LIV Golf

LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman said he's ended efforts to negotiate a truce with PGA commissioner Jay Monahan.

Norman told Tom Minear of The Australian on Tuesday (via ESPN's Mark Schlabach) the cold war that began with LIV luring away several high-profile golfers with lucrative guaranteed contracts hasn't thawed, so they're ready to move on.

"That's why we are where we are today," Norman said. "We tried awfully hard—I know I did personally for the past year. ... When we knew we were never going to hear from them, we just decided to go."

He added: "We have no interest in sitting down with them, to be honest with you, because our product is working."

LIV has built a roster that includes Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Cameron Smith and Sergio Garcia, among others.

DeChambeau and Mickelson were among 11 LIV players to file an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour in August, saying they were unfairly suspended and barred from playing Tour events after competing in a LIV tournament.

Norman told Miner the plan wasn't to compete directly against the PGA Tour or the DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour).

"It was always an additive to all tours," he said. "This notion [that] we're trying to destroy tours is not true. The PGA Tour is trying to destroy us. It's as simple as that."

Some of the LIV Golf events overlapped with the other tours, however, which raised questions about whether the existing tours would struggle to attract players when up against LIV's 54-hole, no-cut tournaments with purses typically around $25 million.

In August, Monahan confirmed LIV players would remain banned from the PGA Tour.

"As I've been clear throughout, every player has a choice, and I respect their choice, but they've made it. We've made ours," Monahan said. "We're going to continue to focus on the things that we control and get stronger and stronger. I think they understand that."

His comments came in coordination with the Tour announcing "enhancements," including a commitment from top golfers to play more tournaments, larger purses and a guaranteed salary for any full-time players.

The PGA Tour kicked off its 2022-23 season Thursday with the Fortinet Championship in California, while LIV Golf is hosting a tournament in Chicago starting Friday.

LIV Golf makes its fifth stop on it's inaugural eight-tournament run on Friday at Rich Harvest Farms near Chicago in Sugar Grove, Illinois.

The startup golf tour's slogan is short and catchy: Big names. Big energy.

Some of those names confirmed to be competing include Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Phil Mickelson and former top college player David Puig, who previously played in two LIV Golf events as the No.9 ranked amateur in the world.

Now that he's a professional, this will be his first official tournament.

He's slated to be on team Torque GC playing alongside Jediah Morgan, Joaquin Niemann and Scott Vincent.

It's no secret that LIV is hoping the wunderkind can bring even more excitement to its 12-team, 48-man tournament.

After all, for them, it's all about "intense competition" and "new rivalries."

The prize money up for grabs is $25 million. The winner will take home $4 million, with $16 million going to the remaining individual golfers on the leaderboard.

The remaining $5 million will be divided between the top three teams.

So far, the highest on-course earner for LIV is Johnson, who won in Boston to take his total purse to $9,962,500.

Here's a look at the tee times, how to watch and a few predictions.

LIV Golf Chicago Info

Dates: September 16-18

Start Time: 1 p.m. ET on September 16

Live Stream: LIVGolf.com

Tee Times: The shotgun start times can be found on LIVGolf.com.

Friday's Rd. 1 groups for #LIVGolfChicago

Shotgun start at 12:15 pm CT pic.twitter.com/u129Q241sB

— LIV Golf Communications (@LIVGolfComms) September 14, 2022

Predictions

Dustin Johnson Wins Again

As LIV Golf continues to build its roster, and the addition of Puig was a big get, the field is still stacked with golfers who are a little bit past their primes.

That leaves things wide open for a player like Dustin Johnson, who is the best individual golfer in the 48-man field.

The 38-year old native of South Carolina was officially the first American player to win a LIV Golf event.

In addition to his Boston victory, he was the captain of 4 Aces GC, which won its third consecutive team title.

Johnson now sits atop the Individual Champion points standings with 94 points, which gives him a 17-point lead over second place Branden Grace.

Looking back at Johnson's 30-foot eagle putt for the win this past Sunday, he'll be out to put himself in position to build on that this coming weekend.

DJ EAGLE FOR THE WIN!!! #LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston @DJohnsonPGA pic.twitter.com/O5CffhnVQ7

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 4, 2022

"I've had a chance to win every one," he said. "That's three in a row for the team, and for me to get my first, I'm feeling good."

That good feeling should carry over to Rich Harvest Farms and prove to be yet another big win for Johnson.

