While the move to LIV Golf has been lucrative for nearly every player involved, it’s also come with the problem of not getting OWGR points and subsequently, struggling to guarantee entry into the majors.
The LIV problem with OWGR continues to be an issue they cannot seem to iron out and until they change to a 72-hole format, it looks like nothing will shift on that front.
Over time, that means a number of their star names will tumble down the rankings, meaning they’ll fall away from qualification for majors and big events like the Ryder Cup.
Thankfully for the LIV tour and certain stars on there, a few of them have already done the business in the past to ensure they’re exempt for the time being, or at least into 2025.
Here, then, we’ve looked at the SIX players on LIV Golf who are fully exempt for the 2025 major season and why.
Brooks Koepka
Koepka’s win at the PGA Championship in 2023 means he’s still just a year into the automatic five-year major exemption players get for winning one.
That won’t expire now until 2028, meaning Koepka has ample time to win again and prolong his stay.
Dustin Johnson
The former Masters winner is exempt for life when it comes to Augusta but he is one of the players over on LIV who is struggling to make many more majors.
Johnson’s win at the 2020 Masters ensured a five-year exemption to the other three but that will end this year unless he can somehow win.
With poor form and a seemingly lack of interest from ‘DJ’, it seems unlikely he’ll do that.
Bryson DeChambeau
There are no such problems for this year’s US Open winner Bryson DeChambeau, whose dramatic win over Rory McIlroy at Pinehurst ensures him another five years in the majors.
With how DeChambeau is playing and his popularity in the game ever increasing, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him win again in the next five years.
Jon Rahm
Spanish sensation Rahm shocked the golfing world when he signed a mega-money deal with LIV Golf but he’s proven to be a real hit, winning multiple events on his first year on the tour.
Rahm can play in the Masters for life while he can also play the US Open until 2031. With The Open and the PGA, Rahm has until 2028 to win one of those for a third major title.
Phil Mickelson
For Phil Mickelson, there isn’t much more to achieve and his big issue comes in trying to finally win a US Open.
Mickelson can compete in the Masters and the PGA for life after winning them, while he can also rock up at The Open until he’s 60.
The US Open has eluded him though and now in his final year of being exempt for the event, Mickelson is looking at a now or never moment really.
Should Mickelson somehow manage to do it, it would be one of the biggest shocks in golf history.
Cameron Smith
Popular Aussie Cam Smith has been another roaring success on LIV Golf and his team’s win in Adelaide this year was a memorable one.
However, he only has until 2026 to win another major and extend his exemption.
Smith won The Open at St. Andrews back in 2021 so is set there until he is 60. But for the rest, he needs some big finishes to ensure he can keep playing the big ones beyond 2026.
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