LIV Golf

At this point in time and as far as we understand the PGA Tour has indefinitely suspended all golfers playing in LIV Golf events.

The suspended players even include major winners Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Martin Kaymer, Graeme McDowell, Louis Oosthuizen, and Charl Schwartzel.

Starting in June 2022, the PGA Tour began issuing suspensions to players who participated in LIV Golf. When the rival circuit debuted, the Tour declared that competing in these "unauthorized" tournaments would render members ineligible for all PGA-sanctioned events, including the Korn Ferry Tour.

These sanctions stemmed from the PGA Tour’s policy requiring members to secure waivers for external competition. LIV Golf, backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, disrupted the landscape by offering lucrative, guaranteed contracts. Many golfers joined without obtaining the necessary releases, prompting the commissioner to hand down disciplinary bans.

Consequently, most LIV participants were barred from the PGA Tour, either through active suspension or voluntary resignation of their memberships. These restrictive measures effectively locked players out of Tour-sanctioned competitions and qualifiers.

The dynamic is currently shifting, however. The PGA Tour has recently begun vetting potential reintegration methods, such as financial sanctions or mandatory waiting periods, for defectors looking to return. While a few have rejoined through specific programs, the vast majority of active LIV golfers remain excluded from the PGA Tour while continuing to play for the rival league.

After the USGA allowed LIV Golf members to play in the US Open the Open Championship was doing the same and were allowing past champions and players who qualify to compete

The 2022 British Open was be played from 14-17 July 2022 at the Old Course at St. Andrews.

The total tournament purse was $14,000,000.

Past champions Phil Mickelson and Louis Oosthuizen are exempt.

“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.” Martin Slumbers, chief executive of the R&A, confirmed.

LIV Golf Tournaments can be watched live on site and are also accessible free of charge live via YouTube and the LIVGolfplus.com website.

LIV Golf Tournaments can be watched live on site and are also accessed free of charge live via YouTube and the LIVGolf.com website.

In addition to these, Americans can now watch on the CW Network along with some supporting regional networks. Many other countries also have deals done. You can check out other options here https://www.livgolf.com/where-to-watch.

Formerly known as the Super Golf League, the LIV Golf Invitational is a Saudi-backed venture. It has shotgun starts, singles events, team events, and no cuts.

The league is backed by LIV Golf Investments, whose CEO is Greg Norman.

Tickets can be bought via https://tickets.livgolf.com/

It is difficult to separate the facts from the hyberbole here. However, Alan Shipnuck reported in Golf Digest some more detail after discussions with four anonymous player agents. The way the players are remunerated varies from player to player based on their age, profile, current form and future performance.

The lower profile participants are guaranteed nothing beyond last place money of $120,000 in the 48-man field of a LIV Golf tournament. And they have no guarantee of future participation given they will likely be displaced if higher profile players join LIV Golf.

Those higher profile players are being drawn by signing bonuses, guaranteed money that is in addition to any prizemoney won out of the generous tournament purses.

These signing bonuses suggested in media reports have been incomprehensible. For example, it has been reported that Phil Mickelson will be paid $200 million to join LIV Golf, the larger deals to be paid in annual instlaments over the life of the deal.

This is more than double Phil's career prizemoney on the PGA Tour of almost $95 million.

To give this some additional perspective, Tiger Woods career prizemoney on the PGA Tour as of July 2022 is almost $121 million whilst the winner of the 2022 FedEx Cup, the PGA Tour's biggest event by prizemoney will earn $18 million.

LIV golfers performed very well at the first Major for 2023 with 2 of the top 3 and 3 of the top 6 places going to LIV golfers.

Jon Rahm was a worthy winner of the 2023 Masters. Behind him tied for second were two LIV golfers, Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson. 3 golfers tied at T4 including Patrick Reed.

While it's hard to be definitive the numbers suggest they've performed about average overall. With 24.8% expectation as a base they have 25% of the wins, 25% of the top 3 positions and 20% of the top 10 positions.

There would be many ways to answer the question. Our approach was to provide a 'pool' of players that might be a reasonable chance to perform well in a major and review the results of the LIV golfers sub pool in this context. It's not an exact science but does provide indicative data.

Golfers in the 2023 LIV fields: 48

PGA Tour golfers 2023: 125 with permanent cards

Add a further 20 players from the European and other Tours that might be a reasonable chance to perform well in a major.

