Why Is Larry Mize Playing the Masters?

[mighty]

I have wanted to ask this question for a while, Larry Mize seems to be playing every year even though he probably knows he has no chance of winning. Also a question about the lifetime exemption of a champion, does the exemption reduce the chances of the other exemptions entering the field? What happens if too many past champions sign up?  

[RussUK]

50 minutes ago, mighty said:

I have wanted to ask this question for a while, Larry Mize seems to be playing every year even though he probably knows he has no chance of winning.

Let me put it to you this way. If you were told you could play at Augusta every year, even though you had no chance of winning i'm sure you would. How many people get the chance of at least to rounds (not inc. practice rounds) of golf at that place?

The Masters has a certain magic to it that entices past winners back year after year for as long as they are able to.

Just because they are exempt they can choose not to play. Larry must just love the place. Good on him.

[Zeph]

He plays because he wants to play. Most of the older, previous champions play without any realistic chance at winning. Like Russ said, wouldn't you play at Augusta if you could?

 

The old champions do not take up any exemption spots, so the number of oldies that show up has no effect on the field of players that can potentially win it.

 

From Wikipedia:

Quote

Past champions are always eligible, but since 2002 the Augusta National Golf Club has discouraged them from continuing to participate at an advanced age.

 

[Wally Fairway]

a) because he can

b) nobody is taking a place from anyone else, this is an Invitational.
One with a small, elite, field - if Larry Mize (or anyone else) were to drop out, there would be one less player in the field, there are no alternates, there is no waiting list, there is no Monday qualifier.

[3jacker]

He's earned it, that's why.

[jamo]

Because no one at Augusta has had the talk with him yet. 

[3jacker]

Last year he played 2 rounds at AGNC in The Masters and got paid $10K for doing it.

He doesn't suck enough to get "the talk," that's for egregious cases of old geezers out there hacking it around.

[boogielicious]

2 hours ago, jamo said:

Because no one at Augusta has had the talk with him yet. 

Kind of like this only about still playing.

 

[iacas]

3 hours ago, jamo said:

Because no one at Augusta has had the talk with him yet. 

And they may not for awhile. In the last five years he’s made three cuts.

Thats more than Tiger Woods. 🙂

[3jacker]

1 hour ago, iacas said:

And they may not for awhile. In the last five years he’s made three cuts.

Thats more than Tiger Woods. 🙂

Lol.  /thread

[DaveP043]

If I could play in the Masters, I would.  Larry earned the privilege.  Winning the Masters has to be one of the highlights of his career, and he gets to relive it every spring, good for him

[Archie Bunker]

If he can still make the cut, he deserves to play.

[jshots]

I feel like if you win the Masters, you deserve it.

[LMoore]

Part of the charm was seeing Arnold even when we knew he had no chance. Otherwise, I would never have seen the King play a round of golf. Even if he carded an 80, he still had his army. No other place would you see that.

And while Mize certainly isn’t Arnie, he’s a Green Jacket winner and has earned the right.

[Herkimer]

I remember Doug Ford gettlng a lot of flack for continuing to play every year while in his 80's.  I recall people saying that he was taking someone's spot.  Based on what I'm reading here, that wasn't true at all, so I don't know why they were saying it.  I think it's a great tradition to have past winners play.  This tournament is very very special and that's one of the reasons. 

[krupa]

16 minutes ago, Herkimer said:

Based on what I'm reading here, that wasn't true at all, so I don't know why they were saying it.

This question comes up every year. People simply don't realize that the Masters is different from regular PGA Tour events.

[Piz]

Because he gets to...wouldn't you?

[Slim_Pivot]

Hasn’t he made the cut 2 out of the last 4 years. That is still good enough.