The European Tour first handed out honorary lifetime membership in 1978 to John Jacobs, the godfather of the Tour that has since offered the honor to a total of 57 golfers.
The European Tour has honored members with lifetime membership for their achievements in the game, including winning major championships and prolific careers on the circuit.
In the modern era, European Tour players who win major championships are typically honored with lifetime membership in that same year. Others are given the honor later in life.
A total of five Americans have received the honor, most recently Collin Morikawa in 2021.
European Tour honorary lifetime members from 1978-present
- John Jacobs (1978)
- Bernard Hunt (1978)
- Dai Rees (1978)
- Peter Butler (1982)
- Seve Ballesteros (1983)
- Tony Jacklin (1983)
- Henry Cotton (1985)
- Fred Daly (1985)
- Max Faulkner (1985)
- Bernhard Langer (1985)
- Sandy Lyle (1985)
- Nick Faldo (1987)
- Ian Woosnam (1992)
- José María Olazábal (1994)
- Bob Charles (1995)
- Arnold Palmer (1995)
- Gary Player (1995)
- Colin Montgomerie (1997)
- Ernie Els (1998)
- Paul Lawrie (1999)
- Greg Norman (1999)
- Vijay Singh (2001)
- Retief Goosen (2002)
- Peter Alliss (2003)
- Bernard Gallacher (2003)
- Neil Coles (2004)
- Christy O’Connor (2004)
- John Panton (2004)
- Michael Campbell (2005)
- Angel Cabrera (2007)
- Padraig Harrington (2007)
- Trevor Immelman (2008)
- Martin Kaymer (2010)
- Graeme McDowell (2010)
- Louis Oosthuizen (2010)
- Tom Watson (2010)
- Darren Clarke (2011)
- Rory McIlroy (2011)
- Charl Schwartzel (2011)
- Lee Westwood (2011)
- Luke Donald (2012)
- Brian Huggett (2012)
- Tommy Horton (2012)
- Mark James (2012)
- Roger Chapman (2012)
- Dave Thomas (2013)
- Justin Rose (2013)
- Jack Nicklaus (2014)
- Peter Oosterhuis (2016)
- Danny Willett (2016)
- Henrik Stenson (2016)
- Sam Torrance (2017)
- Sergio Garcia (2017)
- Francesco Molinari (2018)
- Patrick Reed (2019)
- Shane Lowry (2019)
- Collin Morikawa (2021)
