LIV Golf

Despite all of this, the PGA Tour remains vulnerable. Players have intimated that they intend to play the major championships, and if Johnson and Mickelson ...

If the major organizations get to choose (and it does seem they do), LIV Golf has made the choice spectacularly simple. If the folks running the OWGR don't recognize LIV Golf as a legitimate tour -- a monstrous, sport-shaping "if" at this point -- then LIV Golf will be propped up by D.J. and Lefty in the short term but will struggle to sustain itself in the long-term once those players cycle out of playing in the majors and eventually retire. LIV Golf COO Atul Kholsa was asked about this idea recently, and he said LIV is "in the process right now of the application to put our application in." However, the USGA clarified that its decision "should not be construed as the USGA supporting an alternative organizing entity, nor supportive of any individual player actions or comments." As "regular season golf" fractures, the majors have never felt more monumental. It's interesting, isn't it, how everything is controlled by the same individuals if you want to play golf in this world? Perhaps the folks running LIV GOlf don't even care about taking over the PGA Tour, but that does certainly seem to be the desired trajectory. That's unless its business model is to simply pick off players who have already made a name for themselves and are reaching the end of their careers. LIV Golf has applied to receive OWGR points, through which its players could maintain statuses as top-50 or top-20 golfers in the world so they can continue to play their way into the majors. The parody that LIV Golf has been to date makes Swift's satire look entirely reasonable. Majesticks, 4Aces, Fireballs and Iron Heads are just a few of the 12 club names, and you can see the team logos below. Despite all of this, the PGA Tour remains vulnerable.

But in February when controversy erupted over comments critical of the PGA Tour by Phil Mickelson, there was a massive shift, with several players coming out in ...

I'm just going to keep playing professional golf and enjoy it wherever it takes me, play with the best players in the world. LIV Golf pivoted to a series of eight tournaments this year with 10 scheduled for 2023 and the launch of the league in 2024. DeChambeau, who has eight PGA Tour victories, has mostly endured a lost 2022 while has he has dealt with injuries, including a broken bone in his left hand that required surgery. That's really all I've got, that's what I'll do for the rest of my life, because I want to be one of the best players in the world." “Every person out here has their own opinion on it," he said. The original plan was for LIV Golf to start a league comprised of 14 tournaments this year with a team element a big part of the profile.

A report says Bryson DeChambeau is headed to play the LIV Golf circuit. His agent released a statement.

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Bryson DeChambeau, the 2020 U.S. Open Champion, is joining the LIV Golf Invitational Series, a source confirmed to ESPN on Wednesday. Patrick Reed, the 2018 ...

I'm just going to keep playing professional golf and enjoy it wherever it takes me, play with the best players in the world. "I don't think he's a bad dude. "I think that's mostly -- a lot of it is private," DeChambeau said. I mean, I think a lot of us are -- I don't know if annoyed or tired is the right word. And as of right now, the golf world is probably going to change in some capacity. Professional golf as we know it is changing, and it's happening quickly."

Golf Channel broadcaster Jerry Foltz is pictured in 2020. Jerry Foltz, formerly of Golf Channel, will be the most familiar voice to American golf fans as LIV ...

In accordance with the CBS-rooted premise that at least half of all on-air golf talent must speak in a foreign accent, there will be no respite from this colloquial quirk on LIV productions. Something that emboldens LIV Golf’s telecasts with a truly progressive, youth-friendly edge. The potential defection of Rickie Fowler, another popularity-contest winner whose career has continued to crumble over the last three years, might be in the best interest of both parties. It may take every slip of paper in the idea box to stamp this thing with an identity — if there’s one thing the game doesn’t need, it’s another obscure tour. Like any fledgling company in almost any type of business, LIV Golf will unveil its product to the public later this week in a promotional blaze of promises and proposed progress. Money is no object, revenue hardly a priority as the Saudis seek other forms of value on their mission, attention being one of them.

The much anticipated LIV Golf tournament will make it debut on Thursday, with some of the sport's biggest names taking place.