Note: As being excluded from World Rankings makes it more difficult for LIV golfers to gain entry into the Majors it would be reasonable in this context to expect lower % performances.

Adding 48+125+20 players we get 193 players to consider within our pool. 48 LIV golfers is 24.8% of the pool.

At this stage these basic maths suggest LIV golfers are well in the Majors without starring disporportionately.

LIV Golfers at the 2023 Masters

Winner: Jon Rahm.

LIV Golfer(s) in Top 10:

• T2: Brooks Koepka
• T2: Phil Mickelson
• T4: Patrick Reed

How did LIV golfers go at The Masters in 2023?

LIV Golfers at the 2023 USPGA

Winner: Brooks Koepka

LIV Golfer(s) in Top 10:

• 1st: Brooks Koepka
• T4: Bryson DeChambeau
• T9: Cameron Smith

LIV Golfers at the 2023 US Open

Winner: Wyndham Clark

LIV Golfer(s) in Top 10:

• 4th: Cameron Smith
• T10: Dustin Johnson

LIV Golfers at the 2023 British Open

Winner: Brian Harman

LIV Golfer(s) in Top 10:

• Nil. Best finish was Henrik Stenson at T13.

According to various sources LIV Golf signed Brooks Koepka for $150 million.

Four-time major champion Brooks Koepka has joined Bryson DeChambeau, Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson at the LIV Invitational Series.

Koepka was the world number one golfer in 2018.

Before joining LIV he won the US Opens in 2017 and 2018 and the PGA Championship in 2018 and 2019. Since joining LIV he won the 2023 USPGA Championship.

More about Koepka's first Major win after joining LIV.

According to various sources LIV Golf signed Bryson DeChambeau for $100 million.

In June 2022 Bryson DeChambeau joined Brooks Koepka, Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson at the LIV Invitational Series.

Bryson DeChambeau won the US open in 2020.

According to various sources LIV Golf signed Bubba Watson for $50 million.

Up to 2022 Bubba Watson has earned $48 million on the PGA Tour.

July 2022 Bubba was ranked 86 in the Official World Golf Rankings and one of few left handed Major winners.

Bubba is a two time Major champion. He won the Masters in 2012 and 2014.

According to various sources LIV Golf was paying Cameron Smith $100 million to join.

Just after his first major win at the 2022 British Open Cameron Smith is rumoured to join the LIV Golf Invitational Series. His winner's cheque at the Open was $2,400,000.

The Aussie golfer has earned around $25,000,000 in his career so far.

According to various sources LIV Golf signed Dustin Johnson to a four year contract worth $125 million.

To date Johnson ranks third in all time PGA Tour earnings at $74.3 million. Only Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson have earned more.

The move caused one of his sponsors, the Royal Bank of Canada, to cut ties with him.

According to various sources LIV Golf paid Henrik Stenson $40 million to join.

In 2022 Henrik Stenson’s total career earnings were around $32,000,000.

Henrik Stenson earned $1,549,590 winning the 2016 British Open.

In July 2022 Henrik was ranked 173 in the Official World Golf Rankings.

After joining LIV Henrik Stenson was stripped of his 2023 Ryder Cup captaincy.

According to various sources LIV Golf signed Ian Poulter for $20-30 million.

Ian Poulter's highest World Golf Ranking was 5 in February 2010.

Ian has won 2 World Golf Championships and a third PGA Tour Event. He has 12 victories on the European Tour and, while he hasn't captured a Major, he has a 2nd place in the 2008 British Open, a T3 at the 2012 USPGA and a T6 at the 2015 Masters.

He has also been a very strong competitor in Ryder Cup teams. Check out Ian Poulter's Ryder Cup Record.

"If somebody stood here and offered me £50 million to play golf when I'm 48, it's a no-brainer." Ian Poulter.

According to various sources LIV Golf signed Jon Rahm for $572 million.

Joh Rahm's contract is meant to run until 2029 with a signing bonus of more than $454 million that would be paid over the life of the contract.

Rahm has always maintained close relationships with several key players in LIV, including Sergio Garcia and Phil Mickelson.

Up to November 2023 Jon Rahm has won 11 PGA Tour events and 10 European Tour events.

According to various sources LIV Golf signed Lee Westwood for $20-30 million.

