LIV Golf

Former world No. 1 golfer Dustin Johnson is off to a strong start in his second outing for the LIV Golf Invitational Series.

Johnson shot four-under 68 in the first round of LIV Golf Portland and trails leader Carlos Ortiz by one stroke.

Johnson opened the round with a birdie and recorded four more on the fifth, ninth, 11th and 13th holes. He had played a clean round until hole No. 18, when he closed the round with a bogey.

INCHES away 😮

Watch LIVE ➡️ https://t.co/eVkdQYJJPp#LIVGolf | @DJohnsonPGA pic.twitter.com/J8UHCtNF02

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) June 30, 2022

Johnson is in second place, one stroke ahead of Hideto Tanihara, Branden Grace and Pat Perez.

Elsewhere on the leaderboard, Brooks Koepka is tied for sixth at two-under. Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed sit tied for 13th after finishing at even par. Phil Mickelson struggled with a three-over 75 and is tied for 31st.

Day 1 of the LIV Golf Invitational Series' event at North Plains, Oregon's Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club is complete, and Carlos Ortiz sits atop the leaderboard after shooting a five-under 67.

Dustin Johnson is in second place four under in second place. Pat Perez, Hineto Tanihara and Branden Grace reside in third at three under.

Brooks Koepka, who made his LIV debut Thursday, is sixth after carding a two-under 70.

We're underway at Pumpkin Ridge!

Watch LIVE ➡️ https://t.co/9lqOs6AXI0#LIVGolf pic.twitter.com/FcF1yAQYSY

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) June 30, 2022

He's joined by Wade Ormsby and Hennie du Plessis, who is looking to follow up his second-place finish from LIV's London debut.

Louis Oosthuizen, Jinichiro Kozuma, Yuki Inamori, Martin Kaymer and Scott Vincent round out the top 10 and ties after they all shot a one-under 71.

Other notables include LIV debutantes Matthew Wolff, Patrick Reed and Bryson DeChambeau (all even par) as well as Abraham Ancer (one over).

Sergio Garcia is three over, as is six-time major winner Phil Mickelson (three over).

It was a rough day for Mickelson, but he did sink this long putt for birdie to move back to two-over at one point.

Middle of the cup 🔥#LIVGolf | @PhilMickelson

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) July 1, 2022

The team competition is also close this week, with the Johnson-led 4 Aces GC pacing the way at seven-under. This shot from DJ helped the effort.

INCHES away 😮

Watch LIVE ➡️ https://t.co/eVkdQYJJPp#LIVGolf | @DJohnsonPGA pic.twitter.com/J8UHCtNF02

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) June 30, 2022

Torque GC and Stinger GC are tied for second at five under.

Captain Hideto Tanihara, who sunk this shot from the bunker, leads Torque.

How to play the bunker with Hideto Tanihara 🎯

Watch LIVE ➡️ https://t.co/eVkdQYJJPp#LIVGolf pic.twitter.com/Vre4xdtwrR

— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) June 30, 2022

Oosthuizen guides Stinger. That team also features 2011 Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, who won LIV Golf Invitational Series' first-ever event with a six-under score. That tournament took place in London's Centurion Club from June 9-11 from London's Centurion Club.

Schwartzel's team (Stinger GC) crushed the competition at 20-under, or 14 strokes better than second-place finisher Crushers GC. He has not been as fortunate this time around with a two-over 74 thus far.

Round 2 will begin with a shotgun start at 4:15 p.m. ET on Friday. Round 3 will conclude the tournament on Saturday.

United States Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson warned members of LIV Golf that they may be ineligible for the 2023 event.

He told reporters Thursday:

"So what I know is this: In order to play on the Ryder Cup team whether you're top-six or a pick, you must garner Ryder Cup points through the PGA of America. In order to garner Ryder Cup points through the PGA of America, you have to be a member of the PGA of America. The way that we're members of the PGA of America is through the PGA Tour. I'll let you connect the dots from there."

