Robert Garrigus, currently 1,043rd in the Official Golf World Rankings, is believed to be the first player to ask the PGA Tour for a conflicting event release in the hope of playing in the Saudi-backed tour's inaugural event at the Centurion Club in Hertfordshire in June
Tuesday 19 April 2022 23:47, UK
Robert Garrigus, ranked 1,043rd in the world, has requested permission from the PGA Tour to play in the first LIV Golf Invitational tournament.
Garrigus, believed to be the first player to request a conflicting event release from the PGA Tour, confirmed the news initially reported by American publication Golfweek ahead of playing this week's Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
The 44-year-old, who has not played a full PGA Tour season since 2018, would not comment further about potentially contesting the $25million Super Golf League event at the Centurion Club in Hertfordshire in June, however.
"I am grateful to have been given a sponsor exemption into this week's event and I just want to focus on playing the best I can," Garrigus told The Golf Channel.
Garrigus joined the PGA Tour in 2006 and won his sole title to date in the Children's Miracle Network Classic in 2010.
He currently holds limited status on the Tour as a veteran and a past champion. He has made just four starts this season, with his best finish being a tie for 16th at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
PGA Tour members are required to obtain a waiver to compete in events held on other circuits. Applications must be submitted at least 45 days before the first round of the tournament.
With the first event of the Saudi-backed series set to get underway on June 9 in the UK, that leaves any other potential entrants until Monday, April 25 to apply for a waiver to take part.
The LIV Golf Invitational Series - also referred to as the Super Golf League - is being spearheaded by former world No 1 Greg Norman and backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund but has yet to attract any of the game's top names.
Rory McIlroy declared the project "dead in the water" after Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau joined the list of players pledging their loyalty to the PGA Tour in February, shortly after Phil Mickelson admitted he was using the threat of a breakaway to "reshape" how the Tour operates.
Mickelson is taking a break from golf following the fall-out from his comments, with the six-time major winner also accusing the PGA Tour of "obnoxious greed" and acting like a "dictatorship".
Norman hopes top players will see lesser lights cashing in - the first prize at Centurion Club is $4million - and then be persuaded to take part themselves.
Earlier this month, Norman told The Telegraph: "A few of our events will go by and the top players will see someone winning 6million, 8million and say 'enough is enough, I know I can beat these guys week in week out with my hands tied behind my back'."
Following the inaugural tournament in Hertfordshire, four further events are scheduled in the USA from July to September, followed by tournaments in Thailand and Saudi Arabia in October.
