Are International Exemptions Needed?

For every PGA tournament the sponsor has eight exemptions. Two of those go to q-school qualifiers or Nationwide winners, but the rest are really for whoever. There once was a need for those exemptions to have designated international restrictions, so enough international players would come, but this isn't the case anymore. On February 11, 2009 the article "PGA TOUR in high demand for international players" discussed how the landscape of the PGA is changing. For example, in 1999 there were 33 Americans in the top 50, now there are only 13. Also, tournaments are popping up and changing dates, so internationals will come to them by staying in the states between World Championships. It's a very exciting time in the PGA and as international strength keeps growing there may be a day when Americans need exemptions.