‘LIV would have to do something drastic’: Former college star praises PGA Tour U program changes

The PGA Tour University program was originally designed to identify the best college players in order to give them playing opportunities and exemptions on the PGA Tour’s second-tier tours, like the Korn Ferry Tour, PGA Tour Canada and PGA Tour Latinoamerica.

The program started in 2020, enabling top college seniors to earn status on the above-mentioned Tours according to their ranking. But recently-announced modifications to the program have now made it possible for PGA Tour U’s top player to earn instant PGA Tour membership, and even provides a pathway for underclassman to earn their way on tour via a points system. (Starting in 2024, players will also again have the opportunity to earn a PGA Tour card via Q-School.)

Given LIV Golf’s high-profile signing of top-ranked amateur players like Eugenio Chacarra and David Puig, many view the changes as a shrewd move by the PGA Tour in an effort to retain young talent.

Cole Hammer understands this first-hand. The two-time Walker Cupper and University of Texas alum turned professional in June after helping the Longhorns win the 2022 NCAA Division I team championship.

Hammer is currently competing on the Korn Ferry Tour, and on this week’s episode of Subpar, he told hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz that he would have relished the opportunity to compete for a PGA Tour card in college — and it will be tough for LIV to come up with a suitable counter-offer for young players.

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“LIV would have to do something drastic to get those guys away from the PGA Tour U program,” Hammer said. “When I was a sophomore in college and someone came up to me and told me there was a PGA Tour card on the line if you finish No. 1 in your class your senior year? I stayed already, but there’s no question in my mind that I would stay. And I’d do it a hundred times over. It’s too good of an opportunity.

“I think the PGA Tour’s really smart to do this, to combat — I don’t know if it’s directly correlated with LIV or whatnot — but I think it’s a great program that will definitely convince a lot of guys to stay.”

For more from Hammer, including what it was like to play in the U.S. Open at only 15 years old, and the perks of staying at Texas for four years, check out the full interview below.

Golf.com Editor

As a four-year member of Columbia’s inaugural class of female varsity golfers, Jessica can out-birdie everyone on the masthead. She can out-hustle them in the office, too, where she’s primarily responsible for producing both print and online features, and overseeing major special projects, such as GOLF’s inaugural Style Is­sue, which debuted in February 2018. Her origi­nal interview series, “A Round With,” debuted in November of 2015, and appeared in both in the magazine and in video form on GOLF.com.

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