There are now 11 LIV golfers qualified for Pinehurst No. 2.
Monday started with 83 golfers, including eight members of LIV Golf, already in the 156-man field at the 2024 U.S. Open.
Golf’s Longest Day, an annual rite of passage for those seeking to qualify for the national championship, was the final chance for those not in to punch their ticket to Pinehurst No. 2.
Among the 687 golfers who were spread across 10 qualifying sites on Monday were 19 LIV golfers, who normally play 54-hole events over three days but for this they had to navigate 36 holes in one day.
Of those 19, just two earned a golden ticket, which brings the LIV total for Pinehurst to 12.
Unlike those two events, however, there are rarely special exemptions for the U.S. Open so you either have to be a recent major winner, a recent PGA Tour winner, high enough in the Official World Golf Ranking or be one of those who managed to battle through qualifying.
David Puig had the best day, as he won the qualifier at Lake Merced Golf Club in Daly City, California, at 12 under, after posting scores of 68 and 64.
Here’s the breakdown of the LIV golfers who are in, and who fell short, of making it.
Already in prior to June 3 (11)
Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Tyrrell Hatton, Martin Kaymer, Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra, Cameron Smith, Jon Rahm, Phil Mickelson and Adrian Meronk.
Made it through June 3 qualifying (2)
David Puig and Dean Burmester.
Failed to make it through qualifying (17)
Sergio Garcia, Joaquin Niemann, Carlos Ortiz, Abraham Ancer, Matt Jones, Cameron Tringale, Graeme McDowell, Anirban Lahiri, Charl Schwartzel, Peter Uihlein, Branden Grace, Andy Ogletree, Lucas Herbert, Marc Leishman, Hudson Swafford, Wade Ormsby and Sebastian Munoz.
Before he teed off in his morning round, McCulloch’s brother called to wish him luck.
RIDGEWAY, Ontario – Of the top 18 finishers at the U.S. Open Final Qualifying at Cherry Hill Club, 17 were card-carrying members of the PGA Tour who had played last week at the RBC Canadian Open. Then there was Michigan State rising senior Ashton McCulloch, the Canadian amateur champion, who crashed the party and earned the final of seven spots available at the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2.
Before he teed off in his morning round, McCulloch’s brother called to wish him luck and said he was going to mark the week of the Open as out of office so he could caddie for him.
McCulloch shot a 36-hole total of 8-under 134 to qualify for his first major championship. Last week, he played in the Canadian Open, too, and missed the cut, ranking dead last in Strokes Gained: Putting for the first two days. But it was an experienced he said he’ll never forget.
“I figured out it is my passion to play on the PGA Tour so I’m just excited to get back out there and play against the best again,” he said.
Cherry Hill Club, a Walter Travis course that is more than 100 years old, surrendered four 63’s on Monday, which tied the course record. Mark Hubbard just missed a 12-foot birdie putt at the last for 62.
Mark Hubbard missed breaking the course record by this much at 100-year-old Cherry Hill. Settled for a share of it with 63, medalist honors and a spot in the U.S. Open at Pinehurst. pic.twitter.com/DcfeQjM6r1
But that was nearly the only putt that didn’t drop with a TaylorMade Spider putter he inserted in the bag just last month.
“It’s the last putter I ever thought I’d use,” he said. “But that’s the best I’ve putted in as long as I can remember. “I feel like I rolled it really well last week and I couldn’t read the greens at all. I got out here and this is an old-school course with lots of slope and I was so happy to be on a green where I could be confident it was going left.”
Hubbard is having a solid season on the Tour and hasn’t missed a cut this season.
“I was joking that if I qualify today does that count as another made cut?” said Hubbard, who qualified for the Open for the first time. (He got into Winged Foot during the COVID year.) “And if I don’t does that count as my first missed cut?”
He shot 64-63 to take medalist honors, three shots better than Canadian Adam Svensson.
Rico Hoey was alone in third after rounds of 68-63. Hoey has struggled as a PGA Tour rookie this season and missed his fourth consecutive cut last week at the RBC, where he battled a cold in addition to his game. He spent Saturday in bed and considered skipping the qualifier.