The projected payout for the winner is expected to be $4 million, with the golfer coming in last taking home $120,000. The eight events of the LIV Golf will have a total purse of $225 million. The much anticipated LIV Golf tournament will make it debut on Thursday, with some of the sport's biggest names taking place.

The fight for player loyalty will likely turn into a legal battle very soon, between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.

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The LIV Golf Invitational Series, a new league designed to compete with the PGA Tour, will start play Thursday at the Centurion Golf Club in London.

On Tuesday, the 2010 U.S. Open winner from Northern Ireland, said he accepts that it is "incredibly polarizing" to be involved with Saudi Arabia-sponsored league. "If you see where I'm at in my career, I don't have a full PGA Tour card. Kaymer, who hails from Germany, explained that the additional money to be earned at the LIV series is not the singular motivator for joining the new league. PGA Tour victories: 1 García, who ranks 10th all time on the PGA Tour money list, has 36 international tournament victories in his career. PGA Tour victories: 1 "I can't wait to get out of here, my friend.” Out of 12 starts on tour this season, Na had six finishes in the top 25 and two in the top 10.he desired the “freedom to play wherever I want and exercising my right as a free agent gives me that opportunity." He also said he would join a Saudi-funded series because it was a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.” Mickelson, who ranks second on the career money list and eighth in career wins, has not resigned his membership on the PGA Tour. Johnson, the 2016 U.S. Open champion and 2020 Masters winner, ranks third on the PGA Tour career money list and tied for 26th on the all-time wins list. The South Carolina native, who is married to Paulina Gretzky, daughter of legendary NHL star Wayne Gretzky, reportedly received $125 million from the LIV to leave the PGA Tour. This has not stopped more than 40 players from committing to play for the $255 million prize money, which is the richest in golf history.

The pro golf landscape is shifting in real time. From LIV player commitments (Phil Mickelson) to resignations to sanctions, here's the latest.

“I can’t answer for the majors, but hopefully they’re going to allow us to play,” Johnson said. Amy has been very supportive of it and with me and the process. But for me to believe this will be around long-term … it’s going to have to be a business.” “And I’ve had that before a couple of times in my life and there’s other things that are a part of it too. “And I think that the day and age that we live in now, it’s just so negative that you see it in everything. “At this time it’s hard to speak on what the consequences will be, but for right now I resigned my membership from the Tour,” Johnson said. “I worked really hard to earn that lifetime membership,” he said. And I think for me, speaking to a few people yesterday and one of the comments was, anything, any decision that you make in your life that’s purely for money usually doesn’t end up going the right way. Among the biggest questions surrounding players departing the Tour was their ability to participate in major championships. “But for me I want to play on the PGA Tour against the best players in the world. If they want to go they can go, if they want to stay they can stay.” On Wednesday morning the Daily Telegraph reported that an announcement is “imminent” introducing Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed as LIV’s latest members.

The PGA Tour has suspended the 17 current and former members -- including Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Sergio Garcia -- who are taking part in the ...

"I think it's a shame that it's going to fracture the game," McIlroy said. "We're going to end up in a worse position because these guys wanted a quick money grab to go play in an exhibition," the player said. "We believe the players are independent contractors and have a right to go play wherever they want to go play." You have made a different choice, which is to abide by the Tournament Regulations you agreed to when you accomplished the dream of earning a PGA TOUR card and -- more importantly -- to compete as part of the preeminent organization in the world of professional golf." "The [Saudis] are going to lose interest eventually. "This week, the RBC Canadian Open is a shining example of what you have created with the PGA Tour: a star-studded field, a committed sponsor, sold-out hospitality offerings, record crowds and a global broadcast distribution," Monahan wrote. The era of free agency is beginning as we are proud to have a full field of players joining us in London, and beyond." "These players have made their choice for their own financial-based reasons," PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan wrote in a memo to the tour's membership. Norman said he had players who were willing to participate in a legal battle. The winner gets $4 million, and the last-place finisher gets $120,000. "This certainly is not the last word on this topic. I know you are with us, and vice versa.

