Louis Oosthuizen says NO to PGA Championship invite: Here’s WHY
Louis Oosthuizen says NO to PGA Championship invite: Here’s WHY
South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen has opted to turn down an invitation to compete at next week’s 106th PGA Championship due to ‘personal commitments’.
The PGA Championship, the year’s second Major of the year, will take place at Valhalla from 16 to 19 May.
Louis Oosthuizen ranked 125th in the world
Oosthuizen, 41, currently competes in the LIV Golf League.
In total, 16 LIV Golf stars will compete in Kentucky, including defending champion Brooks Koepka who won his third PGA Championship at Oak Hill last May.
Eight other LIV players qualified for the event, namely Bryson DeChambeau, Tyrrell Hatton, Dustin Johnson, Martin Kaymer, Phil Mickelson, Andy Ogletree, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith.
They will be joined by seven other LIV players to receive special invites: Talor Gooch, Patrick Reed, Joaquin Niemann, Dean Burmester, Adrian Meronk, Lucas Herbert and David Puig.
The glaring absentee from the list though was Louis Oosthuizen.
It has been reported by The Associated Press that the Mossel Bay-native opted to turn down an offer to compete due to unknown commitments in his personal life.
Oosthuizen has been in impressive form in recent months, competing across the Saudi-backed league, DP World Tour, Sunshine Tour and Asian Tour.
Oosthuizen finished has finished runner-up on two separate occasions on the breakaway circuit in Jeddah and Adelaide.
He currently sits fourth in LIV’s season-long rankings, after three top-10 finishes in his last five starts.
He is currently ranked 125th in the world rankings.
No space for Sergio Garcia
Notable LIV names who did not receive invitations include Sergio Garcia, Abraham Ancer and Carlos Ortiz.
The 156-player field at this year’s PGA Championship will be competing for a total prize fund of $17.5 million.
As reported by The South African website, Tiger Woods is among those expected to tee off in next Thursday’s opening round.