The PGA Tour has suspended golfers who defected to the Saudi-backed golf league in recent weeks, and several golfers have resigned their memberships to the PGA Tour.

Three members of the 2021 United States Ryder Cup team, Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau and Dustin Johnson, are signed to LIV Golf.

Patrick Reed, who earned the nickname "Captain America" thanks to his exploits in the Ryder Cup, and Phil Mickelson, who holds the Ryder Cup record for matches played, are also signed with LIV.

Bernd Wiesberger, Lee Westwood, Sergio Garcia and Ian Poulter are the members of the 2021 European Ryder Cup team to join LIV.

Both teams use different qualifying criteria to decide their final rosters. The United States has six automatic qualifiers, based on a scoring system that is predicated on PGA Tour events, and six captain's choices. The European criteria for the 2023 event is yet to be announced but included nine automatic qualifiers and three captain's choices in 2021.

The DP World Tour fined golfers who defected to LIV Golf $123,000 and banned them from competing in events co-sanctioned with the PGA Tour.

Team Europe captain Henrik Stenson has not indicated how he would handle LIV Golf members for the event.

All of the golfers who have publicly commented said they acknowledge the risk of being potentially left out but indicated the reward for joining LIV—which included nine-figure signing bonuses for some—was too great to pass up.

"I mean, why should it [Cup eligibility] be threatened?" Westwood said. "I've been playing Ryder Cup golf since 1997, and the criteria has been to be a member of the European Tour. Now, the criteria for being a member of the European Tour is to play four events. Why should they change that now?"

The second tournament of the LIV Golf Series will be its first event on American soil.

The rival series to the PGA Tour backed by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia will play outside of Portland, Oregon, from Thursday-Saturday with a more notable field than its first event in London.

Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau headline the 48-golfer field for the three-day event. Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Sergio Garcia were the most recognizable names for LIV Golf's debut.

The 48-player field is divided up into 12 teams, each of which has a captain. All of the players start at the same time in a shotgun start for the 54-hole tournament.

All of the starting holes and prize money information can be found on the LIV Golf official website.

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Predictions

Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau Struggle In First LIV Event

Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau were not factors on the PGA Tour this season because of injuries.

Koepka missed the cut at The Players Championship and The Masters, and he was not in the conversation for the lead at the U.S. Open.

DeChambeau did not make the cut at The Masters or The Memorial Tournament and finished right behind Koepka in 56th place at the U.S. Open.

Koepka and DeChambeau are two of the most talented golfers in the LIV Golf Series field, but their form suggests they may struggle from the start, even against a less talented field.

Koepka will be on Team Smash alongside his brother, Chase, Richard Bland and Adrian Otageui.

DeChambeau is the captain of Crushers, a team that features Peter Uihlein, Shaun Norris and Justin Harding.

There is an individual and team score winner at every LIV Golf event. The team titles may be more attainable for the two Americans if they fail to find form in Portland and have to rely on their teammates to post low scores.

Koepka and DeChambeau could reverse their form in Oregon, but they should not be considered the favorites to win the individual competition.

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Team Stinger Should Be Favored To Win Again

The South African foursome of Charl Schwartzel, Louis Oosthuizen, Branden Grace and Hennie du Plessis won the first team title on the LIV Golf Series.

Schwartzel came away with the individual crown in London, and Du Plessis was the runner-up to his fellow countryman.

The all-South African team will be back for the Portland event to try to replicate their form from London.

Team Stinger must be viewed as the favorite because of its performance three weeks ago. It may be the most well-rounded team in a league that features a handful of stars and some unknown players.

Although the LIV Golf shotgun start format is different from usual competition, Stinger could treat the series like a Presidents' Cup event since they are all playing from the same country.

Most of the team members have experience playing with each other in team events prior to the LIV Golf series, and that may help how they approach the weekend event in Oregon and others later in the season.

Four-time major winner Brooks Koepka told reporters that a change in opinion and the chance for increased recovery time led to him leaving the PGA Tour for the LIV Golf Invitational Series.