Rico Hoey pumps his fist after making a putt during a 2024 U.S. Open qualifier in Canada. (Photo: Adam Schupak/Golfweek)
“Golf can be so dark. I was like I don’t know if I should or not, it’s going to be a joke, an embarrassment,” Hoey said. “I decided I owe it to myself to come out and play and I’m glad I did. These are the times that I’ll look back and say, you did it and you can keep rolling through those bad times.”
Hoey heated up on the front nine of his second round, playing the first six holes in six under and going out in 29.
“I made six threes in a row and said, ‘God, this might happen,’” said Hoey, who was a hard-luck loser last year at qualifying for the Open in L.A., not far from where he grew up.
He qualified for his first major and will compete at Pinehurst, where his former college coach, Chris Zambri, lives and works for the USGA.
Davis Thompson is heading to Pinehurst too. He shot the first 63 in the morning round at Cherry Hill and finished at 10 under. Greyson Sigg shot 64-69 to tie for fifth with Aaron Rai. The Englishman used a local member as a caddie, who guided him around to a 70 in the morning and then he got his bearings. He holed out a 9-iron from 138 yards at the fourth hole and finished with three birdies in his final four holes to tie the course record and seal the deal.
Rai played in the U.S. Open once before at Erin Hills in 2017. He’s been to Pinehurst once, competing in the U.S. Kids Worlds Championships at age 12.
“I have very fond memories of that,” he said. “That will be special to go back to a place where I played junior golf but this time going back for a major.”
Keith Mitchell missed a 10-foot birdie putt at 18 that would’ve forced a playoff with McCulloch, but he returned to 18 and made a 6-foot birdie to secure first-alternate status. Matt Wallace is the second alternate.
Sixty-seven players registered for the Cherry Hill site for the seven spots available.
Gaugert caddies for Erik van Rooyen, who’s already in the Open field.
RIDGEWAY, Ontario — One day after caddying at the RBC Canadian Open for Erik van Rooyen, Alex Gaugert is back in action at U.S. Open Final Qualifying. Only this time he’s competing in the 36-hole qualifier, not toting a bag.
“He missed a couple short putts but made a couple bombs,” said Gaugert’s brother, Austin, who carried a Sunday bag for his brother. “He hit a tee shot on the par-5 on the back nine and said I was right, so, he’s not a Tour player yet.”
Alex, who played competitively at University of Minnesota and Monday qualified for the 3M Open last summer, shot 4-under 67 in the first of two rounds on Monday at Cherry Hill Club, which was good for T-10. Sixty-six players were expected to compete for seven spots into the U.S. Open, which begins next Thursday at Pinehurst Resort’s No. 2 Course in North Carolina.
Gaugert shot 69 and was co-medalist at local qualifying at the Country Club of Sioux Falls in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on May 6. He told Golfweek on Saturday that he had only played nine holes since the local qualifier.
“For some reason, the less I play, the better I score,” he said.
Gaugert’s boss, van Rooyen, already has secured a spot in the field so Gaugert will be there no matter. Austin caddies on the PGA Tour for Ryan Moore and Alex said his brother likely would caddie for Van Rooyen if he were to qualify for Pinehurst, or he might just withdraw.
“I just want to see what happens,” he said Saturday.
On a warm sunny day at the Walter Travis layout, PGA Tour pros were at the top of the leaderboard. Davis Thompson birdied half the holes and shot 8-under 63, one better than Greyson Sigg and Mark Hubbard after the first round. Canadian Adam Svensson and Scotland’s Martin Laird shot 65 along with reigning Canadian Amateur champ Ashton McCulloch.
The countdown is on to the next men’s major of 2024, the U.S. Open.
Players from the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf as well as a good number of amateurs were signed up at three locations Monday with the ultimate goal being a tee time at Pinehurst No. 2 in the Village of Pinehurst, North Carolina, in June for the national championship.
The three 36-hole final qualifying stages were in Japan, England and a huge one in Dallas which started out as a who’s who.
In all, 23 golfers advanced out of Monday’s action, earning a spot at Pinehurst and joining 83 fully exempt golfers. That brings the running total to 106 for a field that will eventually be 156. On June 3 there will be 10 more qualifiers. From there, multiple PGA Tour winners and the NCAA individual champ will round out the field.
Here’s a closer look at the three Monday qualifiers.
