The domino effect of the latest LIV Golf signings was felt on Friday when six tour pros hoping to somehow keep their status on the PGA Tour for the 2022-23 season became the beneficiaries of the latest round of defections.
After hitting their opening tee shots in the first round of the LIV Golf Invitational Boston, Cameron Smith, Joaquin Niemann, Marc Leishman, Anirban Lahiri, Harold Varner III and Cameron Tringale were immediately suspended by the PGA Tour, as has been the case for all tour members who have competed in LIV Golf’s three previous events. In turn, the tour announced that the six players would be removed from the 2021-22 FedEx Cup Playoffs and Eligibility points list.
As a result six new players now moved inside the top 125 on the points list and thus had qualified for full PGA Tour cards for the upcoming season that beings in two weeks at the Fortinet Championship.
Returning to the PGA Tour in 2022-23 are: Matt Wallace, Austin Smotherman, Justin Lower, Doc Redman, Danny Willett and Kelly Kraft, each now positioned at Nos. 120-125 on the points list. In addition to their full exemptions on tour, they are eligible to compete in the Players Championship next March.
Three of the players—Lower, Redman and Kraft—currently ranked inside the top 32 in the Korn Ferry Finals Eligibility Points list. The top 25 on that points list after this weekend’s Korn Ferry Tour Championship will receive PGA Tour cards for next season as well. The trio have been dropped, however, from that points list since they cannot improve their tour status in the KFT finals.
The final FedEx Cup Playoffs and Eligibility Points List for the 2021-22 season will be finalized at 5 p.m. ET on Sept. 9.