Talor Gooch gets to play in at least one major this year. On Monday, the LIV golfer announced that he had received a special invitation to compete in the PGA Championship. But, Talor Gooch’s invite was not well received by golf enthusiasts. Fans were furious that the LIV golfer got an invite despite not participating in the qualifier or making any effort at all.
During a recent episode of “The Rick Shiels Golf Show” podcast, Rick Shiels, along with Guy Charnock, offered his insights on the matter. The two of them emphasized how the American professional golfer had stated that he would not attempt to qualify for the U.S. Open. The 32-year-old golfer had previously shown disappointment, given that he hadn’t qualified for any major this season.
Charnock then went ahead and questioned whether the three-time LIV Golf title winner deserved to play at the Vallarta Golf Course next week. In response, Shiels expressed skepticism about the justification for Talor Gooch’s inclusion, noting that the LIV golfer’s recent form didn’t seem extraordinary enough to warrant a spot in the upcoming tournament.
“It’s just come as a surprise. I’m not saying he doesn’t deserve it, or does deserve it, I’m just very, very shocked considering he won so many times last year. He won two of his events before the PGA Championship last year, and won one of them after. I don’t know.”
Gooch rarely plays outside the Saudi-backed league schedule. His invite was purely on his LIV performance last year where he ended up winning three titles and ultimately topped the LIV points leaderboard taking home an $18 million bonus.
The championship director at the PGA of America, Kerry Haigh, had already declared that the committee would consider players from all the tours, including the Saudi-funded league. But the LIV golfer’s form this season has been disappointing so far, with no wins to his name. Will this hamper the golfer’s ability to win the major next week?
Rick Shiels Compared Talor Gooch’s Last Year’s Performance With This Year
Rich Shiels drew attention to the sharp difference between Gooch’s recent and previous year’s performance. He remarked on how phenomenal the 2021 RSM Classic winner was last year, capturing three trophies. However, this year presents a different scenario.
“It really came as a surprise to me to be honest with you because if we actually look at this year’s results last year he had an unbelievable year on.. LIV don’t get me wrong he’s had he had three wins a second place and another top 10 finish he has three wins which is massive okay when you actually look ar this year he’s now moved teams but obviously his individual performance he has yet to win this year.”
Nevertheless, Shiels stated that he is eager to see how the LIV defector performs next week. Meanwhile, Charnock pointed out Gooch’s recent appearances at the PGA Championship, which included missing the cut both in 2023 and 2020, finishing T20 in 2022, and T44 in 2021. Given the figures, it’s quite interesting to see how Gooch fares this time around and whether he can shut everyone out with his strong record in the upcoming major.
