Former LIV golfer James Piot making PGA Tour return
A late addition Monday to the field at Michigan's Detroit Golf Club, he is the first former LIV player to receive a sponsor's exemption on the PGA Tour, according to Golf Digest.
Piot, 26, a native of Farmington Hills, Mich., last competed on the PGA Tour in 2022 when the 2021 U.S. Amateur champion missed the cut at the Masters and the U.S. Open.
"There was a lot of support, and it was one or the happiest calls I've made," tournament official Mark Hollis told the Detroit News. "He's somebody we wanted in from the get-go as we were going through the process. It had to play out the way it played out."
Piot is not the first LIV player to return to the PGA Tour. England's Laurie Canter has competed in five events so far in 2025.
"For it to actually happen is the coolest thing in the world," Piot told the Detroit News. "It's awesome. Just the fact I finally get to play in the Rocket Classic, it's a dream come true. Ever since the event was created on the schedule, I wanted to be a part of it."
Piot became part of the first wave of players to sign with the breakaway, Saudi-backed LIV Golf circuit during the summer of 2022, reportedly receiving a guaranteed two-year, $6 million deal.
Competing with LIV Golf from 2022-23, he recorded only one top-10 finish with a T6 in Bangkok in October 2022. Part of captain Phil Mickelson's HyFlyers GC team, he finished 47th in individual points in 2023 and was relegated to the Asian Tour.
PGA Tour rules require a one-year ban for players who compete in unauthorized events like LIV Golf. Piot became eligible again lat October.
--Field Level Media
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
4 hours ago
- Reuters
Tour Championship field of 30 finalized after Rickie Fowler misses out
August 17 - OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Akshay Bhatia received the 30th and final spot in the Tour Championship field after late blunders by Michael Kim and Rickie Fowler on Sunday at the BMW Championship. The FedEx Cup playoff field was trimmed from 50 to 30 following the BMW Championship at Caves Valley Golf Club, won by Scottie Scheffler. Kim and Fowler were the first two players on the wrong side of the cut line, though both had their chances throughout the final round. Only one golfer player his way into the top 30 from the outside this week: Englishman Harry Hall, whose sixth-place finish propelled him from No. 45 to No. 26. That came at the expense of Lucas Glover, whose 10-over-par week dropped him from 30th to 36th. Hall pitched in for birdie at the difficult par-3 17th hole -- a move that Scheffler pulled off soon after on his way to victory. "I've been hitting that chip shot on the practice chipping green all week, like the same spot warming up every day with a 54 (wedge) into the grain on an upslope," Hall said. "As soon as I saw the lie, I'm like, I've been doing this all week." It's the first time the 28-year-old advanced to the Tour Championship. "Yeah, massive. Really happy," Hall said. "Can't wait to play in the FedEx Cup next week and hopefully keep continuing to play well." All 30 players will begin the Tour Championship at even par, and the winner after 72 holes will claim the FedEx Cup. It's a change from recent years after the PGA Tour employed a staggered format that allowed the No. 1 player in the points standings to begin the Tour Championship at 10 under, No. 2 to start at 8 under and so on. Bhatia began the week 29th in FedEx Cup points and finished in 30th, and his journey there didn't lack drama. On Saturday, he shot a round of 66 that included a hole-out eagle and a hole-in-one at No. 17. Without that ace, it is more than likely that Bhatia wouldn't have finished high enough to earn the points necessary to advance to Atlanta. But on Sunday, he put himself in a bind by bogeying four of his final seven holes in a round of 72. He had to wait for the afternoon rounds to finish and see what Hall, Kim and Fowler did. Fowler was 4 under through 10 holes and 10 under for the tournament, within striking distance of the lead and a near-certainty to finish in the top 30. After a bogey-birdie-bogey run, Fowler overshot the 15th green and couldn't get his third shot all the way up the slope to the green, eventually leading to a double bogey. Fowler was aiming to climb into the top 30 after moving from 64th to 48th in points at last week's FedEx St. Jude Championship. He tied for seventh at 7 under, while Kim bogeyed two of his final five holes and placed 10th at 6 under. "I started to feel better and better as the summer went on," Fowler said. "Played a lot. I was getting worn down, but I was ready to keep on going." The field of 30 at the Tour Championship, Aug. 21-24 at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta: 1. Scottie Scheffler 2. Rory McIlroy 3. J.J. Spaun 4. Justin Rose 5. Tommy Fleetwood 6. Ben Griffin 7. Russell Henley 8. Sepp Straka 9. Robert MacIntyre 10. Maverick McNealy 11. Harris English 12. Justin Thomas 13. Cameron Young 14. Ludvig Aberg 15. Andrew Novak 16. Keegan Bradley 17. Sam Burns 18. Brian Harman 19. Corey Conners 20. Patrick Cantlay 21. Collin Morikawa 22. Viktor Hovland 23. Hideki Matsuyama 24. Shane Lowry 25. Nick Taylor 26. Harry Hall 27. Jacob Bridgeman 28. Sungjae Im 29. Chris Gotterup 30. Akshay Bhatia --Adam Zielonka, Field Level Media
Telegraph
4 hours ago
- Telegraph
Bob MacIntyre ‘p----- off' after Scottie Scheffler capitalises on final-round collapse