Dallas Athletic Club
136 players for 11 spots
1. Nico Echavarria
T-2. Mac Meissner
T-2. Eugenio Lopez Chacarra
T-4. Takumi Kanaya
T-4. Franceso Molinari
T-6. Brandon Wu
T-6. Michael McGowan
T-6. Parker Bell (a)
T-6. S.H. Kim
T-6. Sung Kang
T-6. Logan McAllister
Notables missed the cut: Sergio Garcia (the odd man out in a 7-for-6 playoff for the 11th and final spot), Kevin Streelman, Henrik Norlander, Carlos Ortiz, Abraham Ancer, Scott Piercy, Garrick Higgo, Caleb Surrat, Norrman Vincent, Cameron Champ, Harry Hall, Jim Knous, Joel Dahmen, Aaron Baddeley, Patton Kizzire and Kyle Westmoreland.
The following players withdrew: Sangmoon Bae, Zecheng Dou, Paul Haley, Lee Hodges, J.B. Holmes, Kevin Na, Geoffrey Ogilvy, Patrick Reed, Sebastian Soderberg and Jesper Svensson.
Walton Heath Golf Club, Surrey, England
102 players for nine spots
T-1. Grant Forrest
T-1. Richard Mansell
T-1. Brandon Robinson Thompson
T-4. Sam Bairstow
T-4. Robert Rock
T-6. Tom McKibbin
T-6. Edoardo Molinari
T-6. Jason Scrivener
T-6. Matteo Manassero
The following players withdrew: Eddie Pepperell, Callum Tarren, Antoine Rozner and Laurie Canter.
Robert Rock hasn't played in the US Open since 2012, he retired from playing in 2022 to concentrate on his teaching academy. He is currently ranked 2035th in the world.
Dubbed “Golf’s Longest Day”, the 36-hole qualifiers will come the day after the PGA Tour’s RBC Canadian Open and the DP World Tour’s European Open in Hamburg, Germany.
When is the U.S. Open?
Pinehurst will host its fourth U.S. Open June 13 to 16.
The 2024 U.S. Open will be the 124th edition of the championship.
The U.S. Open has a field of 156 and more than half of the spots have already been claimed.
There are now officially 83 fully exempt golfers in the field, so the window is narrowing for those hoping to punch their ticket. Another 23 earned their spots at one of three qualifying sites on Monday.
The 2024 U.S. Open will played at venerable Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina, the fourth time the course has hosted the national championship. No. 2 is the No. 1 ranked course on Golfweek’s top public-access courses in North Carolina.
There are three qualifying stages Monday, May 20, then 10 more on “Golf’s Longest Day” of Monday, June 3, with nine of those in the U.S. and one in Canada. Golfers who navigate qualifying will take up most of the rest of the spots. The last few will be left open for multiple PGA Tour winners and the 2024 NCAA champion.
Here’s the USGA’s full list of 22 qualifications for the 2024 U.S. Open:
Winners of the U.S. Open the last 10 years
From the 2023 U.S. Open, the 10 lowest scorers and anyone tying for 10th place
Winner of the 2023 U.S. Senior Open
Winner of the 2023 U.S. Amateur
Winners of the 2023 U.S. Junior Amateur and U.S. Mid-Amateur, and the 2023 U.S. Amateur runner-up (must still be an amateur)
Winners of the Masters Tournament from 2020-2024
Winners of the PGA Championship the last five years (including current year)
Winners of the Open Championship (British Open) from 2022-24
Winner of the 2023 European BMW PGA Championship
Players who qualified and were eligible for the 2023 Tour Championship
Multiple winners of PGA Tour events that award full-point allocation for the FedEx Cup, from the conclusion of the 2023 U.S. Open to the initiation of the 2024 U.S. Open
Top 5 players in the 2024 FedExCup standings as of May 20, 2024, who are not otherwise exempt
Points leader from the 2023 Korn Ferry Tour season
Top two players from the final 2023 Race to Dubai Rankings who are not otherwise exempt as of May 20, 2024
Top player on the 2024 Race to Dubai Rankings as of May 20, 2024 who is not otherwise exempt
Winner of 2023 the Amateur Championship (must be an amateur)
Winner of the 2023 Mark H. McCormack Medal (Men’s World Amateur Golf Ranking who must be an amateur)
Winner of the 2024 NCAA Division I Men’s Individual Golf Championship (must be an amateur)
Winner of the 2024 Latin America Amateur Championship (must be an amateur)
From the current Official World Golf Ranking, the top 60 points leaders and ties as of May 20, 2024.
