Evansville Native Dylan Meyer Receives Exemption to Play in PGA Tour Event

Evansville native and Central High School graduate, Dylan Meyer announces on Twitter he'll be participating in the PGA's upcoming John Deere Classic thanks to a sponsorship exemption.

Meyer, currently a junior at the University of Illinois, has been making a name for himself in the world of college golf since he first stepped on the tee box a few years ago. During his tenure, the team recently won it's third straight Big Ten title, and Meyer himself was named the conference's Player of the Year while also receiving first team All-Big Ten honors.

And he's currently the fourth ranked amateur golfer in the world, by the way.

Earlier this year, he won the 3M Augusta Invitational during Masters week in Augusta, Georgia earning him a sponsorship exemption for the PGA Tour's 2018 Valspar Championship in Palm Harbor, Florida.

Until yesterday, it was the first PGA Tour event he had qualified for. That was until Tuesday when tournament officials with the annual John Deere Classic announced he was among three other amateurs granted sponsorship exemptions to play in this year's event set for July 13th through 16th.

Meyer shared the exciting news through his Twitter account Tuesday evening.

Sponsorship exemptions, and I'm paraphrasing a bit, are used by tournament sponsors to help fill the field of players for the tournament they've spent a ton of money to attach their name to. With nearly every golf tournament being televised somewhere on some channel, sponsors want to make sure the field is full of competitive, and exciting players that will get people to tune in order to get their money's worth, so each tournament leaves a few slots open for those players.

What that means for Meyer, and the other three players who will join him, is that he'll be able to put his skills to the test against some of the best professional golfers in the world. A test he's no doubt up to taking.

The first two rounds of the John Deere Classic will air on the Golf Channel from 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. both Thursday, July 13th and Friday, July 14th, while third and fourth round coverage will be carried on CBS from 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. Saturday, July 15th and Sunday, July 16th.

Best of luck Dylan!