Questioning Patrick Reed's Special European Tour Membership Exemption

AS EXPECTED, the European Tour has found a way to ensure that Patrick Reed maintains his membership despite failing to play enough tournaments this season.

Chief Executive Keith Pelley has confirmed that the 26-year-old American Ryder Cup hero will continue to be a member of the Tour in 2017 by virtue of his victory in the 2014 WGC-Cadillac Championship. Whaaaat?

Unless I am very much mistaken (and I am not), Reed wasn't even a member of the European Tour when he won that event, so why on earth should it qualify him to automatic membership? One man whose ears will certainly have pricked up upon hearing this news will be Rusell Knox, of Scotland. You will remember that Knox won the WGC Champions event in Shanghai in 2015. You will also remember that when he joined the European Tour, he was informed that the points he would have earned in China towards Ryder Cup qualification could not be backdated.

In the event, Knox narrowly miised out on making Darren Clarke's European Ryder Cup side - had the points he gained in China been counted, he would have strolled into the team.

Of course I may be wrong, but my gut instinct is that this is not the last Pelley and his colleagues will hear about this. Nobody has any issue with Reed being a member of the European Tour - too many home-bred players now spend their time on the other side of the Atlantic so those Americans who decide to join our tour are to be welcomed. But the very least they should be expected to do is to meet the minimum tournament requirement - it is not a massive commitment when you consider that the four majors and the WGC events count towards that total.

The decision to extend Reed's membership has been taken with the full endorsement of Pelley, who said: “We are delighted to announce that Patrick will return to action on the European Tour for the 2017 season. He is one of the game’s most exciting talents, as everyone who witnessed his electrifying performance at this year’s Ryder Cup will testify to, and our fans look forward to seeing him in action again next year.”

Reed said: “I love to compete and I take pride in the fact that I have both my PGA Tour card and my European Tour card. I am grateful that I will continue to be a part of the European Tour and I value the opportunity to play with the best players in the world, all over the world.” Bold words Patrick - it's about time you put them into action though, don't you think? Especially when you take into account all those poor individuals putting their hearts on the line during six rounds of final qualifying at PGA Catalunya who would gladly swap places with you.