need to start acting far more professionally.
The way they are running things just seems to be totally unprofessional, and allowing Reed’s contract to run down was not the first example of that.
Jinichiro Kozuma was dropped from the LIV Golf league just weeks before the start of the season.
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However, the Japanese golfer only found out that he had lost his place on the Iron Heads roster after seeing a post on social media.
Kozuma received no communication from LIV regarding the fact that he had been removed from the league.
If true, that was a disgraceful way for LIV to treat someone who was essentially one of their employees.
Patrick Reed is obviously a more high-profile name than Kozuma, so LIV losing the American has caused more of a stir than the man from Japan’s exit.
However, the principle of the matter is the same. LIV’s recent actions have been haphazard at best and entirely unprofessional at worst.
The powers that be at the PGA Tour must be sitting back rubbing their hands together with glee. They couldn’t have drawn the current situation up better if they tried.
Now the onus is on LIV Golf to improve the way in which they go about their business.
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