4 Aces Goes for Four in a Row

The field is set ✅#LIVGolf #LIVGolfChicago pic.twitter.com/j8zq0y33Gw

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 12, 2022

Sometimes, winning is all about momentum.

What team is rolling and has, for lack of a better phrase, figured it out.

That team appears to be 4 Aces.

With Johnson at the helm, they've been on a three-win tear on American soil and considering that this one is in Chicago, there's no reason to think that they can't keep the good times rolling.

Team Crushers, led by DeChambeau is currently in second place on the leaderboard and could be a strong challenger to the Aces this weekend.

But for those wanting to put their money on it, the safe bet is likely with Johnson and his teammates.

The players participating in LIV Golf's season-ending team championship will reportedly be competing for an eye-popping cash prize.

According to ESPN's Mark Schlabach, golfers will be playing for the richest purse in the history of the sport: $50 million. The team championship is scheduled to be played at Trump National Doral Miami from Oct. 27 to Oct. 30.

There will be 12 four-man teams competing for a $16 million first-place prize. Teams will be seeded one through 12, with the top four seeds receiving a bye into the quarterfinals and the other eight competing in the qualifying rounds. Seedings will be determined by a closest-to-the-pin shootout by the team captains, which will be held immediately after players are drafted.

Per Schlabach, a LIV Golf spokesperson said details of the team championship were still being finalized and would be released in the future. However, LIV Golf's rules and regulations were released by a U.S. District Court in California on Monday as part of its federal antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour.

Schlabach noted "team matches will consist of two individual match-play contests and one pairs match-play contest." Matches are worth one point and ties will be broken by a sudden-death playoff with the two captains selecting the players to compete.

The team that finishes in second place will split $10 million, while the third-place team receives $8 million and fourth takes home $4 million. Teams that finish fifth through eighth will earn $2 million each, and teams that are ninth through 12th receive $1 million each.

Tuesday's news does not sit will with players competing on the PGA Tour.

"It's very unsurprising that they would pick something so tacky and unoriginal to try and expand the game," a long-time PGA Tour player told Schlabach. "It's f--king lame is what it is. It's lame as s--t. It's XFL. It's AND1 Mixtape Tour. It's not competitive golf. It's a circus."

The player continued: "It's not competitive. The real competitive golfers, the guys who play on the PGA Tour and compete in majors, it's why they're just not interested in this nonsense."

The rise of LIV Golf has forced golfers to draw battle lines, the impact of which is already being felt.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the BMW PGA Championship, Rory McIlroy explained he had "no idea" whether he can enjoy the same kind of kinship with some of his former Ryder Cup teammates who have signed with LIV.

"I wouldn’t say I’ve got much of a relationship with them at the minute," he said. "... But, like, I haven’t done anything different. They are the ones that have made that decision. So I can sit here and keep my head held high and say I haven’t done anything differently."

In a lighter exchange, the four-time major champion alluded to the three-round format for LIV tournaments:

Rory 😃.
Q. If come Sunday you find yourself in contention and the man to the side of you is a LIV player, would there be more incentive to win?
RM: I mean, I'll be trying to win a golf tournament regardless. They are going to be pretty tired on Sunday; it will be the fourth day.

— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) September 7, 2022

McIlroy has made his allegiance very clear. Not only has he remained with the PGA Tour, but he's also partnering with Tiger Woods for TGL, a new team-based league that will operate in tandem with the tour.

Given the existential threat LIV Golf poses for the PGA Tour, one can understand why McIlroy might still hold some hostility toward his former colleagues. He may not be the only one, though.

Shane Lowry echoed a similar sentiment toward LIV-aligned stars.

"Obviously I haven’t seen them in a long time now," he said. "Don’t hang out with them anymore. Probably won’t be going out for dinner because we haven’t seen each other. But yeah, there are certain lads that I shake hands with and certain hands I wouldn’t."

It will certainly be fascinating to see how this dynamic unfolds at the next Ryder Cup, which tees off in just over one year near Rome.

The United States enters the 2023 Ryder Cup as the defending champion, but Team Europe dominated the event before that with seven wins in the previous nine installments.

The narrative often centered on how the Europeans were far more focused on a collective goal than their American counterparts. The U.S. had no shortage of individual star power but couldn't excel as a team.

This time next year, Team Europe might have to deal with the kind of internal drama that was mostly associated with its Ryder Cup opponent.

Dustin Johnson is making moves.

The veteran golfer moved into third place in second-round play at LIV Golf Boston on Saturday, shooting a seven-under 63.

