Staff Reports
President Donald Trump quietly used his pardon power to clear PGA Tour caddie Eric Larson’s decades‑old federal drug conviction. The Department of Justice posted the clemency grant after the president signed it, and reporting says Mr. Trump even phoned Larson and his boss, golfer Harris English, to deliver the news. The fix is simple in Washington: a signature. The real test is whether it actually lets Larson get back into the U.K. to earn the money he missed out on.
Why the pardon matters for an honest, hard‑working caddie
Larson was barred from entering the U.K. under the Electronic Travel Authorisation rules because of a roughly 30‑year‑old conviction. That cost him roughly $126,000 when Harris English finished second at The Open and Larson couldn’t be on the bag. He served over ten years in federal custody, rebuilt his life, and worked for top players like Mark Calcavecchia, Anthony Kim and Harris English. This isn’t a celebrity favor; it’s the government undoing a consequence that kept a man from making a living.
He followed the process — and the DOJ posted the clemency
Larson applied through the Justice Department’s pardon office. The clemency grant appears on the DOJ clemency list and was signed on September 3. That matters. Too often clemency is smeared as a political payoff. In this case, a man filled out the paperwork, gave proof of rehabilitation, and got the green light. President Trump used the pardon power to help an ordinary American get his life back — which, by the way, is exactly what that power is for.
But the U.K. still has the final say
Don’t pop the champagne yet. The British Home Office runs the ETA process and decides entry based on convictions and sentences. A U.S. pardon clears Larson’s federal record at home, but it does not automatically erase the conviction in the eyes of U.K. officials. If Britain wants to keep people with long‑past sentences out, that’s their prerogative. Still, common sense should prevail: this is a man who paid his debt and proved he wasn’t a threat. Bureaucrats can make things needlessly difficult, or they can use discretion to right an old wrong.
What this should teach lawmakers and the public
Larson’s pardon points to a bigger lesson: collateral consequences last longer than sentences. Congress and immigration officials should streamline how rehabilitated people regain full civic and economic life. The pardon was the right, small step. The bigger step would be smarter rules so hardworking Americans aren’t sidelined by paperwork and legacy convictions. For now, credit where it’s due: President Trump signed a pardon that could restore a man’s livelihood. If critics want to complain, they can file their own paperwork with the pardon office — and wait.
