The LIV Golf series is preparing for its third event in Bedminster, New Jersey this week with Trump National Golf Club as the host venue - raising the prospect of the former US president himself making an appearance at the tournament.
Branden Grace surged to victory in the second event thanks to a fantastic final round at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club last month and during that tournament, Paul Casey became the latest defector to the rebel tour, with his debut set to come at Bedminster - which runs from Friday 29 July to Sunday 31 July.
LIV Golf courted further controversy when they enticed 2016 Open champion Henrik Stenson across to the tour, causing the Swede to immediately be stripped of the Ryder Cup captaincy he had been awarded ahead of next year.
That move further widened the schism between the Saudi-backed breakaway and the PGA and DP World Tours - a battle looking ever more likely to end up in court.
Here’s everything you need to know about golf’s newest tour.
What is LIV Golf?
Reports of a new breakaway league first emerged in 2019 but gathered pace last year as two-time Open champion Greg Norman became the face of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf Series as its chief executive.
With Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund financing the series, there is a clear link to the Saudi Arabia government, whose record on human rights has been criticised by groups such as Amnesty International.
But what for a long time was considered to be a bargaining threat to the traditional PGA and DP World Tours and nothing more, took shape as the LIV Golf Series, which also features new competition rules and what tournament organisers say is an “exciting” new format.
What are the rules?
LIV Golf Series events will be played over three days and 54 holes, rather than the traditional four-day events with 72 holes. There won’t be a cut, either, so the 48 players who start the week will play all three rounds.
There will also be individual and team competitions within the same event. The individual competition will be won by the player who shoots the lowest score over 54 holes, as normal.
The team competition, however, will be made up of 12 teams of four players, with team captains selecting the teams using a ‘snake draft’ ahead of each event. Teams will also have their own unique names and logos.
In terms of scoring, the best two individual scores will count towards the team’s overall total across the opening two rounds, with the best three scores combining on the third and final round. The team with the lowest overall score at the end of the third round will be the winner.
How will the season work and where is the next event?
Bedminster will be the third of seven ‘regular’ events this year with the team championship forming the final event of the season at Doral in Miami in October.
The team championship will see all 12 teams seeded and a four-day knockout tournament will be played using match play scoring to determine the winner, with a championship match taking place on the final day.
An individual champion will also be crowned using points accumulated over the seven ‘regular season’ events.
- LIV Golf London, Centurion Club - June 9-11
- LIV Golf Portland, Pumpkin Ridge - June 30 - July 2
- LIV Golf Bedminster, Trump National - July 29-31
- LIV Golf Boston, Greater Boston - September 2-4
- LIV Golf Chicago, Rich Harvest Farms - September 16-18
- LIV Golf Bangkok, Stonehill - October 7-9
- LIV Golf Jeddah, Royal Greens - October 14-16
- LIV Golf Miami, Trump National Doral - October 27-30
When is the Bedminster event?
The 54-hole tournament will begin on Friday 29 July at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, with the winning player and team decided on Sunday 31 July. New Jersey is five hours behind the UK, so play will start around 7pm BST each day.
Who is playing?
The biggest names initially included Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood, Louis Oosthuizen, Martin Kaymer, Sergio Garcia, Charl Schwartzel and Kevin Na. However, after its first event, LIV Golf added major champions Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed to its ranks, before tempting 2016 Open champion Henrik Stenson across ahead of Bedminster - at which point the Swede was stripped of the Ryder Cup captaincy.
Full player list for Bedminster event
Who is in the field?
- Abraham Ancer – Mexico
- Richard Bland – England
- Laurie Canter – England
- Paul Casey - England
- Eugenio Chacarra – Spain
- Bryson DeChambeau – USA
- Hennie Du Plessis – South Africa
- Sergio Garcia – Spain
- Talor Gooch – USA
- Branden Grace – South Africa
- Justin Harding – South Africa
- Sam Horsfield – England
- Charles Howell III - USA
- Yuki Inamori – Japan
- Dustin Johnson – USA
- Matt Jones – Australia
- Sadom Kaewkanjana – Thailand
- Martin Kaymer – Germany
- Phacara Khongwatmai – Thailand
- Ryosyke Kinoshita – Japan
- Brooks Koepka – USA
- Chase Koepka – USA
- Jason Kokrak - USA
- Jinichiro Kozuma – Japan
- Graeme McDowell – Northern Ireland
- Phil Mickelson – USA
- Jediah Morgan – Australia
- Kevin Na – USA
- Shaun Norris – South Africa
- Louis Oosthuizen – South Africa
- Wade Ormsby – Australia
- Carlos Ortiz – Mexico
- Pat Perez – USA
- Turk Pettit – USA
- James Piot – USA
- Ian Poulter – England
- David Puig - Spain
- Patrick Reed – USA
- Charl Schwartzel – South Africa
- Travis Smyth – Australia
- Henrik Stenson - Sweden
- Hudson Swafford – USA
- Hideto Tanihara – Japan
- Peter Uihlein – USA
- Scott Vincent – Zimbabwe
- Lee Westwood – England
- Bernd Wiesberger – Austria
- Matthew Wolff – USA
Is it on TV?
LIV Golf has yet to be picked up by a major broadcaster in the UK.
However, the action is live streamed for free on the LIV Golf YouTube channel and Facebook page.
How much is the prize money?
Each regular season event will have a prize fund of $25m - every player in the field receives a cut, with a guaranteed $4m for first and $120,000 for last place. Of the $25m, $5m will be split between the top three teams.
The top three players in the overall individual championship will receive a split of $30m, with the overall champion taking $18m, the runner-up receiving $8m and third place getting $4m.
The season-ending team championship has a prize fund of $50m, with the winning team splitting $16m and the team who finishes last receiving $1m. Each player receives a 25 per cent cut.
By comparison, the winner of the PGA Championship, one of golf’s four majors, receives $3m out of a total prize fund of $15m.
