Barring a victory this week at the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches or a top finish to play their way in through the Aon Next 5 list, Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth won’t be playing in the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational. Golfweek has learned that two of the biggest names in golf have been told they won’t be receiving a sponsor exemptions into the 72-man signature event.
Fowler, 36, has been described as a modern-day Arnold Palmer, but the six-time Tour winner failed to finish in the top 50 in last year’s FedEx Cup season-long points standings and isn’t exempt to the signature events. Spieth, 31, is a 13-time Tour winner, including three majors, and shares Palmer’s go-for-broke style at times. He, too, suffered a down season and skipped the fall portion of the schedule after undergoing surgery on his wrist in August. Spieth, who is No. 70 in the world and 72nd in the FedEx Cup, added this week’s Cognizant Classic to his schedule late on Friday before the deadline to register and is playing the event for the first time. He’s also already received two sponsor exemption into the signature events.
During a phone interview on Thursday, tournament director Drew Donovan declined to name any of the four sponsor invites or to divulge the selection committee’s criteria. However, Sam Saunders, grandson of Arnold Palmer, confirmed he is a member of the sponsor exemption committee, and that Fowler, Spieth, and Gary Woodland wouldn’t be receiving exemptions.
“What our team did was try to pick players that, you know, it’s about protecting and growing the game of golf as a whole. And doing what’s the most balanced and fair process. Honestly, I think there was a lot of thought put into each and every player that was selected,” he said. “At the end of the day, it’s who’s getting the ball in the hole the fastest that are the ones who get the opportunities. You can’t make everybody happy with exemptions. So you try to just do it as fair and balanced as possible.”
One of the four invites to the Arnold Palmer Invitational, however, Rafael Campos, winner of last year’s Butterfield Bermuda Championship, jumped the gun and went public last week during a press conference at the Mexico Open that he had received a sponsor invite to Arnie’s Place and will make his first appearance at Bay Hill Lodge & Club in Orlando next week, the second leg of the Florida Swing.
Saunders gave a thorough explanation why the 36-year-old Campos, who wrote a passionate letter asking for a start, was deemed worthy of a spot in the field despite a lower profile in the game and ranking No. 180 in the world and No. 142 in the FedEx Cup.
“There are different levels of effort from each player. And I will tell you from what I’ve seen, I don’t know that anybody’s written a more thoughtful letter and put more effort into requesting an exemption than Rafa Campos did,” Saunders said. “He’s genuine, he’s kind. He’s a steward of the game and that’s something that mattered a lot to my grandfather.
“One of my granddad’s final quotes was he considered himself to be a steward of the game and a caretaker of the game and I think Rafa Campos falls beautifully into that category. And you know, it’s also providing an opportunity that maybe he wouldn’t get otherwise, and certainly a well deserving player, and someone who embodies the spirit of Arnold Palmer quite well.”
Spieth’s request may have been tarnished by the fact that he played in the event just once — during the 2020-21 season — before it became a signature event. In his defense, he has been loyal to the four tournaments in his home state of Texas, two of which are played in the vicinity of API and an argument could be made that he provided more value to the Tour by skipping Bay Hill and headlining the field at Houston, San Antonio, Dallas and Ft. Worth. Still, Spieth is one of the few names that can move the needle at the box office these days.
The decision to pass on Fowler is even more surprising given that he had a relationship with Palmer and has been faithful attendee to his tournament, serving as an unofficial ambassador of sorts since his passing.
The one time Fowler didn’t play in the event when he was eligible, he drove to Bay Hill and told Palmer in person over lunch. Fowler has received sponsor invites into the first two signature events, which offer elevated money and FedEx Cup points and in the case of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, no cut.
“Rickie’s one of my friends but it has to be non-biased. You try to make sponsor exemptions to be objective and not subjective. And I think that’s what our team did quite well. I think every one of us wants Rickie Fowler to be playing in the tournament, we love him. He’s been one of the best spokespersons on behalf of my grandfather and carrying on that legacy, nobody does it better than Rickie Fowler,” Saunders said. “Rickie had gotten a couple of opportunities for exemptions in the elevated events already, and that was something that had to be taken into consideration. You want other players to get opportunities. There’s a lot of players on the PGA Tour. And, you know, not everyone may be household names, but it’s about trying to provide the best competition. We’re further down the list or closer on the list statistically than the Rickies and the Jordans and Gary so the process was done very objectively and fairly, and, like I said, for the good of the game as a whole.”
Fowler has dropped to No. 95 in the world and sits at No. 105 in the FedEx Cup. None of it made the decision any easier for the committee, Saunders said. [He declined to say how many people make up the committee.]
“It genuinely kills us,” Saunders said of not inviting Fowler and other big names. “But you know what kills us more? Only having 70 players to pick from. So, if you want to write something, it should be on the fact that there’s only 70 players. And when you have these limited fields that the Tour has created, it really limits who can be in it. We didn’t make those rules. So we’re dealing with the hand we’ve been dealt and trying to do the best thing for the game of golf in its current state.”
Saunders made similar comments to Golfweek in 2023: “I won’t candy-coat it at all, I’m not a fan of limited-field, no-cut events. That’s not what the game is about. What makes it unique is there is no guaranteed money, it’s a performance-based sport. I felt like we had it pretty solid for a lot of years.”
Fowler and Spieth could still get into Arnie’s Place based on good performance. A win this week at the Cognizant Classic would solve a lot of problems. They could also get in by finishing among the top 5 in the AON Next 5, a points list from the Mexico Open and Cognizant Classic full-field events, which awards spots to the top 5 FedEx Cup points earners from those events who are not already qualified. Fowler opened with 64 and Spieth signed for 65.
Fowler confirmed that his request for an exemption had been turned down and said, “They’re sponsor exemptions and they get to give them out where they feel. Obviously, I’m bummed but I can’t complain about some more time at home (with his family).” When told he should go play his way in this week, Fowler replied, “That’s option 1.” Efforts to reach Spieth through his management company were unsuccessful before publication of this article.
Saunders said that the selection committee faced difficult choices but he feels they did the best with the deck they have been handed.
“It’s just facts. It’s the cold, honest truth and all we’ve done through this whole process is be as honest and truthful as possible. None of the exemptions are chosen lightly. None of them are for personal or self-interest. Therefore, you know, it’s a thoughtful decision made by a group and a committee that really is trying to do what’s best for the game of golf as a whole,” Saunders said. “It’s not about TV ratings or dollars. It’s about what’s good for the game of golf. I don’t know that there could be anything more objective and fair than that. It’s very difficult decisions. And I mean, quite honestly, I’d go on the record of saying, like, these elevated events with limited field, you know, if you really want to do what’s fair, there shouldn’t be any exemption. But, when there’s only 70 guys, it’s just too tough to do. With four and with the opportunities that you know we have to make selections, you try to do it as the best that you can. And I think our team is incredibly proud and stands firmly behind the choices that were made.”
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Why Rickie Fowler, Jordan Spieth won’t get Arnold Palmer invitations
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