After weeks of speculation, Jon Rahm’s LIV Golf team name and line-up has been revealed. However, while the news that the Spaniard’s Ryder Cup teammate Tyrrell Hatton is on board will create headlines, the addition of amateur star Caleb Surratt, who joins alongside the promoted Kieran Vincent, offers plenty of intrigue too.
Surratt is not yet well known beyond the amateur game, but he joins the circuit having developed a reputation as one of the game’s rising stars. He will now turn professional and admitted the chance to begin the next stage of his career playing for Rahm is “special.”
He said: “The opportunity to turn pro and be a part of Jon Rahm’s team is truly a special opportunity that is a great fit for me. I’m excited about the chance to compete and begin my professional career here in Mayakoba.”
The North Carolina native has been making waves in the amateur game for some time and was named as a member of the 2021 US Ryder Cup team before the Covid-19 pandemic put paid to its chances of being held.
Undeterred, he continued his development in 2022 with the highlight being a runner-up finish at that year’s US Junior Amateur Championship.
He continued to impress last year, particularly as part of the US Walker Cup team, where he won three of his four matches at The Old Course, St Andrews to help his team to a 14.5-11.5 victory over Great Britain and Ireland.
He joins LIV Golf ranked 10th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, having achieved a career high of sixth in 2023.
Surratt’s arrival is not the first time LIV Golf has turned to the amateur game to source its talent.
Ratchanon Chantananuwat, who was just 15 at the time, played in the inaugural tournament at London’s Centurion Club in 2022 for Phil Mickelson’s Hy Flyers GC. Elsewhere, James Piot marked his professional debut at the same event and stayed with LIV Golf for two seasons before being relegated at the end of the 2023 campaign.
Finally, David Piot turned pro during the first LIV Golf season and remains a regular. He will line up on Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs GC for the new season.
Surratt will make his debut as a professional at LIV Golf Mayakoba, which gets underway on 2 February.