That moved him just two strokes behind the leader, Talor Gooch, and one stroke behind Joaquin Niemann. Anirban Lahiri (-9) and the trio of Jason Kokrak, Bernd Wiesberger and Matthew Wolff (-8 each) rounded out the top five.

Cam Smith, who officially made the move to LIV Golf this past week, found himself in a tie for eighth at seven under. But while Johnson took a step back Saturday, shooting a 69 after Friday's 64, he surged up the leaderboard.

Johnson even surged to the lead late in the round, though Gooch overtook him.

.@DJohnsonPGA rebounds immediately and takes the OUTRIGHT LEAD with 3 to play 😲 #LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/cGRiSmlcKc

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 3, 2022

Gooch has ice in his veins 🥶 Sinks the clutch putt to take the outright lead#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/vmG5K6Fiqd

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 3, 2022

Talor Gooch didn't slow down as the outright leader after round 2#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/Us7KyM7UMh

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 3, 2022

Many of the day's highlights were provided by Johnson, however:

DJ's in a groove 🎼 Behind the lead by one stroke#LIVGolf #LIvGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/2DwDXU1YE9

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 3, 2022

The slow roller eagle from DJ stretches the 4 Aces lead to 2️⃣ #LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston @DJohnsonPGA pic.twitter.com/mO9qVKyNe1

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 3, 2022

The breakaway and Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf remains one of the most controversial endeavors in sports and a regular focal point of the golfing world. Detractors of the tournament have criticized it for being a sportswashing effort by the Saudi government to detract from its human-rights violations.

Within the golfing world, meanwhile, LIV participants have been banned from PGA Tour events and the FedEx Cup playoffs. While a number of players have sued the PGA Tour over those bans, United States District Court Judge Beth Labson Freeman ruled earlier in August that the PGA Tour was within its rights to ban Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford from the FedEx Cup playoffs while that lawsuit remained in the courts.

Matthew Wolff and Talor Gooch sit atop the leaderboard after one day of action in the LIV Golf Invitational Series at The International Golf Club in Bolton, Massachusetts.

Wolff and Gooch finished the first round of LIV Golf's Boston event at a seven-under 63. However, they hold just a one-shot lead over Cameron Smith, who is making his LIV Golf debut after departing the PGA Tour.

LIV Golf Bedminster winner Henrik Stenson, meanwhile, was a late scratch from the event and replaced by 18-year-old Shergo Al Kurdi, who shot for par. He finished better than Phil Mickelson, who had a rough outing as he finished three over par.

Here's a look at the leaderboard after the first day and a quick recap of the action.

---

LIV Golf Boston Leaderboard

T1. Matthew Wolff: -7

T1. Talor Gooch: -7

T3. Cameron Smith: -6

T3. Joaquin Niemann: -6

T5. Kevin Na: -4

T5. Bernd Wiesberger: -4

T5. Louis Oosthuizen: -4

T5. Paul Casey: -4

T5. Anirban Lahiri: -4

Full leaderboard available at LIVGolf.com

---

Wolff was one of the most impressive performers Friday and hit the shot of the afternoon with an ace on the second hole, marking the first hole-in-one in LIV Golf history.

MATTHEW WOLFF HOLE IN ONE

FIRST IN LIV GOLF HISTORY ⬇️ 🕳️ #LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/pxukPFdYxH

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

The 23-year-old went on to card three birdies on the front nine before carding three birdies, an eagle and three bogeys on the back nine. He finished out the afternoon with a birdie on the 18th hole.

https://twitter.com/LIVGolfInv/status/1565801111264628736

.@matthew_wolff5 takes control 😤#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/zeu3mT9dhb

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Have yourself a day @matthew_wolff5 #LIVGolf #LIVBoston pic.twitter.com/RecJ2R3lWr

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Wolff, who attended Oklahoma State University, had played on the PGA Tour for four years before leaving for LIV Golf. He won just one PGA Tour event and had two top-ten finishes before departing.

When he made the switch to LIV Golf, he said he felt like it was a better decision for his mental health because the breakaway circuit has a better schedule and format.

Gooch had a similarly impressive day, carding five birdies on the front nine before closing out the afternoon with three birdies and a bogey on the back nine. Like Wolff, he finished the day with a birdie on Hole 18.

