LIV Golf star Talor Gooch, who once questioned the validity of winning the Masters, has been snubbed for the PGA Championship at Quali Hollow, where Rory McIlroy is the favorite
Rory McIlroy was told he should have an asterisk against his name(Image: Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
LIV Golf star Talor Gooch is once again absent from a major after arguing Rory McIlroy’s Masters victory should have an asterisk against it.
The Northern Irishman finally landed his fifth major, 11 years after his fourth, to complete golf’s Grand Slam last month. However, according to Gooch, who has won almost $60 million in prize money since joining the Saudi-backed LIV tour in 2022, McIlroy didn’t achieve his holy grail against the strongest possible field.
Speaking after not receiving a special invitation for last year’s Masters, despite winning three of the 13 LIV events in 2023, Gooch, 33, complained about what he saw as a shortage of LIV representation. That was despite the fact LIV stars including Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson and Sergio Garcia all took part after either qualifying or receiving special invitations.
However, Gooch’s invite never arrived in his mail, a snub he didn’t take well. Speaking to Australian Golf Digest, he said: “If Rory McIlroy goes and completes his Grand Slam without some of the best players in the world, there’s just going to be an asterisk.
“It’s just the reality. I think everybody wins whenever the majors figure out a way to get the best players in the world there.”
He added: “I think the majors have kind of shown that they’re not getting on board with LIV. Jaco [Joaquin Niemann] went outside of LIV and played some great golf and they rewarded him for that.
“So, hopefully, the day will turn when the majors decide to start rewarding good play on LIV. Hopefully, that’ll be sooner than later.”
Talor Gooch has questioned the validity of winning the Masters(Image: Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images)
However, Gooch was again missing from the guest list as McIlroy got his hands on the Masters Green Jacket last month. Whether he still believes McIlroy should have an asterisk against his name is unclear.
Gooch will also not be part of the field at this week’s PGA Championship after not receiving a special invitation. However, 16 of his LIV colleagues will be at Quail Hollow, including DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Niemann, Jon Rahm, Phil Mickelson and Cameron Smith.
Some LIV players made the field based on world ranking, while others qualified thanks to recent major wins or by finishing in the top 15 at the 2024 PGA Championship. Dechambeau, for example, met all three criteria.
Mickelson made the field thanks to being a past champion, while others, like young Northern Irishman Tom McKibbin, received a special invitation. Gooch’s record in major tournaments is modest to say the least.
McIlroy with McKibbin, who has received a special invitation to the PGA Championship(Image: Oisin Keniry/Getty Images)
Prior to joining LIV, he finished tied-14th at the Masters and tied-20th at the PGA Championship, both in 2022. His best finish at The Open Championship is tied-33rd, while his best showing at the US was tied-66th back in 2017.
However, he has taken LIV by storm, finishing at the top of the individual money list in 2023, which saw him pick up $18M. His overall LIV earnings over the past three years put him just ahead of Dustin Johnson.
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