PGA Tour golfer wades in on 'egregious use of sponsor exemptions' in Japan

PGA Tour member Michael Kim says he doesn't have too many complaints about the use of sponsor exemptions after the topic was discussed once again ahead of the ZOZO Championship.

A debate was sparked by Fried Egg's Joseph LaManga, who wrote that it was 'particularly egregious' that two of the four sponsor exemptions in Japan this week were handed to Joel Dahmen and Gary Woodland. 

LaManga pointed out that Woodland and Dahmen's position in the FedEx Cup standings means a strong performance this week could likely be the difference between retaining their Tour cards.

Meanwhile, players on the bubble of the top 125 just sit on the sidelines just because Dahmen and Woodland 'have bigger brands'. 

"Sponsor exemptions shouldn't exist at all," LaManga wrote. 

"But they definitely shouldn't alter the trajectory of players' futures."

Kim saw the post couldn't help but offer his thoughts. 

"I can obviously relate to the guys that would love to get some free points and secure my card for next year," he wrote. 

"But I don't have much of a complaint about sponsor exemptions. 

"These companies sign a eight-figure check. They can have four out of 80 spots to control.

"If I had played a little better earlier in the year, I would have been in the tournament."

Kim couldn't resist a cheeky dig towards Max Homa and Justin Thomas.

"[They] just stay home and watch the Dodgers and Bama so I can play god dammit lol."

Why are sponsor exemptions controversial?

Sponsor exemptions on the PGA Tour can be controversial for several reasons. 

Mainly, their use revolves around fairness and meritocracy. 

Some argue their use bypasses the qualification process.

They can also be seen as unfair when they are handed out to popular players that are simply underperforming. 

There is also a perceived lack of transparency because it's not always clear what criteria sponsors use to pick players. 

It leads to speculation that exemptions may be influenced by personal relationships or business connections.

What have the players said?

Earlier in the year, Webb Simpson defended his use of sponsor exemption to compete in the signature events. 

He stated that his inclusion in the events had nothing to do with the fact he sits on the policy board.

Simpson agreed that the optics weren't good though. 

"There's things that I'm way more interested in and that get me excited than kind of worrying about what a certain person thinks about who should get sponsor exemptions," he said. 

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