Talor Gooch sinks the first birdie of Boston 🐤 #LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston @TalorGooch pic.twitter.com/qexO1PiZtJ

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Gooch sinks the easy one to extend his lead 👏

He sits at -7 with 7 to go#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/9xAYY1dMGY

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Gooch, 30, had also played on the PGA Tour before joining LIV Golf. He had just one victory on the Tour and four top-10 finishes.

While Smith is just one shot off the lead, his LIV Golf debut performance was impressive. He carded three birdies, an eagle and a bogey on the first nine holes before adding two birdies, an eagle and a double bogey on the back nine.

He would be in the lead had he not carded a double bogey on the 14th hole.

Cam Smith's first drive as a member of LIV#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/wZCAzjkRf3

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Cam stiffs it and sinks it for his first birdie 👍 #LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/SzML1v9WPQ

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Hit the flag and off the green for Cam Smith#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/axRH2LE15u

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

His first 🦅 puts Cam Smith tied at the top of the leaderboard with Gooch#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/75SfjIym6B

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Absolute beauty of a tee shot by Cam Smith

Sets him up beautifully to climb the leaderboard#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/qH2ONI8TGR

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

CAM SMITH IS NOT HUMAN 😱 #LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/AAGBIXX7lZ

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Mic drop 🎤 🦅

Cam Smith ends his day in style#LIVGolf #LIVGolfBoston pic.twitter.com/kKxiKg4LIz

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) September 2, 2022

Smith will look to claim the lead during Round 2 of LIV Golf's Boston event Saturday. There's still a long way to go, but if Smith wins in his debut tournament, it will be quite impressive.

Fred Couples doesn't think much of LIV Golf, nor does he care for the explanations former PGA Tour players offer for why they have joined the controversial league.

Cameron Smith told Evin Priest of Golf Digest that one of the main reasons he made the jump to LIV is because of the schedule.

"I'll be able to spend more time at home in Australia and maybe have an event down there, as well. I haven't been able to do that, and to get that part of my life back was really appealing," Smith said.

The Australian star added he missed events like "friends' weddings, birthday parties and seeing your mates having a great time at rugby league games" while living in the United States to play on the PGA Tour.

Couples must have read the interview, based on the cheeky tweet he sent out:

To all my friends who I missed birthdays & weddings …… so sorry, I was busy earning a living on the @pgatour and in my line of work the goal is to EARN your way to work weekends. And by weekends i mean 72 holes. Sorry not sorry .

— fredcouplesgolf (@fredcouplesgolf) September 1, 2022

The crowning achievement of Smith's career came in July when he won the Open Championship. He followed that up with two more appearances on the PGA Tour before officially signing with LIV Golf.

The upstart league is bankrolled by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. The Saudi government has garnered widespread criticism for human rights violations.

Couples, who has consistently spoken out about players' signing up to play for LIV, joined the PGA Tour in 1980. The 62-year-old has 33 career wins from the PGA Tour, European Tour and Champions Tour. He won the 1992 Masters and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2013.

Phil Mickelson said he's heard from both PGA Tour and LIV Golf players who are happy about the direction of the sport.

Mickelson, one of the first marquee LIV signings, told Bob Harig of Sports Illustrated on Thursday he's pleased the increased competition is helping everybody.

"Yes, numerous [players have reached out]. And I'm very appreciative," the six-time major champion said. "They are from both sides. I think players on both sides of LIV and the PGA Tour are appreciative of what is happening. Every player is benefiting."

LIV, which is financially backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, was able to lure several high-profile players away from the PGA Tour with a variety of perks, including lucrative guaranteed contracts, sizable purses and 54-hole, no-cut tournaments.

Mickelson committed to the new tour after receiving a contract worth around $200 million, per Brentley Romine of Golf Channel.

Greg Norman, a two-time major winner who's now the CEO of LIV Golf, told Fox News' Tucker Carlson in August they offered Tiger Woods "somewhere in that neighborhood" of $700 million to $800 million.

Woods turned down the offer and has instead joined Rory McIlroy as the most outspoken critics of players moving to the rival tour.

"I disagree with it," Woods told reporters before The Open Championship in July. "I think that what they've done is they've turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position."

He added: "What is the incentive to practice and earn it in the dirt?"

The PGA Tour responded to the exodus by announcing "enhancements" to the tour beginning next season, including larger tournament purses and a guaranteed $500,000 salary for all exempt members.

Nevertheless, another group of players are making the move to LIV following the conclusion of the PGA Tour playoffs after last weekend's Tour Championship.

Mickelson told Harig he doesn't believe the PGA Tour would have made the changes without the arrival of LIV.

