Kamaiu

Johnson

But the 30-year-old Johnson’s journey to Torrey Pines is back on track for this January, as he was surprised by tournament organizers with another sponsor exemption into the 2022 event. Also receiving sponsor exemptions were Harold Varner III, Willie Mack III and Ryan Alford. “There’s a little bit of unfinished business there,” Johnson told PGA Tour.com. “This time around I’ll be more intentional in everything I do. That’s what the guys out there do so well. Getting COVID … it was a devastating moment. … You have got to let that stuff go to the side and it all just motivates me to get better. Just to get another chance to play on the PGA Tour again, I know I’ll be ready more than I was after having COVID and I’m really looking forward to it.” Johnson went on to make three starts on Tour last season, missing cuts at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, Honda Classic and Arnold Palmer Invitational. He also played one Korn Ferry Tour event, missing the cut at the Emerald Coast Classic at Sandestin. Johnson returned to action that month on the APGA Tour and won the event at TPC Las Vegas.

Johnson was set to play his first PGA TOUR event this week but that will have to hold off a bit longer. The 2020 APGA Tour Championship winner provided a statement, “To say that I’m disappointed would be a massive understatement. I’ve dreamed of playing on the PGA TOUR for a long, long time, but health and safety come first. It’s times like these where you have to keep focusing on the bigger picture at hand, and from my experience, a fork in the road often has an interesting way of leading to new opportunities. Getting a brief glimpse of the Farmers Insurance Open and what it would be like to play on the PGA TOUR only further ignites the fire inside me to work that much harder to chase the dream of playing on TOUR full-time.” This is tough news for Johnson but you hope the TOUR finds a way to pay him back with an invite into another upcoming event. Taking his spot will be Willie Mack who will have his PGA TOUR debut moved up a few weeks with this news. Mack received the Charlie Sifford Memorial Exemption to play in the Genesis Invitational which takes place in three weeks.