Tom Watson Slams PGA Tour for Allowing LIV Golf Defectors to Return

Golf legend Tom Watson has expressed his disappointment with the PGA Tour's decision to welcome back players who defected to the LIV Golf League. The PGA Tour introduced a programme allowing a select group of top performers to return, with Brooks Koepka taking advantage of the offer after leaving LIV Golf at the end of last season. Koepka agreed to make a $5m charitable donation as part of his reinstatement, while Patrick Reed is also set to return after leaving LIV Golf earlier this year. Watson feels that the PGA Tour has reneged on its promise to ban players who left for LIV Golf, stating that if he were commissioner, he would have banned them for life. The Returning Member Program, created by PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp, was also offered to Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, and Cameron Smith, who all remain on LIV Golf. Watson believes that when players left for LIV Golf, they violated the number one rule of protecting sponsors, who need top players to promote their tournaments. Reed, who confirmed his LIV Golf departure just days before the start of the 2026 season, is set to play on the DP World Tour until he is eligible to make his PGA Tour return, stating that he wants to compete against the best players in the world on the PGA Tour.