Lee Westwood has earned $14.5 million in career winnings. His net worth is estimated around $40 million.

“I’ve had a longer career than most. It’s my 29th season, but like you, if there’s a pay increase, at my age, I’d be stupid not to take it." - Lee Westwood

Unfortunately it’s not known how much Marc Leishman was paid to join LIV.

As per August 2022 Marc Leishman's total career earnings were $35 million and he was ranked number 56 in the world.

Unfortunately it’s not known how much Patrick Reed was paid to join LIV. It is only known that he has agreed to a million-dollar deal.

As per 2022 Patrick Reed’s career earnings are around $37,000,000. Patrick has 9 PGA Tour victories including the 2018 Masters Tournament.

According to various sources Phil Mickelson has received $200 million to join the LIV Golf Invitational Series.

On the 6th of June 2022 LIV announced: “six-time major champion Phil Mickelson, owner of 57 career professional victories, will tee off at the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational Series tournament June 9-11 at Centurion Club (London). “

According to various sources LIV Golf signed Sergio Garcia for $125 million.

Sergio Garcia has won one Major Championship, the 2017 Masters, one Players Championship and 9 other PGA Tour Events.

Garcia has resigned from the PGA Tour in order to compete in the LIV Golf Invitational Series.

Brooks Koepka earned $8,276,100 during the 2022 LIV Tour.

With a win at Jeddah and 6 top 10 finishes Brooks Koepka's consistent season ensured an excellent 2022 season.

Cam Smith earned $7,378,500 during the 2022 LIV Tour.

With a win at Rich Harvest Farms mid September that earned him $4M and a $2M slice for his team, Punch Golf Club coming second in the final Smith is likely very happy with his earnings considering he joined part way through.

Dustin Johnson earned $35,637,767 during the 2022 LIV Tour.

Picking up $18M for being the 2022 Individual Champion clearly helped boost his tally.

A win in Boston earned him $4M and other good results contributed. It's also important to remember the Team factor where his 4 Aces team was strong all season and won the final Team Championship earning him a final $4M to add to his tally.

Phil Mickelson earned $1,825,350 during the 2022 LIV Tour.

Phil had 4 top 10 finishes across the 8 events played but didn't manage a win. He'll be looking for a stronger performance in 2023.

According to various sources Tiger Woods was offered $1 Billion to play the LIV Golf Invitational Series. He turned the offer down.

According to Greg Norman Tiger Woods rejected the mindblowing offer.

Other players like Phil Mickelson ($200 Million) and Dustin Johnson ($150 Million) also have received money to play in the events.

"I believe in legacies," Woods said in an interview at the 2022 US Open while addressing Mickelson's absence and potential move to LIV Golf.

According to various sources in 2023 Will Zalatoris was offered $130 million to join the LIV Golf Series.

As at March 2023 Zalatoris has won one PGA tournament, the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship, and his career earnings were around $14 million.

Will Zalatoris has made a name for himself with runner-up finishes at the 2021 Masters and the 2022 PGA Championship.

A Federal Judge ruled that LIV Golfers can't compete in PGA Tour's FedEx Cup Playoffs 2022.

A federal district court judge has ruled against three LIV Golf players (Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford and Matt Jones) who filed for a temporary restraining order against the PGA that would have allowed them to play in the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship.

The FedEx Cup Playoffs top prize at the end of the tour's 2022 season is $18 million.

On June 22, 2022 PGA TOUR Comissioner, Jay Monahan, announced a range of changes to commence 2024 in response to the developments with LIV Golf. Read below for the comprehensive details.

Key changes to the 2024 PGA Tour include:

• The PGA TOUR will return to a January - December schedule in 2024
• 8 tournaments will have significantly increased prize money.
  • Sentry Tournament of Champions – $15 million (previously $8.2M)
  • The Genesis Invitational - $20 million (previously $12M)
  • Arnold Palmer Invitational - $20 million (previously $12M)
  • THE PLAYERS Championship - $25 million (previously $20M)
  • WGC - Dell Technologies Match Play - $20 million (previously $12M)
  • the Memorial Tournament - $20 million (previously $12M)
  • FedEx St. Jude Championship - $20 million (previously $15M)
  • BMW Championship - $20 million (previously $15M)
• In the FedExCup Playoffs the top 70 players make the playoffs.
  • The top 50 will make the BMW Championship, and the top 30 will compete in the final round for the FedExCup.
• There will be up to three international, no-cut, limited-field events.

