LIV Golf received tangible recognition of its place in the men’s professional golf hierarchy on Tuesday when the United States Golf Association created a new exemption category for the U.S. Open.

The announcement — giving a spot in the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont to the top LIV golfer who is not otherwise exempt in the top three of the individual LIV standings as of May 19 — provides LIV golfers a potential pathway to playing in the major championship for their play in the Saudi-backed league.

While the Masters and PGA Championship have rewarded special exemptions to select LIV golfers over the past year, it’s been for their play outside of LIV — Joaquin Niemann winning the Australian Open or Dean Burmester winning in South Africa, for instance. Otherwise, the only way for LIV golfers to play in a major was to be previously exempt through major victories and OWGR rankings or to play in U.S. Open or Open Championship qualifiers. No major championship treated success on LIV as a recognizable achievement, and the OWGR refusing to recognize LIV events has forced many of its players to tumble down the list and out of the exempt category.

In future U.S. Opens, there could be two LIV exemptions. For example, in 2026 there will be one exemption rewarding a player for 2025 LIV standings with the aforementioned qualification and another for the active 2026 standings.

The downside for LIV is there’s a chance this leads to no new entries into the field. If the top three in the LIV standings are all players already in the U.S. Open, it will not move to the next highest-ranked golfer. As of now, there are seven LIV golfers qualified for the 2025 U.S. Open at Oakmont: Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Cameron Smith, Tyrrell Hatton and Richard Bland.

It’s fitting the USGA is the first to make the move considering DeChambeau thrillingly won the 2024 U.S. Open. USGA CEO Mike Whan said that week the organization was “serious” about considering a pathway for LIV, adding, “Maybe this is the new world order, and if that’s the case, we wanted to take a look at that.”

But Whan also said at the time the U.S. Open (and the Open Championship) are not invitationals, so any LIV golfer can compete in qualifying events to earn a place. To that point, Tuesday’s announcement also included local exemptions for the top 10 golfers in the LIV standings, meaning they don’t have to play in local qualifiers and automatically advance to the 36-hole final qualifier.

“The USGA continues to evaluate the pathways that exist to ensure those playing their best have the opportunity to compete in our national championship,” USGA chief championships officer John Bodenhamer said in a statement. “Consistent with our historical approach, we continuously evaluate talent levels on professional tours and in amateur events, which has led us to add a new exemption category.”

When the Saudi-backed Public Investment Fund first launched LIV Golf in 2021, critics including organizations like Amnesty International and some members of the golf world expressed concerns over global sports investments papering over Saudi Arabia’s human rights record. But in the years since, LIV’s acceptance in the global golf world has grown. After Newcastle qualified for the UEFA Champions League in 2023, LIV golfers like Koepka and DeChambeau winning majors after signing with LIV only added to the validation PIF supposedly desires. Now, a major championship allowing a direct pathway through LIV adds another crucial step in that validation.

New LIV CEO Scott O’Neill praised USGA’s move in a statement Wednesday.

“We’re pleased that the USGA has formally created a new exemption for LIV Golf players to compete in the U.S. Open and appreciate Mike Whan’s leadership and commitment to growing the game of golf,” he said. “Every golf fan in the world longs to see the greatest players in the world competing on golf’s biggest stages at the majors. LIV Golf is committed to working hand in hand with golf’s governing bodies to elevate the sport in all corners of the world.”

(Top photo of Bryson DeChambeau: Keyur Khamar / PGA Tour via Getty Images)