Donald awarded Honorary Life Membership of The European Tour

Often a debating point as to who should receive these...

Possibly even more so in this case as recent recipients have won majors?

http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2012/tournamentid=2012034/news/newsid=161163.html#donald+awarded+honorary+life+membership+the+european+tour

A question I'd like to ask - "Many congratulations, Luke. Would you have preferred an OBE?"

[FWIW, my view is that he deserves this, not just for having such a great year, but for retaining loyalty to the European Tour despite having resided in the US since college days. And he should receive an OBE.]

Not sure why they would award this to anyone, those on tour should be there on recent merit. I guess this is a continuation of the debate we have had a few times about players dining out on past glory.

Although looking at the entry list for this weeks PGA championship it is unclear to me what this means for a player.

http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2012/tournamentid=2012034/teetimes/index.html

There is not a lifetime membership entry criteria.


Does this just mean he can play on the Ryder cup team and be included in the order or merit without fulfilling his 13 events?

Given that in theory tiger achieved the same feat why has he not been offered this accolade?

Because he's not a member of the tour, it would be like giving the head of BBC an award at an ITV awards ceremony, and why would anyone want someone as unsavoury and unpleasant as Woods being associated with their tour?

I'm guessing here, but doesn't the winner of the Order of Merit/Race to Dubai get this honour anyway?
I haven't checked if Westwood has got it, or anyone else who has done the same.

Why does every thread on here at the moment end up with super and mac talking about Woods?


I'm not against big exemptions etc for successful players to the extent some are on here... I don't mind the previous winners being invited back to majors, for example. But I don't like the way the ET has been handing out these "lifetime" awards all over the place in the past year or two. The ten year exemption for major winners, R2D winners etc seems more than adequate, they'll look stupid if someone they give lifetime status to promptly does a Michael Campbell.

Like Ned I to get bored of everything becoming about Woods.

Back to the thread, I don't think this is a deserved honour, not huge on the idea of overly long exemptions for anything, I get why Monty has one doesn't he have something like 7 or 8 order of merit titles, for that prolonged success its hard to argue he doesn't deserve reward of some sort.

But for someone like Donald, Westwood et al who are still at the peak of their careers this is just seemingly a way of getting them to come play big events without having to meet the minimum qualifying criteria.

Imo lifetime exemptions to anything should be scrapped and places earnt on merit.

To me this stinks of "jobs for the boys" I mean what has Donald done in his short career, no majors, not even a good record of wins on any of the tours, so why such an award.

I would it was a case of we need to give this award to obtain some free publicity so we will give it Donald.

Woods record at the end of his career will put Donald's record at the end of his career into the insignificant category

Why does everything have to come back to Woods!

His record will make anyone from the last 25 years pale in significance, this is merely about Donald being given lifetime membership. No tour should give that to any player regardless if their luke donald, tiger woods or jack nicklaus.

Op, Donald has been pro for years, so he's not had a short career. His last two years have been better than anyone else on the planet. I don't necessarily agree that tour exception is deserved for anyone but let's not compare the career of donald to a once in a generation (bumhole) golfer like Woods, otherwise no one gets any credit for anything they do.

Sentimental claptrap. The time for awards like this is at the end of a players career, not when they are at their peak ...which hopefully Donald isn't yet, the best is still to come fingers crossed.

IMO these awards should be reserved wholly for those at the twilight/end of their careers, not just for winning a major as has been the case over the last few years... McIlroy, Kaymer, McDowell, all spring to mind. I'm sure Westood recently also attained one around about the time he became World No:1. Darren Clarke also got lifetime membership in lieu of his Open win last year, however I do think in light of his years/commitment to the tour that its warranted.

I also don't agree with Donald getting one because of his relative youth but considering he was top on both tours either side of the Atlantic that its also warranted by comparison. I'm somewhat uncomfrtable with it for the fact I wouldn't class him as a commited tour member, push came to shove his loyalty would lie state side.