Koepka had previously pledged his allegiance to the PGA Tour in February and claimed that "somebody will sell out and go for it" regarding LIV Golf.

"Just my opinion, man," Koepka said Tuesday when asked about it.

Koepka notably did not want to speak about LIV Golf during the run-up to the U.S. Open, to the point where he said that reporters were casting a "black cloud" over the event for bringing up the topic.

It appears he's jumping ship now, though, and he's set to take part in LIV Golf's next event at Pumpkin Ridge outside Portland, Oregon.

"My opinion changed," Koepka said. "That was it. You guys will never believe me, but we didn't have the conversation till everything was done at the U.S. Open and figured it out and just said I was going to go one way or another. Here I am."

LIV Golf is only an eight-event series this year. It began June 9 and will run through October 30. The events are largely spread out save for one spot where there are back-to-back events in consecutive weeks in October.

That spacing apparently enticed Koepka to join LIV Golf, especially considering the numerous ailments (knee, hip, wrist) he suffered over the years.

"What I've had to go through the last two years on my knees, the pain, the rehab, all this stuff, you realize, you know, I need a little bit more time off," Koepka said.

"I'll be the first one to say it: It's not been an easy last couple of years, and I think having a little more breaks, a little more time at home to make sure I'm 100 percent before I go play in an event and don't feel like I'm forced to play right away [is good]."

Koepka now joins his brother, Chase, on LIV Golf. He's one of seven players ranked in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking to join LIV, including Patrick Reed, Kevin Na, Bryson DeChambeau, Abraham Ancer, Louis Oosthuizen and Dustin Johnson.

Survivors of family members injured or killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks penned an open letter to PGA Tour members applauding them for resisting overtures from the LIV Golf Invitational Series.

ESPN's Mark Schlabach shared a portion of the letter:

"To those many of you who chose to remain loyal to the PGA Tour — and did not defect to the Saudi Arabia-bankrolled LIV Golf Series — we thank you and the sponsors who support you. Thank you for standing up for decency. Thank you for standing up for the 9/11 Families. Thank you for resisting the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's efforts to cleanse its reputation by buying off professional athletes. [...]

"To those of you who have chosen what is right over blood money from a corrupt, destructive sports entity and its Saudi backers, please continue to stand strong. You inspire hope and conviction that our long journey to accountability and justice is in reach. We deeply value your integrity and your willingness to stand up for principle."

LIV Golf is backed by the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, which has led to significant scrutiny of the venture.

Human rights have been a longstanding concern in Saudi Arabia. In February 2021, U.S. intelligence officials said they concluded Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi Arabian Washington Post journalist who was critical of the regime.

President Joe Biden also authorized the declassification last September of an FBI report outlining the connection of Saudi nationals to the 9/11 attacks. Osama bin Laden, who orchestrated the attacks, and 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudi Arabian.

Critics of LIV Golf contend it's a means for the Saudi regime to improve its reputation and how it's perceived around the world.

Terry Strada, the national chairperson of 9/11 Families United, wrote a letter to LIV-affiliated golfers saying they were "complicit with their whitewash, and help give them the reputational cover they so desperately crave."

Leading up to the U.S. Open, Phil Mickelson addressed the topic and told reporters he has "deep, deep empathy" for anybody who lost loved ones on 9/11.

Phil Mickelson responded to criticism from families of 9/11 victims over playing in the Saudi-backed LIV Golf series on Monday, saying he has "deep empathy" for them. https://t.co/gOw4C2VAyc pic.twitter.com/nsHO6pYwfY

— CBS News (@CBSNews) June 14, 2022

In response to LIV Golf, the PGA Tour suspended Mickelson and 16 others who competed in LIV's inaugural event. The tactic didn't dissuade others from joining the breakaway league, though.

Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed and Abraham Ancer have all officially signed, and Brooks Koepka is reportedly on the way as well.

LIV will tee off its second event on June 30 at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in Portland, Oregon.

As was the case with last week's U.S. Open, LIV Golf players will be permitted to play in the 2022 Open Championship.