The name is a reference to the roman number 54 (LIV) which is also the perfect score if a player shoots a birdie on every hole on a par 72 course. It is also the number of holes played in a LIV event, 54 holes, three times 18.

LIV Golf is a professional golf tour financed by the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia.

Greg Norman is the CEO of LIV Golf Investments.

In October 2021 the Australian former number one golfer and World Golf Hall of Fame member Greg Norman was announced as CEO of the newly formed company LIV Golf Investments.

Norman is the first and founding CEO of LIV Golf Investments.

What is the Greg Norman Medal?

Why is Greg Norman called The Great White Shark?

How many Majors has Greg Norman won?

While not officially an Australian team, the team Ripper GC comprises four Australian golfers: Cam Smith, Marc Leishman, Matt Jones, and Jed Morgan.

LIV does not officially have country teams but with a name change from last year's 'Punch GC' to the more Aussie oriented 'Ripper GC' you get the feeling the organisers are looking for some parochial support.

Smith, Leishman, and Jones had Wade Ormsby with them in the season ending comp in 2022 but for 2023 the young up and coming Australian Jed Morgan has taken Ormsby's place.

Captained by Joaquin Niemann (Chile) the Torque GC also includes Mito Pereira (Chile), Sebastian Munoz (Colombia), and David Puig (Spain).

Three out of four ain't bad. And it's likely Puig will feel right at home as they get together to strategize in Spanish.

There are 12 Teams, 48 Players and 58 Holes. There are 7 regular events and 1 Team Championship event.

To ensure faster round playing times there are shotgun starts. There are no cuts.

Regular Season Events

Each event will be two simultaneous competitions, an individual and team event.

The individual competition is stroke play over 54 holes. The individual player with the most ranking points after the 7 regular events will be the season's individual champion.

Team event scoring: Over the first two rounds, the best two stroke play scores will count for each team. For the third and final round, the best three scores will count, with the lowest overall team score after 54 holes being named the team winner.

Team Championship

The Team Championship will be the 8th and final event of the season. This will be a seeded four-day, four-round, match play knock-out.

Source: https://www.livgolf.com/

LIV Golf is the owner of the new Super Golf League (SGL) and is financed by the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia.

LIV Golf is providing an option for professional golfers to ply their trade through a series of events outside of the existing tours (most notably the USPGA Tour and the European Tour).

The structure of their events has some significant differences with 12 teams of 4 (48 players) competing over 3 rounds with no cuts and each round having a Gun Shot start. There are 8 events scheduled during the initial season with team and individual competitions in each event.

For many people, the most interesting question is which golfers will choose to participate as there are potential consequences.

At the time of writing it appears most professional golfers that choose to participate in the LIV Golf events will subsequently be banned from the PGA and European Tours which means, amongst other things, they will not be able to participate in any of the four Majors, Ryder Cup or President's Cup teams

Jon Rahm's LIV golf team, Legion XIII, in 2024 includes Tyrrell Hatton from Scotland, Kieran Vincent from South Africa, and Caleb Surratt from the USA.

Jon Rahm joined LIV in 2024 and created a new team, Legion XIII. Tyrrell Hatton joined that team along with one of the strongest college players of the time in Caleb Surratt and South African Kieran Vincent.

Rahm's Legion XIII enjoyed immediate success winning the first team competition of 2024.

How much did Jon Rahm get paid to join the LIV Golf Invitational Series?

How many Majors has Jon Rahm won?

LIV might say there is no official South African team but with South Africans Louis Oosthuizen, Charl Schwartzel, Branden Grace and Dean Burmester grouped together we might expect the Stinger GC team to get extra support from that corner of the world.

Seasoned professional Oosthuizen captains the Stinger GC team and, along with 2011 Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, lays a sound foundation for the unofficial South African team. Grace has been solid for many years and Burmester has 10 professional wins to his name including 2 on the European Tour. We can expect a strong performance from the South African Stingers in 2023.

Joaquin Niemann and Mito Pereira from Chile are joined by Sebastian Munoz from Columbia and also the young Spanish rising star David Puig for 2023's LIV golf competition. While it is clearly not a 'South American' team 'Torque GC' will certainly have a unique flavor.