From the current Official World Golf Ranking, the top 60 points leaders and ties as of June 10, 2024, if not previously exempt
Special exemptions as selected by the USGA. (Deadline for submission of a request was May 15, 2024)
The 2024 U.S. Open will be the 124th edition of the championship.
Here’s what you should expect from the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst.
PINEHURST, N.C. — For many years, the United States Golf Association struggled with the idea of whether a U.S. Open could work at Pinehurst. There were questions about the distance from a major city like Raleigh or Charlotte. Would fans make the trip? How much corporate support could be gathered? Not to mention the agronomics.
In 1999 and 2005, those questions were put to bed as the Cradle of American Golf showed it was worthy and capable of hosting the national open. In 2014 the resort even proved it could host back-to-back majors with both the men’s and women’s U.S. Opens in consecutive weeks.
Next month, the USGA’s flagship championship will return to the Sandhills of North Carolina, June 13-16, for not just the first time in 10 years, but for the first time as an anchor site. Back in 2020, the USGA announced plans to build Golf House Pinehurst less than a par 5 away from the main clubhouse, as well as host five future U.S. Opens at Pinehurst No. 2 in 2024, 2029, 2035, 2041, and 2047. As if this year’s U.S. Open wasn’t special enough for the governing body, the 2024 event will be the USGA’s 1,000th championship.
At the U.S. Open media day held at Pinehurst last week, USGA President Fred Perpall said the new buildings on campus at Pinehurst are “a physical manifestation of a relationship that we hope will last forever.” The USGA has built a new equipment-testing facility, innovation hub, museum and visitors center, as well as an office for 70 of its staff.
Here’s what we learned from the media day with regard to what fans can expect from the 2024 U.S. Open and beyond.
USGA flags flap in the wind during a practice round of the U.S. Open golf tournament at Erin Hills. Mandatory Credit: Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports
Importance of anchor sites
From an outside perspective, it’s a little weird that the USGA has planned out its future U.S. Open host sites until 2051. Chief Championships Officer John Bodenhamer would argue it’s important for the growth of the championship to establish anchor sites like Pinehurst, Oakmont and Pebble Beach in order to continuously improve and not take any steps back.
“We can do so much because we know we’re coming back,” he said. “Golf House Pinehurst and that dream is becoming a reality.”
In addition to the two new buildings that will entertain and teach fans about the history of the game and governing body, the championship has become more sustainable, as well. With its investment in Pinehurst, the USGA has eliminated diesel generators and more than 50,000 gallons of diesel fuel won’t be used due to powerlines underground. New underground waterlines will aid concessions and hospitality venues. It’s all subsurface and additive and spectators will be none the wiser.
“I will tell you that anchor sites come from some mistakes of the past too,” added USGA CEO Mike Whan. The USGA would go to a place like Pinehurst in 1999 or 2014 for the championship, then come back 30 days later for a debrief to talk about what they wish they would’ve done or what could’ve been improved.
“Then we’d come back in 20 years and go, ‘How about if we …’ and nobody that did the last (championship) are there and nobody invested in all those things because they didn’t know we were coming back and we didn’t know,” Whan continued. “So to say to Pinehurst, what if we came back this regularly? Or if Merion knew we were coming back or Pebble Beach didn’t guess if we were coming back in eight years or never coming back. What together would we do to make the championship bigger, better, stronger?”
On top of the sustainability developments, a new championship locker room with a tunnel directly to the first tee has been built beneath the clubhouse.
“So those are kind of things I don’t know that we would invest in. Would we have built a headquarters across the street at a place we weren’t coming back to? Probably not,” said Whan. “We’re investing in our anchor sites and so are they and that makes the long-term excitement of those sites even better.”
Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina (Courtesy of Pinehurst Resort)
Over the next 25 years, the USGA will host a championship at Pinehurst every three years, including the four previously mentioned U.S. Opens. The resort will host the 2027 U.S. Women’s Amateur, 2032 U.S. Junior Amateur and U.S. Girls’ Junior, 2038 U.S. Amateur, 2044 U.S. Women’s Amateur and a future U.S. Adaptive Open.
