Jordan Spieth received five sponsor exemptions in 2025. He made the field for five Signature events throughout the season. Along with that, the 3-time major winner also got a lot of heat from the fans for stealing spots from more deserving candidates. Now Spieth has admitted that his peers also criticized him.

In an interview with the PGA Tour, Spieth said, “It stinks. I was catching strays for no reason from guys who I had pretty good relationships with. I’m not, like, paying (tournaments) to get in. There’s a reason that they’re going to pick me to go in. If it’s going to be helpful to their tournament, then they’re going to want me there, until they don’t want me there.”

Considering how popular he is, Spieth was always a great choice for sponsors to provide an exemption. He brought in more viewership than many of his peers. Even if he didn’t earn the spot, fans are a lot more eager to watch him play than many with a PGA Tour card. That’s why he was also ranked fifth in the Player Impact Program for 2024.

Spieth added, “I’m doing anything anyone else is doing. I don’t want to have to do it.” Just because he’s getting a ticket into Signature events doesn’t mean Spieth is taking it lightly. He’s putting in the effort to try to automatically qualify for events as much as possible. Last season, he got four top-10 finishes, including one at Muirfield Village playing a Signature event where he got in with an exemption.

But the 32-year-old might continue to face scrutiny. And he doesn’t have much time to prepare for it.

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Jordan Spieth continues to rely on exemptions

This week, Jordan Spieth is set to appear in the season-opening event, the 2026 Sony Open in Hawaii. He will be lined up against some big names, including Keegan Bradley, Collin Morikawa, and Vijay Singh, who recently retained his PGA Tour membership through a controversial route. However, the 32-year-old is already committed to his first exemption appearance of the season.

Spieth will play at Pebble Beach in February. He is an ambassador of AT&T. Hence, the sponsors have invited him to participate in the 2026 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. This is one tournament that he has won in the past. Spieth would be eager to replicate his success from 2017 and win the event once again this year. However, if he fails to perform well, then he might be subject to a lot of criticism from the fans.