With Pereira and Munoz joining LIV golf in 2023 combining them with Niemann for a regional oriented team seems like a natural move. And while Puig is not from South America his Spanish heritage will help make the fit more comfortable.

The total prize purse per regular event was $25,000,000. The individual winner won $4,000,000 and the team prize purse was $5,000,000.

Professionals in the LIV Golf Invitational Series played for the largest prize purses in history.

LIV Regular Events

There was a total purse of $25M for each of the 8 separate regular events through the season:

• $20M for individuals
• $4M for the winner
• $120K for the 48th
• $5M for the top 3 teams ($3M, $1.5M and $500K)

Individual $30M

Following the first seven events, an Individual Champion was crowned, offering a total purse of $30M for the top three individuals of the season ($18M, $8M, $4M).

Team $50M

The season-ending Team Championship had a total prize fund of $50M. All 12 teams received a cut ($16M to first place and $1M to 12th). Each player received a 25% cut of team earnings.

There were a total of 8 events in 2022. The series kicked off 9-11 June at the Centurion Golf Club – London, England and ended 27-30 October with a Team Championship at the Trump National Doral, Miami, USA. Scroll down to view the full schedule.

The new LIV series was different. There were smaller fields, fewer rounds, a defined season, shotgun starts and huge prize money.

In 2022, the LIV Golf Invitational Series hosted 8 events. There was a 7 event regular season where players competed as individuals and teams for both points and prize money.

At the end of those 7 events, an Individual Champion was crowned based on points accumulated throughout the season. The 8th and final event was the season-ending Team Championship match play event.

2022 LIV Golf Invitational Series Tournament Schedule

• 9-11 June: Centurion Golf Club – London, England
• 1-3 July: Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club – Portland, USA
• 29-31 July: Trump National Golf Club Bedminster – New Jersey, USA
• 2-4 September: The International – Boston, USA
• 16-18 September: Rich Harvest Farms – Chicago, USA
• 7-9 October: Stonehill Golf Club – Bangkok, Thailand
• 14-16 October: Royal Greens Golf Club – Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
• 27-30 October: Team Championship, Trump National Doral, Miami, USA

In 2023 the LIV Invitational Tour players competed for a total of $405 million in prize money.

Each LIV golf event had a total purse of $25 million.

The individual winner of each event took home $4 million.

Last place, 48th, in the individual events earned $120,000.

The winning team earned $3 million; $750,000 per player.

The Team Championship had a purse of $50 million.

There were 14 Tournaments planned on the LIV Golf schedule for 2023.

There were 14 events played in North and Latin America, Asia, Australia, the Middle East and Europe.

The 2023 season included 48 players competing on 12 established team franchises.

LIV golfers played for a total purse of $405 million in 2023.

2023 LIV Golf Tournament Schedule

24-26 February 2023: El Camaleón Golf Course, Mayakoba

18-20 March 2023: The Gallery Golf Club, Tucson

1-3 April 2023: The Orange County National, Orlando

21-23 April 2023: The Grange Golf Club, Australia

28-30 April 2023: Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore

13-15 May 2023: Cedar Ridge Country Club, Tulsa

27-29 May 2023: Trump National Golf Club, DC

1-3 July 2023: Real Club Valderrama, Valderrama

8-10 July 2023: The Centurion Club, London

5-7 August 2023: The Old White Golf Course, Greenbrier

12-14 August 2023: The Trump National Bedminster, Bedminster

23-25 September 2023: Rich Harvest Farms, Chicago

21-23 October 2023: The Trump National Doral, Miami

3-6 November 2023: LIV Golf Team Championship Jeddah, Royal Greens Golf Course, Jeddah

Full team lists are below. Here are the 12 captains: Dustin Johnson. Phil Mickelson. Wade Ormsby. Martin Kaymer. Kevin Na. Sihwan Kim. Peter Uihlein. Ian Poulter. Louis Oosthuizen. Sergio Garcia. Graeme McDowell. Talor Gooch.

The 12 teams for the first LIV Golf event each have a team name and a logo:

Team: 4 Aces GC.