Golf House Pinehurst opens
Golf House Pinehurst officially opened on Friday, May 10, which includes the USGA’s equipment-testing and research facility, the USGA Experience, an outdoor educational landscape feature, the relocated World Golf Hall of Fame and administrative offices for 70 staff members.
According to the USGA, independent studies estimate the total economic impact of the USGA’s long-term presence in Pinehurst, combined with the USGA championships it will bring as an anchor site, will exceed $2 billion to the state of North Carolina.
The USGA Experience and World Golf Hall of Fame will be open from 10 a.m. ET to 5 p.m. ET Wednesday through Sunday, with extended hours until 8 p.m. ET on Thursdays. Admission is free through the month of June. The Hall of Fame features 170 player lockers with more than 3,000 artifacts on display.
Broadcast plans and digital innovations
Chief Commercial Officer Jon Podany and his team don’t have the same challenges at Pinehurst that a venue like Los Angeles Country Club or the Country Club presented. The USGA feels like this is a home game to showcase their product on their new home turf, and they’ve amplified coverage across the board. First up, let’s take a look at TV and streaming.
“Looking back at 2022 when we were at the Country Club on the East Coast, there was a lot of switching back and forth across NBC, USA and Peacock,” said Podany. “What we’re doing for this year is to simplify that for fans so there’s basically only two networks per day, with one variation on Friday just to get that bonus coverage on Peacock.”
Early round coverage switched to USA from Golf Channel a few years ago because USA has 16 million more households than Golf Channel, which gives the championship a wider reach. There will be more hours of linear coverage than any other major at the U.S. Open, including 47 hours across NBC, USA and Peacock, with another 36 hours of coverage of Live From on Golf Channel and Peacock. NBC’s full talent roster will be involved, including the addition of Roger Maltbie and Gary Koch for all four days. The longtime voices were added to coverage after their successful returns to the Players Championship broadcast earlier this year. Now that he’s off Justin Thomas’ bag, Jim “Bones” Mackay will also return as an on-course reporter.
Golf Channel commentator Jim “Bones” Mackay looks on during the final round of the 2023 Honda Classic at PGA National Champion course in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo: Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
“The expanded number of options for how fans can view the championship, whether that’s the main television screen or second screen on digital, our web and app offerings, you can really follow every shot by every player in a lot of different ways,” explained Podany. “I think fans will enjoy that.”
With golf, the commercial load on broadcasts is always a topic of discussion. Podany said the USGA and NBC are working together to reduce the number of interruptions on broadcasts over the four days.
“We did take steps in the early round coverage last year, and we will be taking those steps on USA, whether that’s the number of promotions we have from the USGA standpoint, NBC’s promotions, commercial interruptions, the number of breaks we take, we are looking at all that to try to present the telecast to the viewers in the best way possible,” said Podany, who also noted that NBC will make the Sky Sports feed available on Peacock (Sky has far less in-action interruptions). The final hour on Sunday will once again be commercial-free thanks to Rolex.
“It’s a balancing act, obviously, because for us and for our broadcast partners it’s gotta make financial sense, so we need commercials within the broadcast,” explained Podany. “Honestly if you look at the breaks per hour on a golf tournament, it’s better than the NFL, college football, NBA. The difference is we don’t have timeouts and natural breaks, coverage is still going on. There has to be a little bit of acceptance of that but we’re trying to improve it as best we can.”
The USGA wanted to provide as many options as possible for fans to take in the U.S. Open, so there will be three featured groups on the digital stream as well as the return of All-Access on Peacock, a RedZone-type channel that will air live highlights on Thursday and Friday.
On-course conditions will be ‘firm and fast’
The U.S. Open is known for being the toughest test in golf with long courses, narrow fairways and heavy rough. The challenge posed to players at this year’s championship will be slightly different. In lieu of long rough will be thousands of wire grass plants in sandy native areas that will make shot execution as much of a mental test as a physical one.
“With Pinehurst No. 2 we feel that the golf course is always close to U.S. Open ready,” said Tom Pashley, the President of Pinehurst Resort. “We don’t have to grow up the rough, we don’t have to narrow the fairways. We focus on firming up the conditions and making sure it’s fast. Now with Bermuda grass greens instead of Bent grass greens, we can’t wait to see how the Donald Ross greens perform under U.S. Open conditions.”
