Should The PGA Tour Tweak Its Returning Member Program To Try And Poach Other LIV Golfers Back?

'Inside The Ropes' is the chance for Golf Monthly's tour experts to share their honest opinions on the biggest subjects in the game. This week, it's about the PGA Tour's Returning Member Program.

When Brooks Koepka announced he was leaving the LIV Golf League in mid-December, the PGA Tour's board sprung into action.

Koepka met with PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp to discuss his future plans and, a matter of days later, a brand new creation called the Returning Member Program had been conjured up which allowed the five-time Major winner to regain his PGA Tour status - only with a few key caveats.

It was widely received as an excellent piece of business by Rolapp and the PGA Tour because they had ultimately secured the services of one of the game's biggest talents while upsetting as few members as possible.

From the historic US circuit's point of view, the Returning Member Program also acted as a huge piece of bait for some of the most impressive fish in their biggest rival's lake.

Due to the parameters involved, only Koepka, Jon Rahm, Cameron Smith and Bryson DeChambeau currently qualify to retake their respective places on the PGA Tour through the RMP.

However, each has strongly indicated they will be staying put and DeChambeau in particular is more interested in hashing out a fresh contract with the PIF-backed league.

Although those three Major winners were happy to swim on past, another big catch appears to be very interested in latching onto the PGA Tour's hook - namely, one Patrick Reed.

Speaking to Golf Digest's Evin Priest and The Telegraph's James Corrigan, Reed was asked if - hypothetically - he would consider making a return to the PGA Tour if offered the same terms as Koepka.

Reed replied: "I mean, of course. If it were up to me, I'd play everywhere. I'm already playing on three tours, why not add one more?” he added with a laugh.

“I always enjoyed my time out there on the PGA Tour. Let's be honest, out there, it's the best tour in the world. Look at what they've done in golf … I could see myself playing there at some point again. But right now, you just never know; everything's so fluid.”

The question, therefore, has to be asked: "should the PGA Tour alter its Returning Member Program in a bid to lure more LIV golfers away?"

Let us know your thoughts in the comments box below. In the meantime, four of our tour experts have had their say.

Elliott Heath

Brian Rolapp and the PGA Tour came off very well last week with the Returning Member Program that saw Brooks Koepka make an immediate return. Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith all appear to have turned it down, and the case now seems to be closed as they were the only other three men to have been considered.

I do feel it could have been branched out a little further, though, as any former PGA Tour players making the move back would have strengthened the Tour and weakened its competitor.

Patrick Reed as a Major champion could have been considered, as could former PGA Tour winners like Joaquin Niemann, Sebastian Munoz, Carlos Ortiz, Abraham Ancer, Paul Casey and Marc Leishman.

Getting these players back immediately would have been a problem to solve, but Rolapp surely could have found a way as he proved with Koepka by applying sanctions and ensuring no current PGA Tour members lose out.

Whether any other former members would have said yes is doubtful, but even one or two extra players coming back would have been a big statement and added more storylines and intrigue to events they would play and contend in.

Either way, the Returning Member Program appears to have been a success and I am sure it will return once more next year when more big LIV names near the end of their contracts.

Matt Cradock

The plain and simple answer is no, the PGA Tour shouldn't tweak its Returning Member Program to try and poach LIV Golfers back. If they were to extend the year range, where would it stop?

If they were to go back to 2018 to allow the likes of then Masters winner Patrick Reed in, many will question why they don't jump back to 2010 to allow the then Open champion, Louis Oosthuizen, in?

Tweaking the year-limit would likely lead to the thought of what was the point in the bans for joining the circuit in the first place, as would changing the criteria to accommodate those with a certain number of PGA Tour tournament victories.

Kevin Na, for example, has five wins and nearly 20 years of experience on the PGA Tour circuit. Should he be given special treatment for his long-time service, even though he was one of the first to jump to LIV Golf? No.

To me, the range of 2022 is correct as that was when the first LIV Golf event was played. What's more, I feel the Program was only constructed to lure back the players from LIV Golf that will benefit the PGA Tour. Koepka, DeChambeau, Rahm and Smith are the League's biggest draws.

If they can lure them back with this one-time offer, the PGA Tour is in an even stronger position than it already was. Obviously a Patrick Reed might help draw more eyes to tournaments, but the rules shouldn't be tweaked to do so.

Nick Bonfield

The PGA Tour's Returning Member Program isn't so much a cast-iron policy as a flexible way of securing returns for high-profile LIV players who have indicated they'd be keen to come back.

The PGA Tour's CEO, Brian Rolapp, said: "This is a one-time, defined window and does not set a precedent for future situations. Once the door closes, there is no promise that this path will be available again."

As far as I see it, the path will absolutely be open again as soon as either Jon Rahm or Bryson DeChambeau decide they want to come home (I'm not sure the tour is overly bothered about Cameron Smith), although I don't envisage much tweaking as the terms need to be similar to Koepka's.

The situation becomes trickier in relation to LIV's non-Major winners. I'm sure there are players on the Saudi-backed tour who Rolapp would love to have in his ranks, but optics are in play here.

The PGA Tour always presents itself as the world's most important and powerful circuit (and it is), so it doesn't want to look desperate by pursuing non-Major winners, or those who haven't won a big-four event in the last five years, from LIV.

However, do I think Rolapp would like Joaquin Niemann, Patrick Reed, Tyrrell Hatton, Dustin Johnson, Louis Oosthuizen and possibly a couple of others back? I think so. The trouble is, finding criteria that targets the desirable LIV players but excludes others is difficult.

Is it possible to come up with a policy that allows Hatton to return without opening the doors to, say, Jason Kokrak? The other issue is upsetting the PGA Tour membership. Everyone understands why it's desirable to have Koepka and Rahm back, for example, but others would likely be met with far more opposition.

Jonny Leighfield

My initial feeling was yes because I think that's what will end up happening anyway.

But, after some careful thought, I really don't think the PGA Tour should budge on what Brian Rolapp said when setting out the Returning Member Program. If it does, the tour could end up in a situation where too much rule-bending is done and the members lose faith with those at the top which consequently leads to heads rolling.

My other big concern is that if the PGA Tour ultimately operates an open door policy, it runs the risk of losing some big players to LIV because they know they'll just be able to come back after a few years having earned a whole heap of cash.

I think there are certain players the PGA Tour would love to come back, but that list is limited to 10 players at absolute most.

Yes, there are a number of great players in the LIV Golf League, but - equally - the PGA Tour has plenty more. Where the PGA Tour is missing out is with the big personalities. Those players who just attract interest no matter how they're doing. I don't think LIV has that many.

In my eyes, there are no more than 10 players currently in the LIV Golf League who most people would like to see back on the PGA Tour. Even then, I forgot about half of them at first, so are they really that necessary to the product?

Rolapp and co. must believe not only that what they have already is enough to prosper but also that it has all of the tools to replace those massive stars in time anyway. If it can beat LIV to the next crop of Rahms and DeChambeaus, then there's no need to tweak the Returning Member Program.