We are less than a week away from the PGA Tour’s fourth Signature Event of the season: the Arnold Palmer Invitational. As many of the world’s best golfers descend upon Bay Hill Country Club, two golfers fans are accustomed to seeing at prestigious events may be out in the cold. Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler were not given sponsor’s exemptions for the Arnold Palmer Invitational, as reported by Golfweek’s Adam Schupak. That means that both Spieth and Fowler will have to play their way into the tournament, with almost no time left to do so. Both men have three ways to gain entry. One of them can win the Cognizant Classic this week. They could climb inside the top 30 in the Official World Golf Rankings (currently Spieth 70, Fowler 95). Or, they could move into the top five of the AON Swing 5. Neither of the latter two choices seem likely and there can only be one winner this week. As of this writing, both Spieth and Fowler are playing well. Fowler is tied for fourth at 10-under and Spieth is one shot back. They are both playing the back nine of the second round. Rickie Fowler, Jordan Spieth 2024 Season Costs Them Fowler is coming off of a dreadful 2024 season on the PGA Tour. He garnered only one top-10 in 23 events, missing six cuts. The former Oklahoma State Cowboy finished outside the top 50 in the FedEx Cup standings, which would have guaranteed him a spot in this year’s Signature Events. Meanwhile, Spieth has had a lot going against him. He also played poorly in 2024. That coincided with Spieth’s wrist injury, which led to surgery last fall. The recovery time kept him from playing in the PGA Tour fall schedule and put him behind the 8-ball to climb the world rankings. Both Spieth and Fowler were provided sponsor exemptions into two Signature Events already this year: the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the Genesis Invitational. Neither player fared well at either event. That was part of the API’s thought process when deciding not to give them exemptions. Arnold Palmer Invitational tournament director Drew Donovan declined to name the four golfers who were given exemptions. However, Arnold Palmer’s grandson, Sam Saunders, who is a member of the sponsor exemption committee, shed some light. “What our team did was try to pick players that, you know, it’s about protecting and growing the game of golf as a whole,” said Saunders. “At the end of the day, it’s who’s getting the ball in the hole the fastest that are the ones who get the opportunities. You can’t make everybody happy with exemptions. So you try to just do it as fair and balanced as possible.” Arnold Palmer Invitational Exemption Known Incidentally, during last week’s Mexico Open, Rafael Campos told the media that he was given a sponsor’s exemption into the API. So, that is one. The decision to not include Spieth makes a bit more sense. He has only ever played this tournament once before it became a Signature Event. But Fowler will make you shake your head a bit more. The Orange Warrior had a personal relationship with Palmer up until his passing. He has been a steward and champion of sorts for the event. Not to mention, he embodies much of what Palmer meant to the game of golf. Saunders addressed that as well. “Rickie’s one of my friends but it has to be non-biased,” he said. “You try to make sponsor exemptions to be objective and not subjective. And I think that’s what our team did quite well. “I think every one of us wants Rickie Fowler to be playing in the tournament, we love him. He’s been one of the best spokespersons on behalf of my grandfather and carrying on that legacy, nobody does it better than Rickie Fowler. Rickie had gotten a couple of opportunities for exemptions in the elevated events already, and that was something that had to be taken into consideration. “You want other players to get opportunities. There are a lot of players on the PGA Tour. And, you know, not everyone may be household names, but it’s about trying to provide the best competition.” It is still unclear who the other three players are that received the exemptions into the API.