The fifth hole at Pinehurst No. 2 in Pinehurst, North Carolina. (Photo: Fred Vuich/USGA)
Aside from the Bermuda grass, not much will be different from the 2014 U.S. Open. The only other material change will show on the par-4 13th hole, where the fairway was narrowed by 12 yards. The landing area on the 381-yard hole will be around 28 yards wide.
As a whole, No. 2 will play to 7,540 yards from the back tees with a par of 70. The distance is flexible from 7,300-7,500 yards depending on the weather and wind. Putting greens will be rolling 13 plus on the Stimpmeter and the course will be quick, firm and fast.
“We’re known for toughness, and you’ll see it right here on No. 2 in just a few days. But a lot of people have a misconception about tough but fair,” Bodenhamer explained. “It does not mean that our goal is for the winner to shoot even par, but it does mean that we want that winner to get every club in his bag dirty when he wins a U.S. Open, including the club between the ears.”
“We want to test every part of their game. We want them to hit it high, low, left to right, right to left. We want them to think about their golf ball. What happens to when it hits the ground, not just in the air,” he added. “We don’t come in and put a cookie-cutter USGA approach on these great golf courses. We stay true to what Donald Ross intended and the great architects of these great vigils intended.”
“We want players to be able to control the golf ball on the ground, not just in the air.”
It’s not like we were gonna see him attempting the one-day, 36-hole qualifier.
When recency bias locks arms with a sporting idol and mixes with today’s wall-to-wall media landscape, you get these things.
Therefore, it’s natural for anyone in a post-Baby Boomer generation to assume, if Tiger Woods has never done it, it’s never been done.
And that’s why so many folks have just become familiar with something called the Special Exemption, which has nothing to do with the tax code or even transferable student debt.
Last week, the U.S. Golf Association offered Tiger an exemption into this year’s U.S. Open — June 13-16 on the historic No. 2 course in the North Carolina hamlet of Pinehurst. The ever-hopeful legion of Tiger fans as well as longtime onlookers did a double-take at the headline.
“What? Tiger Woods wasn’t automatically eligible for the U.S. Open? It’s been that long?”
Time flies, even when you’re limping along.
Of the four majors, the Masters and PGA Championship offer lifetime entries to past champs, though they reserve the right to serve up an “ahem” once a past champ’s golfing acumen starts teetering toward self-embarrassment.
Roughly a third of the 156-man field for the U.S. Open gets there through local and regional qualifiers (this is what makes it “Open”), but for the better established, the Open has many eligibility avenues, including a 10-year exemption for anyone winning the tournament.
Tiger’s 2008 U.S. Open victory exemption ended in 2018 but he maintained automatic entry for another five years with his 2019 Masters win, which carried him through the 2023 U.S. Open, which was the third straight he’d skipped due to ongoing physical issues.
And just like that, here we are in the ongoing, unapologetic and undefeated march of Father Time: Tiger needs a special exemption. It’s not like we were gonna see him attempting the one-day, 36-hole qualifier.
While Tiger’s universal fan base might be saddened a bit at reaching this unfortunate milepost, others will suggest this is nothing but a show of favoritism and quite likely just a nod to the broadcasting network and other promoters.
Well, yeah, of course. And by the way, it’s not the first time. Or the last, most likely.
The first special exemption went to four-time Open champ Ben Hogan in 1966 (his diehards insist he won five Opens, but that’s another story for another day). It was 11 years before the USGA granted another, and in ’77 they actually handed out three — to Sam Snead, Tommy Bolt and Julius Boros.
Arnold Palmer on the 18th hole during the 1978 U.S. Open at the Cherry Hills Country Club in Denver.
Arnold Palmer accepted the first of four straight exemptions in 1978, and Jack Nicklaus would become a regular grantee in the ’90s, but Arnie being Arnie, even when exemptions and automatic entries weren’t available, he was the rare golfing god who wasn’t above trying to earn his way into the championship through the grueling one-day qualifier.
Hell, Arnie was shy of 40 and still winning tournaments when he made the Open through a qualifier in 1969. The King’s successful qualifying effort was chronicled brilliantly in Sports Illustrated (remember that?) by Curry Kirkpatrick.
Thus the biggest name in golf was forced to play 36 holes at McKeesport alongside a bunch of people – Harry Harold, Billy Capps, Herky Smith – whose names sound like disc jockeys and others who played out of places like the Host Farm Resort Motel.
