Former LIV Golf competitor James Piot will make PGA Tour history this week at the Rocket Classic.
A late addition Monday to the field at Michigan’s Detroit Golf Club, he is among the first former LIV players to return to the PGA, and the first to receive a sponsor’s exemption on the PGA Tour, Golf Digest reported.
Piot, 26, a native of Farmington Hills, Mich. and 2021 U.S. Amateur champion, last competed on the PGA Tour in 2022, missing the cut at the Masters and the U.S. Open. He hasn’t played a LIV event since 2023, meaning he is eligible for the Detroit event. PGA Tour rules stipulate a yearlong ban for players who compete in unauthorized events.
“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, agreeing to a two-year deal with reportedly $6 million guaranteed.
He recorded only one top-10 finish with a T6 in Bangkok in October 2022. Part of captain Phil Mickelson’s HyFlyers GC team, Piot finished 47th in individual points in 2023 and was demoted to the Asian Tour. He also had shoulder surgery during that p
PGA Tour rules require a one-year ban for players who compete in unauthorized events like LIV Golf. Piot became eligible again late October.
Source: espn.com