Captain: Dustin Johnson

Team Members:

• Shaun Norris
• Oliver Bekker
• Kevin Yuan

Team: Hy Flyers GC

Captain: Phil Mickelson

Team Members:

• Justin Harding
• TK Chantananuwat
• Chase Koepka

Team: Punch GC

Captain: Wade Ormsby

Team Members:

• Matt Jones
• Ryosuke Kinoshita
• Blake Windred

Team: Cleeks GC

Captain: Martin Kaymer

Team Members:

• Pablo Larrazabal
• JC Ritchie
• Ian Snyman

Team: Iron Heads GC

Captain: Kevin Na

Team Members:

• Sadom Kaewkanjana
• Hideto Tanihara
• Viraj Madappa

Team: Smash GC

Captain: Sihwan Kim

Team Members:

• Scott Vincent
• Jinichiro Kozuma
• Itthipat Buranatanyarat

Team: Crushers GC

Captain: Peter Uihlein

Team Members:

• Richard Bland
• Phachara Khongwatmai
• Travis Smyth

Team: Majesticks GC

Captain: Ian Poulter

Team Members:

• Lee Westwood
• Sam Horsfield
• Laurie Canter

Team: Stinger GC

Captain: Louis Oosthuizen

Team Members:

• Hennie Du Plessis
• Charl Schwartzel
• Laurie Canter

Team: Fireballs GC

Captain: Sergio Garcia

Team Members:

• David Puig
• James Piot
• Jediah Morgan

Team: Niblicks GC

Captain: Graeme McDowell

Team Members:

• Bernd Wiesberger
• Turk Pettit
• Oliver Fisher

Team: Torque GC

Captain:Talor Gooch

Team Members:

• Hudson Swafford
• Adrian Otaegui
• Andy Ogletree

On Tuesday the 6th of June 2023 the PGA TOUR, DP World Tour and the Public Investment Fund PIF (LIV Golf) announced a landmark merger agreement to unify the game of golf, on a global basis.

The PGA Tour, DP World Tour and PIF have signed an agreement that combines PIF’s golf-related commercial businesses and rights (including LIV Golf) with the commercial businesses and rights of the PGA TOUR and DP World Tour into a new, collectively owned, for-profit.

The aim of the entity is to ensure that all stakeholders benefit from a new model that delivers maximum excitement and competition among the game’s best players.

PIF will make a capital investment into the new entity to facilitate its growth and success.

The parties also mutually agreed to end all pending litigation between them.

LIV Golf holds events throughout the year around the globe. You can refer to the list below for details of the next LIV Golf event.d

Upcoming LIV golf events:

• February 02 - 04: El Camaleon Golf Course, Mayakoba, Mexico.
• February 08 - 10: Las Vegas Country Club, USA.
• March 01 - 03: Royal Greens Golf and Country Club, Saudi Arabia.
• March 08 - 10: Hong Kong Golf Club, Hong Kong.
• April 05 - 07: Trump National Doral, USA.
• April 26 - 28: The Grange Golf Club, Adelaide, Australia.
• May 03 - 05: Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore.
• June 07 - 09: Golf Club of Houston, USA.
• June 21 - 23: The Grove, Nashville, USA.
• July 12 - 14: Real Club Valderrama, Sotogrande, Andalusia.
• July 26 - 28: JCB Golf and Country Club, UK.
• August 16 - 18: The Old White Golf Course, Greenbrier, USA.

Tickets for LIV golf tournaments can be purchased online at https://tickets.livgolf.com/ and at the events.

The LIV Golf Invitational Series takes golf globally over seven regular-season events, culminating in a Team Championship match play finale.

In 2022 a ground pass was around $49 and club tickets were up to $3,500.

LIV golfers who were invited to the 2023 Masters were: Abraham Ancer, Bryson DeChambeau, Sergio Garcia, Talor Gooch, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Jason Kokrak, Phil Mickelson, Kevin Na, Joaquin Niemann, Louis Oosthuizen, Thomas Pieters, Patrick Reed, Charl Schwartzel, Cameron Smith, Harold Varner and Bubba Watson.

The Masters invited 17 LIV golfers to the 2023 tournament.

There were six LIV golfers who have won the Masters in their careers.

Kevin Na withdrew after nine holes on Thursday due to an undisclosed illness.

The list is long. Read below for the complete list.