Arnie would finish sixth in that year’s U.S. Open (Orville Moody made it his lone PGA Tour victory) and maintained his yearly eligibility through ’76, qualified again in ’77 and began a four-year run of special exemptions in ’78. After that, even deep into his 50s, he continued trying to qualify, though unsuccessfully.
No one expects to see Tiger trudging through 36 holes of qualifying in the future. In fact, after watching his Saturday-Sunday struggles at the 2024 Masters, the gravediggers are back to burying his golfing future entirely – is this the third or fourth time?
But assuming Tiger can putt a lick on Pinehurst’s infamous turtle-back greens, he has a couple of things on his side. June in Pinehurst is warm-to-hot, and the course is practically a boardwalk compared to, say, Augusta National and its 1-through-18 elevation changes.
Oh, there’s also some history on his side. Just a sliver, but still, some history. In 1990, Hale Irwin was 11 years removed from his second U.S. Open victory when he accepted a special exemption. At 45, he became the oldest Open champ.
Of course, it needs to be said. Irwin was a few years younger than Tiger, but more importantly he was healthy and a PGA Tour rarity – an actual athlete who’d been a two-time All-Big Eight defensive back at Colorado.
At Medinah in ’90, Irwin also had to work 91 holes – an 18-hole Monday playoff with Mike Donald was forced to sudden death, where Irwin won with birdie on the first hole.
There’s indeed no free lunch, Irwin learned, but a seat at the table is always appreciated and can pay off.
We’ll know more about Tiger’s appetite for major-championship golf after the PGA Championship in Louisville, where the Valhalla Golf Club is blanketed by Kentucky hardwoods but hardly a walk in the park.
Whan said the governing body’s competition committee has held conversations about creating new criteria for LIV.
LIV Golf players have been clamoring for new exemption criteria to gain access to the four major championships, and while none have been created for this year’s events, one executive said he could envision a future pathway for players.
United States Golf Association CEO Mike Whan said the governing body’s competition committee has held conversations about creating new criteria for LIV players and also explained why one hasn’t been implemented just yet during the USGA’s media day on Monday ahead of the 2024 U.S. Open next month.
When the USGA was reviewing its criteria for this year’s championship, June 13-16 at Pinehurst No. 2, at the time it looked like the game was heading toward consolidation as the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund continued their discussions following last year’s shocking framework agreement. Instead of making a rash decision, the championship committee decided to let 2024 play out, thus the criteria remain unchanged.
“If you asked me a year ago, ‘What’s it going to be like in three months?’ I would have confidently given you an answer. I would have been confidently wrong,” Whan told Golfweek. “If LIV stays as a separate entity and keeps the quality of players that it’s got, can I envision a pathway to the U.S. Open through LIV? I can, but I’d like to see what the final product is, and we’re just not exactly sure we know that yet.”
As of last week, 36 LIV players have entered U.S. Open qualifying while 11 have not. Eight players are already exempt into the third men’s major of the year: Bryson DeChambeau, Tyrrell Hatton, Dustin Johnson, Martin Kaymer, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith.
On Monday, the PGA of America announced its field for next week’s 2024 PGA Championship, which will feature 16 LIV players, six of whom received special invites: Dean Burmester, Talor Gooch, Lucas Herbert, Adrian Meronk, David Puig and Patrick Reed.
The USGA has given out one special invitation to three-time U.S. Open champion Tiger Woods for this year’s championship, and the organization isn’t expected to hand out any more for 2024. As a championship with qualifying, it’s easy to understand why the USGA isn’t inviting more players. The same goes for the R&A and the Open Championship.
Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said players shouldn’t hold their breath for new Masters qualification criteria earlier this year, but the green jackets did reward Joaquin Niemann with one of three special invitations due to his efforts to qualify via the Official World Golf Ranking and his performance in events outside of LIV.
It appears the PGA of America has done the same with some of its six invites. Herbert, Meronk and Reed are all still inside the top 100 of the OWGR. Burmester won twice on the DP World Tour at the end of 2023 and Puig has teed it up in a handful of Asian Tour events to earn points. Gooch, however, has only played LIV events and said last week he’s one of the 11 who won’t try and earn his way into the U.S. Open after he was boxed out last year.