The PGA Tour commissioner said pros taking part in the new LIV Golf Series were now ineligible for his tour's events, and he warned others thinking of ...

On the first hole, security staff and course volunteers were required to usher scores of spectators off the fairway as they trooped behind Mickelson after he had played his first shot. A military band dressed to resemble the red-coated guards stationed outside Buckingham Palace played popular standards, while a fleet of London’s famous black taxi cabs was hired to ferry players to and from the course. The event itself, a curious mix of team and individual competitions, drew a crowd not dissimilar to other golf events, with many spectators dressed in golf attire and largely middle-aged or retirees. “It makes no sense how I’ve played the game of golf for all this time, I’ve had two tour cards and the ability to play all over the world. Norman, accompanied by Majed Al Sorour, chief executive of the Saudi Golf Federation, embraced players after they had struck their first shots. “Anybody that’s shocked clearly hasn’t been listening to the message that Jay and everybody’s been putting out,” Thomas said after his round Thursday at the Canadian Open. “They took that risk going into it, whether they thought it was a risk or not. Graeme McDowell, who resigned from the PGA Tour 30 minutes before striking his first ball in the new tournament, said he had begun consulting lawyers in anticipation of what was to come. Those issues were being volubly discussed by fans around the first tee, where the event’s two star attractions — Johnson and Mickelson — were preparing to find out just what they had gotten themselves into. The era of free agency is beginning as we are proud to have a full field of players joining us in London, and beyond.” Mickelson’s involvement has proved to be the most controversial. “Today’s announcement by the PGA Tour is vindictive, and it deepens the divide between the Tour and its members,” the LIV Golf statement said. “But they can’t demand the same PGA Tour membership benefits, considerations, opportunities and platform as you.

As a splashy new series begins, the PGA Tour says 17 golfers playing in it "are suspended or otherwise no longer eligible to participate in PGA TOUR ...

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Seventeen golfers who are currently playing in the LIV Golf Series have been suspended for an unspecified period, the PGA Tour announced Thursday.

He reportedly received $125 million to join the tour. “Simultaneous to you receiving this memo, the players are being notified that they are suspended or otherwise no longer eligible to participate in PGA Tour tournament play, including the Presidents Cup." The era of free agency is beginning as we are proud to have a full field of players joining us in London and beyond," LIV Golf said. LIV Golf will dole out a combined $250 million in prize money across events, individual winners, and winning teams. Those who choose to participate in the future will also be suspended, the Tour announced. The tour has already landed a number of big names.

Following the start of the inaugural LIV Golf event near London on Thursday, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan announced that all golfers playing in the ...

The era of free agency is beginning as we are proud to have a full field of players joining us in London, and beyond." You have made a different choice, which is to abide by the Tournament Regulations you agreed to when you accomplished the dream of earning a PGA TOUR card and -- more importantly -- to compete as part of the preeminent organization in the world of professional golf." On Tuesday, captains selected the rest of their teams in a draft format akin to the NFL and NBA drafts. It's troubling that the Tour, an organization dedicated to creating opportunities for golfers to play the game, is the entity blocking golfers from playing. Can they eventually play PGA TOUR Champions? Trust that we're prepared to deal with those questions, and we'll approach them in the same way we have this entire process: by being transparent and respecting the PGA TOUR regulations that you helped establish. As far as what happens now for the PGA Tour, Monahan added in the statement: "You probably have more questions.

The LIV Golf International Series has arrived, and we're following Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and all of the action on the opening day.