Below is the list of confirmed players, in alphabetical order, according to the LIV Golf website:

• Ancer, Abraham
• Bekker, Oliver
• Bland, Richard
• Canter, Laurie
• Casey, Paul
• Chacarra, Eugenio
• Chantananuwat, Ratchanon
• de Chambeau, Bryson
• Du Plessis, Hennie
• Fisher, Oliver
• Garcia, Sergio
• Gooch, Talor
• Grace, Branden
• Harding, Justin
• Horsfield, Sam
• Howell III, Charles
• Johnson, Dustin
• Jones, Matt
• Kaewkanjana, Sadom
• Kaymer, Martin
• Khongwatmai, Phachara
• Koepka, Brooks
• Kokrak, Jason
• Lahiri, Anirban
• Larrazabal, Pablo
• Leishman , Marc
• Matsuyama, Hideki
• McDowell, Graeme
• Mickelson, Phil
• Morgan, Jediah
• Na, Kevin
• Niemann, Joaquin
• Norris, Shaun
• Ogletree, Andy
• Oosthuizen, Louis
• Ormsby, Wade
• Ortiz, Carlos
• Otaegui, Adrian
• Pettit, Turk
• Piot, James
• Poulter, Ian
• Puig, David
• Reed, Patrick
• Ritchie, JC
• Schwartzel, Charl
• Smith, Cameron
• Stenson, Henrik
• Swafford, Hudson
• Tanihara, Hideto
• Tringale, Cameron
• Uihlein, Peter
• Varner III, Harold
• Vincent, Scott
• Watson, Bubba
• Westwood, Lee
• Wiesberger, Bernd
• Windred, Blake
• Wolff, Matthew

LIV Golf Inc whose major shareholder is the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia.

LIV Golf Investments is a newly formed company, with group companies in the USA and UK.

LIV GOLF and the L design are trademarks of the LIV Golf Group of Companies.

2023 LIV players: Paul Casey, Bryson DeChambeau, Sergio Garcia, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Louis Oosthuizen, Ian Poulter, Patrick Reed, Cameron Smith, Henrik Stenson, Bubba Watson, Lee Westwood to name but a few.

Each event there are 12 teams, 48 players, 54 holes, No cuts and shotgun starts.

2023 LIV players

• Abraham Ancer
• Oliver Bekker
• Richard Bland
• Itthipat Buranatanyarat
• Laurie Canter
• Paul Casey
• Eugenio Chacarra
• Ratchanon "TK" Chantananuwat (Am)
• Bryson DeChambeau
• Hennie Du Plessis
• Oliver Fisher
• Sergio Garcia
• Talor Gooch
• Branden Grace
• Justin Harding
• Sam Horsfield
• Charles Howell III
• Yuki Inamori
• Dustin Johnson
• Matt Jones
• Sadom Kaewkanjana
• Martin Kaymer
• Phachara Khongwatmai
• Sihwan Kim
• Ryosuke Kinoshita
• Brooks Koepka
• Chase Koepka
• Jason Kokrak
• Jinichiro Kozuma
• Shergo Al Kurdi
• Anirban Lahiri
• Pablo Larrazabal
• Marc Leishman
• Viraj Madappa
• Graeme McDowell
• Phil Mickelson
• Jediah Morgan
• Kevin Na
• Joaquin Niemann
• Shaun Norris
• Andy Ogletree
• Louis Oosthuizen
• Wade Ormsby
• Carlos Ortiz
• Adrian Otaegui
• Pat Perez
• Turk Pettit
• James Piotv
• Ian Poulter
• David Puig
• Patrick Reed
• JC Ritchie
• Charl Schwartzel
• Cameron Smith
• Travis Smyth
• Ian Snyman
• Henrik Stenson
• Hudson Swafford
• Hideto Tanihara
• Cameron Tringale
• Peter Uihlein
• Harold Varner III
• Scott Vincent
• Bubba Watson
• Lee Westwood
• Bernd Wiesberger
• Blake Windred
• Matthew Wolff
• Kevin Yuan

Brooks Koepka's LIV team for 2023 included his brother Chase Koepka, young gun Matt Wolff, and the stalwart Jason Kokrak.

The 'Smash GC' LIV team, led by Brooks Koepka in 2022, was a very strong team again in 2023. There was one change in the team with Peter Uihlein leaving to join Dustin Johnson's team and making room for Matthew Wolff to join the team.

