Five-time Major winner Brooks Koepka has returned to the PGA Tour after agreeing to stringent restrictions on his financial benefits and a charitable donation of $5 million.
And the Tour has offered a “one-time, defined window” for fellow big names Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cam Smith to reapply for membership in what appears to be a power-play against LIV.
The 35-year-old Koepka dropped a bombshell last month by quitting LIV Golf with a year of his contract remaining, stating he wanted to spend more time with his family.
He immediately applied for his PGA Tour membership to be reinstated, and his availability and high profile effectively caused officials to rewrite their own rules.
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They have instigated a Returning Member Programme, which has been specifically designed for Koepka and his former LIV colleagues as it applies to players who have won any of the four majors or the Players Championship between 2022 and 2025.
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DeChambeau, Rahm and Smith have a deadline of February 2nd to apply for reinstatement if they want to feature this season, with “no promise this path will be available again”, according to PGA Tour chief executive Brian Rolapp in an open letter.
Rolapp said the new policy has “strict limitations, which Brooks has agreed to, [including] a five-year forfeiture of potential equity in the PGA Tour’s Player Equity Program… with estimations that he could miss out on approximately 50-85 million US dollars in potential earnings.”
The letter added: “At the request of the PGA Tour, Brooks has also agreed to make a five-million dollar charitable contribution, the recipient(s) of which will be determined jointly.”