LIV events have never earned OWGR points, and the league withdrew its application earlier this year. As past champion exemptions start to run out for some of the league’s best players, those who made the jump are growing increasingly desperate for ways to access the majors. While the majority of LIV’s 54-player field will try to play their way into the U.S. Open, the calls for special treatment from those who don’t will continue to fall on deaf ears.
Chamblee has been a staple of Golf Channel’s “Live From” show after the completion of play at the majors.
Brandel Chamblee recently compared trying to replace Johnny Miller as lead analyst on NBC Sports to following late comedian Robin Williams on stage.
“It’s just not going to look good no matter who you are because Johnny was a god at that role, and I think that was probably – it’s going to be troubling for anybody in that role,” he said in an interview with Golfweek in March.
Well, Chamblee will get to experience that feeling for himself as NBC announced on Monday that the 61-year-old Tour pro turned broadcaster will work alongside lead golf play-by-play voice Dan Hicks at the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club (No. 2 course) across NBC, Peacock and USA Network.
Mike Tirico will also work alongside analyst Brad Faxon in NBC’s four-man booth.
“This year we began utilizing an odd/even system of hole assignments for our commentator pairings,” said Sam Flood, executive producer and president, production, NBC Sports. “Our new approach lets our play-by-play announcers give more context for what’s happening, while creating more opportunities for our analysts and on-course reporters to engage with each other and break down the ‘why’ and the ‘how’ before and after each moment.”
Chamblee has been a staple of Golf Channel’s “Live From” show after the completion of play at the majors. Speaking in March, he said he wasn’t opposed to doing double duty.
NBC has been rotating broadcasters this season since deciding not to renew Paul Azinger’s contract.
NBC also announced that Jim “Bones” Mackay and Roger Maltbie will return as on-course reporters and Gary Koch will serve as an analyst. Mackay was lead analyst at the Mexico Open and worked on Golf Channel’s coverage of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. He and Justin Thomas parted ways in April, and he hasn’t hooked up as a caddie for a new player yet. Maltbie and Koch worked at the Players Championship in March during the opening two rounds.
In all, NBC will provide more than 200-plus hours of programming of the U.S. Open, held June 13-16.
There are 11 LIV players who won’t try to qualify for the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst.
U.S. Open qualifying is just around the corner, and LIV Golf players were asked about their plans ahead of this week’s event in Singapore.
During a Smash GC press conference featuring captain Brooks Koepka and his teammates Jason Kokrak, Graeme McDowell and Talor Gooch, both McDowell and Kokrak revealed they were playing in qualifiers for both the U.S. Open at Pinehurst (June 13-16) and Open Championship at Royal Troon (July 18-21).
“I personally am. Doing the U.S. Open in Columbus and then the Open in Manchester,” said Kokrak. “I plan on playing both of them.”
“Yeah, I’m the same. I’ve entered for both qualifiers. I think I’m in Florida Monday of Houston and then just south of London the Tuesday of the International Series Morocco, which I’ll go and play right after the Open qualifying series,” added McDowell. “Obviously I’ll be pulling hard (Koepka) in a couple weeks’ time (at the PGA Championship) but obviously trying to get into a couple majors myself.”
Gooch was short and sour with his response: “I’m not.”
After he was denied a spot in last year’s U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club after the USGA altered its exemption criteria, instead of fighting to try to earn his way again, Gooch tucked tail and decided to play the martyr instead of a qualifier. He’s doing the same again this year.
As of Thursday, 36 LIV players have entered U.S. Open qualifying while 11 have not. Eight players are already exempt into the third men’s major of the year: Bryson DeChambeau, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm, Cameron Smith, Martin Kaymer and Tyrrell Hatton.
Players like Mickelson and DeChambeau have called for the majors to create special exemption categories for LIV players, who have been fighting an uphill battle with regard to access to majors seeing as LIV events don’t receive Official World Golf Ranking points. The league has since pulled its application from consideration, all but closing that door as a way into the biggest tournaments on the calendar. Past champions of the Masters and the PGA have at least two set in stone, but the pair of Opens may require some effort from here on out.
While some players like Joaquin Niemann have continued to fight to play their way in, others expect to be given handouts. Golf has always been a meritocracy, you receive what you earn. The U.S. Open qualifier number shows the majority of LIV players understand that fact, but a handful still need a reminder.
