Tiger Woods: PGA Tour creates special exemption for US golfer to participate in ‘lifetime achievement’ events

CNN
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The PGA Tour announced Tuesday that it had made a special exception for Tiger Woods only, allowing qualification for certain events on the schedule.

The Sponsor Exemption for Lifetime Achievement allows players with 80 or more PGA Tour victories to qualify for Signature Events.

Woods is the only active player to fall into this category with 82 career wins. The 15-time Major champion is tied with Sam Snead for the most PGA Tour wins ever.

The PGA Tour said it implemented this to “recognize Tiger Woods in his own category.”

The changes were approved following a meeting between PGA Tour policy and Enterprises Boards in Hartford, Connecticut.

The eight ‘Signature Events’ on the PGA Tour are the most important tournaments on the tour schedule, with more prize money and more FedExCup points up for grabs.

FedExCup points are accumulated throughout the year, with the top 70 players qualifying for the Playoffs at the end of the season. Last year there was a whopping $75 million prize pool for the tournament, with the winner earning $18 million.

The eight Signature Events on the PGA Tour calendar are The Sentry, AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, The Genesis Invitational – a tournament Woods has hosted in recent years – the Arnold Palmer Invitational, RBC Heritage, Wells Fargo Championship, The Memorial Tournament and the Travelers Championship.

Woods previously won the Arnold Palmer Invitational eight times and the Memorial Tournament five times.

However, after suffering serious leg injuries in a car accident in 2021, Woods has not been able to play golf regularly every season and would therefore typically not qualify for these events.

The 48-year-old has played in just four tournaments this year: the Genesis Invitational and the three majors. He withdrew from the second round of the Genesis in February, finished 60th at the Masters and missed the cut at both the PGA Championship and the US Open.

The other change the PGA Tour announced on Tuesday was that all Signature Events would have a minimum field of 72 players.