Everyone will tee off at the same time in a shotgun start: Usually it entails an army of golf carts all launched at once from the clubhouse. Phil Mickelson is grouped with DJ, and he also hit the fairway with his opening shot on No. 1. The shotgun start is moments away. The presentation includes a constantly updating leaderboard on the left side of the screen, with players and their team logos. Dustin Johnson's opening shot was shown live on the broadcast, and he split the fairway. The Public Investment Fund, an autonomous wealth fund administered by the government of Saudi Arabia, is the main shareholder of LIV Golf Investments. The golf course is tough and conditions are really tough," Johnson said afterward on the broadcast. If you’re just tuning in, you'll notice that most of the players won’t look any different sartorially than in other tournaments. So, in theory, one player could have a poor event but three good teammates and get a nice payday. Schwartzel is a former Masters champion and one of 17 current or former PGA Tour members competing in this event. We'll have live updates throughout the first day, so check back for more highlights, news and analysis from LIV Golf's first day.

Centurion Club had plenty of pomp for the first event of the startup series, but after the shotgun start players said 'it was just golf.'

LIV Golf spared no expense to put on this golf tournament in a matter of two and a half months. "The people were terrific and it was fun to hit some good shots and get in a competitive frame of mind again. When it was complete – and basically, all finished at the same time due to the shotgun start – the festivities began again. And it continued into the evening. Phil Mickelson was playing for the first time in more than four months, since the final round of the PIF Saudi International tournament, where he finished 17th. The shotgun start.

Shortly after they teed off in the first LIV Golf event, every PGA Tour member was suspended. Graeme McDowell was dismayed. Ian Poulter vowed to appeal.

“I wanted to keep the moral high ground and kind of remain a member of the Tour because I really didn't feel like I needed to resign nor that I should have to resign. This is no different, I am committed to playing around the world like I have done for so many years so it is a shame if they view this as different. If that’s the way he wants to go, that’s the way he wants to go.’’ I love the PGA Tour. It's been great to me. “But like I say, I didn't want to resign. Excited to finally be here playing and see the reaction of the people and the players and everything. We have a compelling option which is not agreeable by the big tours in the world. Phil Mickelson, who Wednesday said as a lifetime member of the PGA Tour he should be allowed to keep that honor and play when he wants, said he would not comment on PGA Tour business. A guy like Sergio García has been doing that for the last five years of his life. It's going to allow me to see my family more, spend more time with my kids, 4 and 2, spend as much time as I can, and I make a good living doing it. “We figured at some point they might want to circle the wagons and get us all in agreement.’’ “We knew that loophole existed and certainly you can understand tournaments might want to get the best players possible.’’

By promising top players multimillion-dollar paydays, the kingdom moved beyond investing in a sport and made a play to control one. Then the PGA Tour struck ...

In his final pretournament news conference this week, Mickelson felt the need to declare in one more uncomfortable moment in a week full of them that “I don’t condone human rights violations at all.” Most, but notably not all, of the world’s top players have rejected the new series out of hand: McIlroy, for example, derided the project as a money grab in February, and on Wednesday he made clear he would not take part. Most of the players, though, seem to have concluded that the money is just too good to pass up. One of its biggest signings, Mickelson, provoked outrage in February when he praised the series as a “ once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” even as he called Saudi Arabia’s record on human rights “ horrible” and used an expletive to describe the country’s leaders as “scary.” Even the rare chances for LIV Series players to defend their decisions to reporters directly this week have often been tense. He then warned other players tempted by Saudi offers that they would endure the same punishments, and lamented “all this talk of money, money and more money.” In a statement, the PGA Tour’s commissioner declared that the rebel pros — and any other player who joined them — were “no longer eligible to participate” in the events that for decades have been the highest level of pro golf in the world. Not that many of the players taking part this week were eager to talk about those motives. The pros who committed to play in the first LIV Series event tried to frame their decisions as principled ones solely about golf. In a sudden escalation of an increasingly bitter fight for control of elite professional golf, the tour suspended 17 players who are participating in the first event of the new tour, the LIV Golf International Series, not long after they had hit their first tee shots. The feud features star players, Saudi billions and manicured courses — all in the genteel world of elite golf, an unlikely, and perhaps uneasy, forum for a public spat over money. ST. ALBANS, England — First, the Saudis signed up a handful of the best-known names in golf to headline their new global tour, tempting players like Phil Mickelson and a few other past champions with staggering paychecks.

Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Sergio Garcia among 48 players who will tee it up for the new Saudi-backed golf league on Thursday in London.

The captains of the teams were selected by LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman and the league's tournament committee. The first-place team will win $16 million. Players who compete in a minimum of four events will be eligible for these awards. The first-place prize for individual players will be $4 million and the team that places first will earn $3 million. The league announced a field of 48 players, including Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Louis Oosthuizen. The league is already disrupting the dynamics in professional men's golf and could continue to do so as its season continues. A 48-person field was announced and players will be split into four-person teams.

LIV Golf has turned professional golf into a reality show, and the worst is just beginning.

Still, it’s not the job of Augusta National, the USGA, the R&A and PGA of America to clean up this mess, and that the tour is beholden to them to succeed should be a wake-up call. One of the things that holds our attention are the players in the arena, and when you invest as much time and emotion as being a fan requires it’s understandable to develop certain feelings towards them. The money is too tempting and where that money comes from has not been a deterrent to a contingent of golfers. It insists on selling the importance of the playoffs, and the moment you have to explain why you matter is the moment you prove the opposite. In our neck of the woods, that is golf. And a product that now raises a question of morality. LIV Golf? In spite of its trappings—perhaps in spite of itself—LIV Golf has proved over the past nine days it is very real, and its evolution from a concept to something concrete has massive consequences. If tour officials don’t take this moment to take a serious analysis of the product it’s presenting, they are just as much a threat to themselves as LIV Golf is to them. How that is additive to the sport, how that is interesting to golf fans, remains unclear. Which brings us to the problem facing the PGA Tour, and make no mistake, it is bad. LIV Golf is the antithesis of this spirit. There is a fundamental fault with the competition that LIV Golf is creating, and for a second put aside the problematic strings to this venture and focus on that competition.

Dustin Johnson looks on, with Beefeater guards in the background, during the first round of the first LIV Golf event. Aitor Alcalde/LIV Golf.

His routine par on the 492-yard opener involved a long drive into the fairway, an approach to maybe 18 feet and two putts. Time will tell, but until it does there is something different for this tournament in the feel department. All that activity didn’t end with the tee shots. There’s a red double-decker bus that is actually a “vintagebusbar.” There’s a red phone box that may or may not contain a working telephone. And putting guru Phil Kenyon was in position on the practice green. “Vindictive” LIV Golf called it in a prompt rebuttal. On the (too small) range things have looked pretty much as you’d expect on any other tour. And only four are inside the top 50. Which is not to say things may change on the front. For one thing, the overall quality of this field falls far short of your typical Grand Slam event. They all have a certain something, and not necessarily all the same something, that makes them distinct from the norm. HEMEL HEMPSTEAD, England — Golf tournaments, big golf tournaments, have an individual feel that bequeaths a certain and identifiable vibe.

The controversial LIV Golf International Series has arrived, with Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson headlining a 48-player field for the first event, ...

What the consequences are going to be, obviously I can’t comment on how the tour is going to handle (it)." The Tour issued a statement on June 1 reiterating that members have not been authorized to participate in the series and that those who "violate the Tournament Regulations are subject to disciplinary action." Dustin Johnson, at No. 15, is the highest-ranked golfer to join the new series. The schedule runs from June through October and does not conflict with any existing majors. A total of $255 million will be awarded in prize money across the eight LIV tournaments. Norman told The Washington Post that LIV offered Tiger Woods a “mind-blowingly enormous” amount (think high nine digits) to sign on. One-time major winners Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed are reportedly the latest players to join the new tour and will debut at LIV Golf's second event in Oregon on June 30. Understand that they still want to chase trophies and championships that mean something in the history of the game of golf. “I’m sure the money is a big part of it, but I don’t know what the other consequences are going to be, the punishments, whatever the fallout is in terms of them leaving the Tour,” Curry said. (For comparison: the U.S. Open, the biggest purse of the four majors, awards $12.5 million in prize money, with the winner getting $2.25 million.) He will be replaced by Peter Drury, The Athletic confirmed last week. There’s a number of things at play here.