The reasons these three athletes will benefit from Jon Rahm’s LIV golf transfer
In golf, one player’s loss is another player’s gain. And really, Jon Rahm’s loss (or gain, depending on how you look at it) is a lot of player gains. At least when it comes to the FedEx Cup.
Rahm was immediately suspended from the PGA Tour because of his longtime commitment to LIV Golf, according to a memo sent to tour members late Monday. This is old news to anyone who has watched the talk between fighting tournaments in recent years.
Despite ongoing negotiations between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, LIV Golf is still a nonsensical tournament in the eyes of tour commissioner Jay Monahan. LIV Golf is an “unsanctioned tournament series” and participation or participation will be grounds for suspension.
The tour has now become adept at reacting to player fluctuations, so it acted quickly, suspending Rahm and informing all other members that all players below Rahm in the 2023 FedEx Cup rankings will now move up a spot. It was big news for several pros who checked the standings and saw Rahm’s name removed from the FedEx Cup list. Mackenzie Hughes finished the 2023 season with two birdies to tie for 51st in the FedEx Cup and unofficially become the first Mr. Mr. It was recorded as 51.
He missed qualifying for the 2024 Signature Event, which features the strongest contenders in non-main events that carry big money. Players who participate in signature events are twice as likely to win as players who do not participate in those events.
Hughes knew this all too well in recent months and had to accept his fate. However, with Rahm’s departure, Hughes replaced Mr. Mr. 51st out of 50, qualified for every 2024 signature event.
Suddenly, Hughes’ schedule changed completely. Now he gets to play in much more limited mega-purse events against some of the best players in the world. For a player looking to compete in the Presidents Cup for the first time, this is a big step. And he is not alone. Rahm’s decision also cost Alex Smalley his spot. 60 counts for nobody, but Smalley will compete in his second and third events in 2024: the Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the Genesis Invitational.
Smalley missed that invitation, falling one spot short of the FedEx Cup Fall Series. As this year’s top 50 players know, a great performance or two at a signature event can solidify their status for 2025.
The last and most significant update was Carl Yuan, who went from 126 to 125 to earn permanent status on the 2024 PGA Tour. It’s hard to tell the difference, but I’ll try here.
If you are outside the top 125 in the FedEx Cup but are ranked between 126 and 150, you are granted “provisional” status. You can maintain your tournament membership and register for tournament events. It is truly amazing! However, if a player with a higher ranking registers, they will take priority and may be excluded from the tournament. Not too well. In fact, every Korn Ferry Tour graduate is automatically ahead in the hunt for tour start locations.
Conditional status often allows players to compete for tournament tickets through other means, such as qualifying on Monday, applying for a sponsorship exemption, etc. For those at the bottom of the tournament standings, it’s a dog-eat-dog world. I play a lot of lower-ranked tournaments like the Puerto Rico Open or the Punta Cana Championship. Yuan has given up now. No, he won’t be attending autograph events unless he wants to. But he wants to know how to play the role of Mr. Seed. 126. Exactly one month later, the 2024 season begins with the Sony Open.