"I don't think anything like that would have happened without the leverage that LIV Golf has provided," he said. "There was no leverage. There were no other options."

Now Lefty, who noted previous efforts to spark change on the PGA Tour fell short, is hopeful golfers of each side understand the importance of competition.

"Unless there was leverage, nothing was going to change," Mickelson said. "And all players should be appreciative of what LIV is doing. The players on LIV for the opportunity they are getting. And the PGA Tour for the leverage that was provided to get these changes done."

LIV Golf continues its debut season this weekend in Boston. The PGA Tour tees off its 2022-23 campaign Sept. 15 with the Fortinet Championship in California.

LIV Golf's Patrick Reed has filed a defamation lawsuit against the Golf Channel and analyst Brandel Chamblee for "misreporting information with falsity and/or reckless disregard of the truth."

Reed alleged in Tuesday's filing that the Golf Channel, Chamblee and PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan conspired against him for the past nine years in an effort to "destroy his reputation, create hate and a hostile work environment for him," per Reuters (via ESPN).

The lawsuit states Reed's lawyer sent a cease-and-desist letter to Chamblee in January 2020 demanding that he stop suggesting the golfer cheated in a tournament. Reed received two penalty strokes in the 2019 Hero World Challenge one month earlier for improving his lie in a bunker, which he denied was done on purpose.

This January, Joel Beall of Golf Digest noted Reed has faced cheating allegations dating back to his college career, but he previously told the outlet it wasn't a fair label.

"Being called a cheater. That's so far from the truth," he said in 2021. "No athlete, no golfer who works to make it to the highest level is a cheater."

Reed, whose biggest career win came at the 2018 Masters, left the PGA Tour to join LIV Golf in June. He was indefinitely suspended from the tour, as were other golfers who appeared in the rival organization's events.

"Despite his exceptional world-class golfing achievements, in June of 2022, Mr. Reed was constructively terminated as a member of the PGA Tour, as a result of threats made and action taken by its Commissioner Jay Monahan and his PGA Tour, and signed with LIV Golf," the lawsuit reads, per Reuters.

Reed is seeking $750 million in damages, according to the Guardian.

On Aug. 3, Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau headlined a group of 11 LIV Golf players who filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour.

The U.S. Justice Department began looking into whether the tour has made any antitrust violations in regards to LIV Golf in July, per CNN's Wayne Sterling.

Amid the legal battles, Tiger Woods held a meeting Tuesday night to rally support for the PGA Tour in an effort to curb defections to LIV, which is financially backed by Saudi Arabia and is offering lucrative guaranteed contracts to make the jump.

"It was about all the top players getting on the same page," a golfer who attended the meeting told ESPN's Mark Schlabach. "It was a good meeting."

The PGA Tour playoffs continue with the BMW Championship beginning Thursday, while the next LIV tournament is scheduled to tee off Sept. 2 in Boston.

Cameron Smith has withdrawn from the BMW Championship, which is scheduled to tee off Thursday at Wilmington Country Club in Wilmington, Delaware.

Smith's agent, Bud Martin, cited lingering hip discomfort as the reason for the decision.

Cameron Smith, who enters the week No. 3 in the FedExCup standings, is a WD from the BMW Championship.

Statement: pic.twitter.com/KMxmN8AmDc

— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) August 15, 2022

This comes after Tom Morgan and James Corrigan of theTelegraph reported August 10 that Smith agreed to a deal with LIV Golf worth in excess of $100 million.

Golfers who signed with LIV Golf have been met with PGA Tour suspensions, and 11 golfers have filed an antitrust lawsuit against the tour in response.

As part of the suit, Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford and Matt Jones attempted to obtain a temporary restraining order allowing them to compete in the FedEx Cup Playoffs. U.S. District Court Judge Beth Freeman denied the motion, finding their LIV Golf contracts accounted for any PGA Tour-related financial losses.

Smith qualified for the playoffs and entered the first leg, the FedEx St. Jude Championship.

The Open Championship winner tied for 13th, two shots behind winner Will Zalatoris. Zalatoris and Sepp Straka needed a three-hole playoff to determine a winner, and Smith might have taken part were he not assessed a two-shot penalty for a rules infraction in the third round.

Signing with LIV Golf would bring an end to a successful PGA Tour season for the 28-year-old Australian. He has three wins and seven top-10 finishes this year, and he sits third behind Zalatoris and Scottie Scheffler in the FedEx Cup standings.