According to ESPN, the R&A made the announcement Wednesday, with CEO Martin Slumbers releasing the following statement:

"The Open is golf's original championship, and since it was first played in 1860, openness has been fundamental to its ethos and unique appeal. Players who are exempt or have earned a place through qualifying for The 150th Open in accordance with the entry terms and conditions will be able to compete in the Championship at St. Andrews. We are focused on staging a world class championship in July and celebrating this truly historic occasion for golf. We will invest the proceeds of The Open, as we always do, for the benefit of golf which reflects our purpose to ensure that the sport is thriving 50 years from now."

Slumbers' announcement means the door is open for top LIV Golf stars such as Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed to take part in the British Open.

The same is true for Brooks Koepka, who is reportedly set to make the leap from the PGA Tour to LIV, per ESPN's Mark Schlabach.

The 150th Open Championship will run from July 14 to 17 at St. Andrews Links in St. Andrews, Scotland.

LIV Golf, which is backed by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund, has been luring in big-name PGA Tour players with huge contracts, larger purses, fewer tournaments and shorter tournaments, as they are 54 holes rather than the traditional 72.

The first LIV Golf event took place near London this month and saw 2011 Masters champion Charl Schwartzel win the tournament, as well as $4.75 million.

While Mickelson hasn't done so yet, many of the golfers who left for LIV have resigned from the PGA Tour. In retaliation to the defections, the PGA Tour has suspended all LIV Golf players who left the tour.

Despite the public issues between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, the United States Golf Association permitted LIV golfers to compete in the U.S. Open last week.

Only four of the 14 LIV golfers in the field made the cut, and Johnson had the best finish among them, as he tied for 24th at plus-four.

Mickelson, Sergio Garcia and Louis Oosthuizen were among those who missed the cut.

Oosthuizen and Mickelson are the only LIV Golf players with an Open Championship win on their resume, as Oosthuizen won at St. Andrews in 2010 and Mickelson won at Muirfield in 2013.

England's Matthew Fitzpatrick, who remains on the PGA Tour, will look to win much closer to home at St. Andrews next month after winning his first career major at the U.S. Open this month.

Other top golfers expected to be in the mix are Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, Collin Morikawa and Justin Thomas.

As the PGA Tour loses high-profile players to LIV Golf, the organization is preparing some changes to increase player satisfaction, per ESPN's Mark Schlabach.

The PGA Tour will reportedly introduce a revamped schedule in time for the 2023 season that will include increased purses of at least $20 million for marquee events. The tour will also add three events with limited fields, no cuts and a purse over $25 million.

These will try to help the tour compete with Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf, which features three-round tournaments with no cuts and guaranteed money for all competitors.

Brooks Koepka and Abraham Ancer became the latest golfers to join LIV Golf on Tuesday, per Schlabach, following Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed and more.

The PGA Tour previously announced it would suspend all players who compete in LIV Golf.

The tour's current payouts make it difficult to compete with the upstart league. The inaugural event in London featured a $25 million purse and $4 million to winner Charl Schwartzel, and the last-place finisher among the 48 golfers earned $120,000.

Matt Fitzpatrick made $3.15 million for winning the U.S. Open last week, the most ever for that event, while many notables who missed the cut ended up with nothing.

Purses for regular PGA Tour events are usually much lower. The upcoming Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut, totals $8.3 million. The increased pay next season, including some events with guaranteed money, could entice more players to stay.

The Arnold Palmer Invitational, the Players Championship and the Memorial Tournament are reportedly among the events that would see a boost in payouts.

Other changes could include a return to a calendar-year schedule with events beginning in January. This would provide a true offseason compared to the current wraparound schedule that begins in September.

Last season, Patrick Cantlay won the Tour Championship finale Sept. 5. Two weeks later, Max Homa won the Fortinet Championship as the first event of the 2022 season. Any golfer who wanted to wait until January to begin play for 2022 would be four months behind in the points standings.

