With Saudi Arabia-funded riches on offer, Patrick Reed become one of the marque names to leave the PGA Tour to join LIV Golf last summer, and the American has opened up on the reasons behind his switch
Patrick Reed has revealed the chance to become a ‘worldwide player’ was one of the key reasons behind his decision to leave the PGA Tour to join LIV Golf.
Reed proved to be one of LIV’s biggest coups in 2022, after the nine-time PGA Tour winner and 2018 Masters champion opted to sign on the dotted line with Greg Norman and co. Like many of his fellow rebel players, Reed was accused of chasing the eye-watering amounts of money on offer to join the breakaway league.
There is no doubt the Saudi-funded series has changed the face of professional golf with its lucrative prize pots, and Reed has more than taken advantage, earning a cool £17.5 million in just 22 LIV events.
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Despite the riches on offer, Reed has insisted the chance to play golf around the world was too good to turn down. The American made the claim after the Asian Tour announced it had added yet another event to its International Series schedule, the the circuit heading to Macau in 2024.
“Being a worldwide player is something that has always been important to me,” Reed said. It is one of the reasons I joined LIV Golf and why I enjoy playing The International Series events on the Asian Tour. It’s exciting to come to new places to grow the game and to make golf a truly global sport.”
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Throughout his career Reed has been a player who has made an effort to compete across the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, before losing his playing rights after joining LIV. In the meantime he has since turned his attention to the Asian Tour and turned out at last week’s Hong Kong Open, finishing in a tie for 15th.
Soon enough Reed may well get the chance to spread four professional tours across his season, with the PGA Tour and DP World Tour in talks to end their dispute with LIV Golf by signing a framework agreement with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF). It remains to be seen what will come from the deal, but it is expected LIV players will be offered some pathway back to their former tours.
Clearly keen to take advantage of any opportunity that comes in any post-framework agreement he said per Golfweek in July: “Where I play, who knows. If I play PGA Tour, LIV, or if I played European Tour. The biggest thing is there should be no reason why if we’ve qualified well we shouldn’t be able to.
“People say you can’t make your cake and eat it, as well, but how many PGA Tour players go over and play a European Tour for money? They’re getting appearance fees. They’re not showing up to play for competition. They’re getting paid to do that.
“It shouldn’t matter as long as you play the minimum and do what you’re supposed to, you play, and that’s fine. If you play the minimum on the European Tour and you earn enough points to keep your card, you should be able to play. If you play the minimum on the PGA Tour and you have enough FedExCup points to keep your card, more power to you.”
Since joining the LIV setup Reed has impressed for the most part, having won the Team Championship in 2022 with the 4Aces, before finishing fourth in 2022 and sixth in 2023 in the season-long individual standings.
