‘I thought LIV players were supposed to be banned for life’
Player tells Woods to ‘not drive a car and get a chauffeur’
The honorary first drive wasn’t the only shot Tom Watson played on the first morning of the 2026 Masters. Moments after taking part in the ceremony Watson, who won eight majors, lambasted the PGA Tour over its recent decision to allow Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed to return from LIV Golf.
Watson said by reinstating Reed and Koepka the Tour had reneged on the promises they made to the players who had remained loyal to them during the schism. “I thought the LIV players, when they left, were supposed to be banned for life,” he said.
Watson said that if he were running things, Reed, Koepka and anyone else who wants to return would have to qualify through playing on the Korn Ferry Tour. “If I was the commissioner, that’s what I’d do.” Koepka made his return to the PGA Tour after four years with LIV at the Farmers Insurance Open in January. Reed is due to rejoin next year.