There is no shame in finishing second to the winning machine that is Scottie Scheffler, but after conceding a four-shot lead in the final round of the BMW Championship on Sunday night, Scotland's Bob MacIntyre confessed to feeling 'really p----- off'. 'Right now, I just want to go and smash up my golf clubs,' he added. MacIntyre, 29, had expected so much more than a three-over 73 that dragged him back to 13 under. That allowed Scheffler to win by two after he compiled a 67, including a sumptuous chip-in birdie on 17 that all but sealed MacIntyre's fate. SCOTTIE. SCHEFFLER. ARE YOU KIDDING?!?! A chip-in birdie to take a two-shot lead on the 71st hole @BMWchamps! — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 17, 2025 It was the world No 1's fifth win of the season, a haul which, of course, includes two majors. Scheffler strides into the final event of the PGA Tour's 2025 campaign – the Tour Championship that begins in Atlanta on Thursday – the overwhelming favourite to add another crown to his collection. What most annoyed MacIntyre, apart from a few idiots in the galleries at the Caves Valley layout in Baltimore, was the manner in which he opened his round. He was three over for the day after five holes and, having allowed Scheffler to draw level, was always fighting a losing cause. A 4-stroke lead is now gone after 5 holes. Scheffler and MacIntyre are tied at 13-under with 13 holes left @BMWchamps. 📺 NBC — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 17, 2025 MacIntyre actually fared well to stick with Scheffler, but the nerveless Texan rarely affords his rivals second chances and was, once again, worthy of the £2.7m winning cheque. This was his 17th consecutive round under par and he attempted to account for his extraordinary run. 'I think it has a lot to do with the intensity that I bring to each round,' Scheffler said. 'I try not to take days off. I try not to take shots off. When it gets to this time of the year it can be a little bit tiring. Today was a grind, and I think it just has a lot to do with the intensity I bring to each round and each shot.' It was another stellar week for Tommy Fleetwood, who finished in a tie for fourth – one behind Maverick McNealy in third – on 10 under. He experienced a bizarre momentum on the second, when his birdie putt stopped agonisingly shy of the hole. However, as Fleetwood approached the ball it suddenly dropped and the replay showed it was given a helping hand by a fly. The insect had been on the ball as it stopped before moving to the other side of the ball, seemingly prompting it to rotate and fall into the cup. "He goes, I'm not having this" Tommy Fleetwood got a little bit of help at the BMW Championship from a fly 🪰 — Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) August 17, 2025 Two shots further back in sixth came another Englishman in Harry Hall. The 28-year-old from Cornwall leapt into the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings and so advances to East Lake for the first time. Hall has emerged as a dark horse for a Luke Donald wild card for the Ryder Cup. The US qualifying race ended on Sunday night, with the top six automatics confirmed – Scheffler, JJ Spaun, Xander Schauffele, Russell Henley, Harris English and Bryson DeChambeau. Keegan Bradley, the American captain, will name his six wild cards for next month's match in New York on Aug 27 and the brunt of the speculation will focus on whether he will select himself to become the first playing captain in more than 60 years. Bradley finished 10th in qualification.
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Scottie Scheffler stuns golf fans with the 'greatest shot ever' to help him win another $3.6million
Scottie Scheffler amazed golf fans and sports stars around the world on Sunday by producing a chip that some have called 'the greatest shot of all time'. The American sparked wild celebrations when he holed a chip for birdie from 81 feet to take a two-shot lead on the 71st hole of the BMW Championship in Maryland. He would go on to win his fifth PGA Tour event of the year, pocketing a whopping $3.6million by doing so. The moment of genius prompted a frenzy on social media with LeBron James, Patrick Mahomes and a flurry of regular golf fans all left in awe by the moment of magic. After both he and MacIntyre missed the green at the Caves Valley Golf Club's difficult par-3 17th, Scheffler aimed a perfect pitch shot that took a full 12 seconds to trickle down the length of the green and directly into the hole. The shot was reminiscent of Tiger Woods ' iconic effort at The Masters in 2005, when his ball famously hovered over the hole before eventually dropping in. SCOTTIE. SCHEFFLER. ARE YOU KIDDING?!?! A chip-in birdie to take a two-shot lead on the 71st hole @BMWchamps! — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 17, 2025 'It looked good when it landed, looked good when it was rolling, and it was nice to see that one go in,' Scheffler said. Mahomes posted on X moments after the shot: 'Scottie is crazy man' with several laughing emojis. LeBron commented: 'Scheffler so damn COLD out there!! Crazy ZONE he's in currently!' Pat McAfee called Scheffler an 'absolute DAWG' while Jost Hart of the New York Knicks described the shot as 'insane'. One fan posted: 'That might have been one of the best shots ever on the PGA Tour, at least for this year.' Another commented: 'Scheffler's mild manner can't disguise the fact that he is an absolute killer on the course. We haven't seen anything like this since Tiger.' 'One of the greatest shots I've ever witness live,' one fan who was there in person added. Another fan used the infamous picture of Scheffler in police custody after his arrest outside the PGA Championship last year, captioning it: 'Scottie Scheffler after stealing the BMW Championship away from Robert Macintyre.' Scheffler closed with a three-under 67 for a two-shot victory and became the first player since Woods to win at least five times on the PGA Tour in consecutive years. It's not over for Scheffler, who leads the 30 players who advanced to the Tour Championship at East Lake with a chance to become the first repeat FedEx Cup champion since the series began in 2007. All 30 players at East Lake can win the $10m first-place check. The field includes Harry Hall, the only player who played his way into the top 30 on Sunday, and even that was tense. Hall made bogey on the par-five 16th - the easiest hole on the course - and then went long and left at the 17th. He also chipped in for birdie and was safe going up the 18th. Rickie Fowler was on the verge of getting back to East Lake only to twice miss the green from the fairway on the back nine, leading to bogey on the 14th and double bogey on the 15th, and knocked him out of the top 30. Fowler finished with a 5-foot par putt - had he missed, Michael Kim would have been in the Tour Championship. Instead, the 30th spot went to Akshay Bhatia, despite making four bogeys on the back nine and feeling as though he had blown it.