These potential changes come after a meeting Tuesday between players and PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.

Collin Morikawa will not become the latest PGA Tour golfer to defect for LIV Golf.

To state for the record, once again, you all are absolutely wrong. I’ve said it since February at Riviera that I’m here to stay on the @PGATOUR and nothing has changed. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got some cereal to pour in my milk

— Collin Morikawa (@collin_morikawa) June 21, 2022

"The rumors about Collin are categorically false," Morikawa's agent, Andrew Kipper, added to Dan Rapaport of Golf Digest.

Last week, Jeff Kimber of Golf Monthly reported that a group of golfers, including Morikawa, were considering a move to LIV. Brooks Koepka, one of the names on that list, became the latest defector Tuesday, per Mark Schlabach of ESPN.

Abraham Ancer is also reportedly set to join the fledging golf tour.

LIV Golf has landed several high-profile names with promises of massive payouts and initial signing bonuses. Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau are some of the sport's most notable stars to defect, receiving a subsequent PGA Tour ban.

The LIV tour has generated controversy because of its financial backing from the Saudi Arabia government. Saudi officials have been accused of numerous human rights violations, including involvement in the assassination of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

Golfers who left for LIV Golf have largely deflected any questions about the Saudi government and accusations of "sportswashing."

In February, Mickelson apologized for comments he made admitting the Saudis have a "horrible record on human rights" but expressing support for the new tour because of the changes it could make for golf. Mickelson took several months off competitive golf after the comments before making his return as part of the LIV tour.

Greg Norman is reportedly looking to take another step to legitimize the LIV Golf Invitational Series.

According to ESPN's Mark Schlabach, Norman said LIV Golf will apply for Official World Golf Ranking points consideration on Monday. Norman, who is the CEO of LIV Golf, believes the upstart circuit has a "very compelling" application.

Norman will likely face a stiff roadblock in the form of PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, who is one of eight members of the OWGR board of governors. However, the 67-year-old doesn't sound worried about it, and he raised the question of whether Monahan should even be allowed to take part in the voting process.

"It'll be interesting to see if Jay Monahan recuses himself from that vote because of what he said on television with [CBS Sports announcer] Jim Nantz the other day," Norman said in an interview with Fox News. "So, it's very interesting and it's sad to be, you know, putting that additional exerting pressure on it because our tour is a good tour. ... Our point should be that if we get the OWGR points, then everything else takes care of itself."

Monahan spoke with Nantz last Sunday during the final round of the RBC Canadian Open, and he defended his decision to suspend the 17 players who competed in the first LIV Golf event.

"It's my job to protect, defend and celebrate our loyal PGA Tour members, our partners and our fans," Monahan said. "And that's exactly what I did. And I don't think it was a surprise to anybody, given how clear I had been about how we were going to handle this situation."

Six-time major champion Phil Mickelson, two-time major winner Dustin Johnson and longtime PGA Tour members Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Louis Oosthuizen and Kevin Na were among the golfers who competed in LIV's inaugural event. 2020 U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau and 2018 Masters winner Patrick Reed are expected to join the field for LIV's second competition.

Monahan stated that any golfers who compete for LIV will be ineligible for PGA Tour events going forward. The LIV Golf Series is backed by the Saudi Arabian government, which has an extensive history of human rights abuses.

Norman also asserted that the PGA Tour doesn't have room to criticize LIV because of its own dealings with the Saudis.

"If they want to look at it in prism," Norman said, "then why does the PGA Tour have 23 sponsors doing $40-plus billion worth of business with Saudi Arabia? Why is it OK for the sponsors? Will Jay Monahan go to each and every one of those CEOs of the 23 companies that are investing into Saudi Arabia and suspend them and ban them? The hypocrisy in all this, it's so loud. It's deafening."

LIV Golf events are usually 54 holes over three rounds and 48-man fields, down from the 72-hole format on the PGA Tour, which can host fields as large as 156 players. Because of this, LIV would likely get reduced points if it ever does receive recognition from the OWGR.