Joining Dustin Johnson on the 4 Aces GC LIV golf team for 2023 were Patrick Reed, Pat Perez, and Peter Uihlein.

There was a little bit of a shake up in DJ's team from 2022 to 2023 with Matthew Wolff leaving the team to join Brooks K. and DJ picking up Peter Uihlein to fill spot number 4.

While there is no official Spanish LIV team if there was a 'Spanish' team we would look to the team captained by Sergio Garcia and including Spaniard Eugenio Chacarra along with Mexican golfers Abe Ancer and Carlos Ortiz.

The 2023 'Fireballs GC' was a team of four spanish speaking gun golfers who forged a tight bond during the season.

Brooks Koepka was the first LIV Tour golfer to win a major championship. He won the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club.

Brooks Koepka won the 2023 PGA Championship with a total score of (-9). Runners up at (-7) were Victor Hovland and Scottie Scheffler.

The victory was Brooks Koepka’s 5th major title.

How much did Brooks Koepka get paid to join the LIV Golf Invitational Series?

Carl Schwartzel is the first LIV Golf Tournament winner.

Carl Schwartzel won the first LIV Golf Tournament played from 9 - 11 June, 2022 at the Centurion Golf Club in England.

The event had a total purse of $25 million.

Schwartzel won a total of $4.75 million. Which was the biggest winner's purse at a golf tournament so far.

The share for the individual winner was $4 million and $3 million for the winning team of 4 players.

LIV Golf leaderboard and payouts Centurion Golf Club 2022

• $4,000,000 - Charl Schwartzel - How many Majors has Charl Schwartzel won?
• $2,125,000 - Hennie Du Plessis
• $1,500,000 - Branden Grace, Peter Uihlein
• $975,000 - Sam Horsfield
• $800,000 - Oliver Bekker, Adrian Otaegui
• $625,000 - Dustin Johnson
• $580,000 - Talor Gooch
• $560,000 - Graeme McDowell, Justin Harding, Louis Oosthuizen
• $360,000 - Pablo Larrazabal, Ryosuke Kinoshita
• $250,000 - Martin Kaymer, Jinichiro Kozuma
• $232,000 - Richard Bland, JC Ritchie, Laurie Canter
• $200,000 - Ian Poulter, Scott Vincent
• $172,000 - Shaun Norris, Wade Orsmby, Sergio Garcia
• $166,000 - James Piot, Matt Jones, Ian Snyman, Phachara Khongwatmai
• $158,000 - Lee Westwood
• $156,000 - Hudson Swafford, Viraj Madappa, Jediah Morgan
• $150,000 - Kevin Yuan, Phil Mickelson, Travis Smyth, Kevin Na, Chase Koepka
• $140,000 - Oliver Fisher, Blake Windred, David Puig, Hideto Tanihara, Ratchanon Chantananuwat
• $130,000 - Bernd Wiesberger, Sihwan Kim
• $126,000 - Turk Pettit
• $124,000 - Sadom Kaewkanjana
• $122,000 - Itthipat Buranatanyarat
• $120,000 - Andy Ogletree

Augusta National have decided to stay with their current criteria for invitations to the Masters Tournament. Their primary reasoning was that they chose "to honour the tradition of bringing together a preeminent field of golfers".

It was always an interesting question as six LIV golfers are previous champions and therefore, according to tradition, have lifetime exemptions; Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed, Sergio Garcia, Bubba Watson, Charl Schwartzel and Phil Mickelson.

And there are other significant players who currently qualify; Cameron Smith, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Joaquin Niemann, Talor Gooch, Harold Varner III, Jason Kokrak, Kevin Na, Abraham Ancer, and Louis Oosthuizen.

Some oppose LIV Golf because it challenges the norm that has existed and supported many players and staff for many years, notably the USPGA and European Tours. The second concern that's raised most often is the funding being from Saudi Arabia.

People around the globe will have different positions regarding LIV Golf, demonstrated most notably by the professional golfers who have chosen to join compared to those who have vocally opposed the new league.

In addition to the issues of tour support and financing other considerations for some include:

• the inclusion of two Trump courses in their schedule
• the concept that professional golfers are 'free agents' and should be allowed to ply their trade where they choose without fear or favor
• the threat from the major tours to ban, temporarily or for life, those players that participate in competing LIV Golf events.

Where do you stand?