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Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior Writer
PGA Tour member Jason Dufner, the 2013 PGA Championship winner, is among the 73 players who are in the field for next month’s LIV Golf League Promotions event in Abu Dhabi, the league announced Thursday.
Dufner, 46, played a full schedule on the PGA Tour this past season, making 13 of 33 cuts and earning about $525,000. A five-time winner on tour, his last victory came at the Memorial in 2017. He finished 172nd in FedEx Cup points this past season and is currently ranked 543rd in the Official World Golf Ranking.
Other PGA Tour members in the LIV Golf League Promotions tournament are Kyle Stanley, a two-time winner on tour, and former Ryder Cup participant Jeff Overton. Chris Stroud, Martin Trainer and Kevin Chappell also signed up to play at Abu Dhabi Golf Club from Dec. 8-10.
It’s unclear how many of the PGA Tour members were granted media releases by the tour to compete in the LIV Golf Promotions event. They are required to request releases 45 days in advance; it’s 15 days for Korn Ferry Tour members. Any releases requested after the deadline will be denied.
The top three finishers in the 72-hole tournament will be drafted onto LIV Golf teams next season, which starts in Mexico on Feb. 2.
Fourteen players earned exemptions into the second round, including Dufner. That group also includes former LIV Golf League players Sihwan Kim, Chase Koepka, Jed Morgan, James Piot and reserve Laurie Canter, who will have to play their way back onto the circuit by finishing in the top three.
Nearly 60 players without exemptions will compete in the first round, with the top 20 finishers and ties advancing to the second round. Scores will be reset and players with exemptions will join the field. The top 20 finishers after tiebreakers move on to the final round. Scores will reset again, and players will compete over 36 holes on Sunday.
“LIV Golf Promotions creates an open pathway for players to compete in the LIV Golf League, and the interest shown in the event’s inaugural year reinforces the significance of these new opportunities for the sport,” LIV Golf commissioner and CEO Greg Norman said in a statement. “There is exceptional talent from all corners of the globe and LIV Golf is establishing a platform for these current and rising stars of the game to build their careers in new, exciting ways.”