Rory McIlroy is in. Jon Rahm, too. Ninety-four pros in all.
None, though, has played for LIV Golf.
One of golf’s most exclusive events, the pro-member at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida, will play its latest edition on Monday, and its field again is star-studded, as seen by the tee sheet that was shared by golf website The Fried Egg. PGA Tour stars McIlroy, Rahm, Justin Thomas, Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, and LPGA star Lexi Thompson, are among those playing with Seminole members, whose ranks include powerbrokers from the game, the Major League Baseball commissioner and Tom Brady.
What it’s like playing Seminole Golf Club, host of the 2021 Walker Cup
Not in attendance, though, are those who play for Saudi-backed LIV, which is playing its season-opening event this weekend in Mexico. Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia and Bubba Watson are among those who played in the pro-member last year, but, after each joined LIV, are out this year.
The LIV exclusion had been reported by Golfweek’s Eamon Lynch, who wrote that the decision was made by Jimmy Dunne, president at Seminole and one of the game’s more popular powerbrokers. Dunne joined the PGA Tour’s policy board as an independent director at the beginning of the year — and has made his opinions about LIV Golf clear.
“LIV, I think it’s an exhibition tour,” Dunne told Sports Illustrated in June. “Charl Schwartzel, he’s a delightful, elegant guy. The last time he won was in 2016. He goes out and wins the first thing? I mean, come on.”
The pro-member is not without stars, though; many of the pros will play three days later at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, one of the PGA Tour’s newly named designated events. And then there is the course itself — Seminole is ranked No. 21 on GOLF’s latest list of the Top 100 courses in the U.S., and the private club is as exclusive as they come. (Click here for more background on the Seminole Pro-Member, and click here for photos of Seminole.)
There is one issue with the event, which started in 1937 and is a two-person best-ball with gross and net divisions:
It’s not broadcast on TV. But we can view the tee sheet, thanks to The Fried Egg, and you can do so below.
