“It is why I joined LIV” - Patrick Reed says it was hard to be a worldwide player on the PGA Tour
Patrick Reed has taken an indirect jibe on the PGA Tour while lauding LIV Golf. The golfer, speaking ahead of this week’s Hong Kong Open, said that was hard to be a worldwide player on the American circuit. He credited his ambition to become a ‘worldwide player’ as the reason for his LIV move.
Reed features in the stacked field in Hong Kong alongside other LIV Golf stars like Cameron Smith. Opening up on the Asian Tour event, the golfer noted that he moved to the European Tour and later to the Saudi-backed series because of the lack of variety and opportunity on the PGA Tour. He said that the Greg Norman-led series paved the path to meet his ambitions.
Patrick Reed said, as quoted by Flushing It Golf on X (formerly known as Twitter):
“I've always wanted to be a worldwide player and as a part of the PGA Tour, mainly in the United States, it was hard to become the worldwide player that I wanted to be. So when I had the opportunity to be a part of the European Tour (DP World Tour), that allowed me to touch some of these areas and regions.
But really the biggest thing, it is why I joined LIV, was that it allowed me to venture out and not only to play around the world, but also to have a schedule to come play events like this on The International Series.”
Patrick Reed noted that he loves traveling across the globe for the game. He further lauded the scenic host country ahead of the event.
He also said:
“I'm excited to come to new places and new venues, especially to a place over here that I've played before here in Hong Kong. It is a beautiful area, I feel like a lot of people want to play golf, but they also they want to see the top players in the world. Rather than just see them on TV, they want to see that drive and see them in person, and being there is something special for them.”
It is pertinent to note that Patrick Reed has proven himself as a global player. Even before his move to LIV Golf, the 33-year-old golfer was open to playing various events, outside the PGA Tour schedule. The golfer’s latest remarks bring joy to Asian Tour fans as it puts the less-watched series in the limelight.
Patrick Reed slams OWGR for no-points for LIV Golf
Reed recently raised his voice against the negligence of LIV Golf’s appeal to have Official World Golf Ranking points (OWGR). The golfer opposed the officials’ decision to not award points for the series. He joined several other golfers in pointing out that the Saudi-backed series hosts some of the best players in the world and the decision will deprive them of their rightful place in the world rankings.
Patrick Reed said, as quoted by Golf Monthly:
"Obviously it's disappointing… Until the actual world ranking reflects the actual top players in the world, then to me it's just kind of a broken system. Just because we play on a different tour, it shouldn't matter."
It is noteworthy that the OWGR Board of Directors stood by their decision not to award points for LIV Golf events earlier last month.