Tag: Abraham Ancer

2024 LIV Golf Hong Kong prize money payouts for each player and team

It pays to play well in the Saudi-backed league.

It pays to play well in the LIV Golf League, just ask Abraham Ancer.

The 33-year-old won for the first time on the Saudi Arabia-backed circuit after a three-way playoff on Sunday to claim 2024 LIV Golf Hong Kong at Hong Kong Golf Club’s Fanling Course.

For his efforts, Ancer will take home the top prize of $4 million. Paul Casey and Cameron Smith each earned $1.875 million for their runner-up finishes. Joaquin Niemann and Carlos Ortiz round out the top five at T-4 and banked $900,000.

Check out how much money each player and team earned at 2024 LIV Golf Hong Kong.

MORE: Best shots from LIV Golf Hong Kong

Individual prize money

Position Player Score Earnings
1  Abraham Ancer -13 $4,000,000
2  Paul Casey -13 $1,875,000
2  Cameron Smith -13 $1,875,000
T4  Joaquin Niemann -12 $900,000
T4  Carlos Ortiz -12 $900,000
T6  Kevin Na -11 $650,000
T6  Bryson DeChambeau -11 $650,000
T8  Richard Bland -10 $396,071
T8  Graeme McDowell -10 $396,071
T8  Charles Howell III -10 $396,071
T8  Ian Poulter -10 $396,071
T8  Dean Burmester -10 $396,071
T8  Jon Rahm -10 $396,071
T8  Henrik Stenson -10 $396,071
T15  Lucas Herbert -9 $278,750
T15  Adrian Meronk -9 $278,750
T15  Harold Varner III -9 $278,750
T15  Eugenio Chacarra -9 $278,750
T19  Sam Horsfield -8 $245,000
T19  Louis Oosthuizen -8 $245,000
T21  Dustin Johnson -7 $204,286
T21  Talor Gooch -7 $204,286
T21  Martin Kaymer -7 $204,286
T21  Scott Vincent -7 $204,286
T21  Tyrrell Hatton -7 $204,286
T21  Sebastián Muñoz -7 $204,286
T21  Matt Jones -7 $204,286
28  Brooks Koepka -6 $180,000
T29  Peter Uihlein -5 $165,000
T29  Marc Leishman -5 $165,000
T29  Patrick Reed -5 $165,000
T29  Andy Ogletree -5 $165,000
T29  Bubba Watson -5 $165,000
T34  Brendan Steele -4 $146,250
T34  David Puig -4 $146,250
T34  Cameron Tringale -4 $146,250
T34  Anirban Lahiri -4 $146,250
T38  Caleb Surratt -3 $137,500
T38  Sergio Garcia -3 $137,500
T38  Pat Perez -3 $137,500
T41  Charl Schwartzel -2 $129,375
T41  Danny Lee -2 $129,375
T41  Jinichiro Kozuma -2 $129,375
T41  Kalle Samooja -2 $129,375
T45  Lee Westwood -1 $124,167
T45  Matthew Wolff -1 $124,167
T45  Branden Grace -1 $124,167
T48  Mito Pereira E $90,000
T48  Thomas Pieters E $90,000
50  Anthony Kim 3 $60,000
51  Jason Kokrak 6 $60,000
T52  Hudson Swafford 8 $50,000
T52  Phil Mickelson 8 $50,000
54  Kieran Vincent 9 $50,000

Team prize money

Position Team Score Earnings
1 Crushers GC -35 $3,000,000
2 Torque GC -33 $1,500,000
3 Ripper GC -23 $500,000

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Abraham Ancer wins three-way playoff at 2024 LIV Golf Hong Kong; Bryson DeChambeau’s Crushers claim another team title

Anthony Kim shot one of the low scores of the day on Sunday for his first round under par with LIV.

Abraham Ancer loves a playoff.

His lone win on the PGA Tour went to extra holes and the same can be said of his first LIV Golf victory. Ancer defeated Cameron Smith and Paul Casey with a birdie on the first playoff hole to win 2024 LIV Golf Hong Kong on Sunday.

After rounds of 7-under 63 and 8-under 62 on Friday and Saturday at Hong Kong Golf Club’s Fanling Course in Sheung Shui, Ancer struggled on Sunday to a 2-over 72, which opened the door for Casey (64) and Smith (66) to tie him atop the leaderboard at 13 under. Joaquin Niemann shot the low-round of the day, a 7-under 63 to finish T-4 alongside Carlos Ortiz (66), one shot outside of the playoff.

“Man, I made that so hard on myself. The ball-striking wasn’t there, but mentally I was really strong, so I felt really good. I felt like I was not going to give up. That round could have gone south really quickly,” Ancer explained. “Hit some good bunker shots, some good putts that I needed to and just kept myself in it and hit the right shot at the right time there in the playoff.”

MORE: Best shots from LIV Golf Hong Kong

On the team side, Bryson DeChambeau’s Crushers GC won for the second consecutive week after another strong Sunday to finish at 35 under, two shots clear of Niemann’s Torque GC. Smith and his Ripper GC earned their first top-three finish of the season at 32 under.

“I love these guys. They fight for every shot, and I can tell you when four scores are counting, we’re a pretty deadly team,” said DeChambeau. Before this season LIV switched its format to make all four player scores count to the team score in the final round. The worst score is dropped in the first two rounds.

“We know with four scores counting, we’re going to be in it no matter what the last day,” he added. “We put the pedal to the metal today and showcased who we are.”

Last year’s team champions, the Crushers have finished 2-4-1-1 in LIV’s four events so far this season. After winning the season opener, Jon Rahm’s new squad, Legion XIII, finsihed T-5 and fifth the last two events before coming in dead last this week in Hong Kong.

Anthony Kim has struggled in his return to pro golf with LIV, but after shooting over par in his first five rounds, the 38-year-old finally found the red numbers with a 5-under 65 on Sunday. Kim made seven birdies and two bogeys and finished 50th in his second event.

LIV is off for the rest of the month and returns to Trump National Doral, April 5-7, for 2024 LIV Golf Miami.

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Abraham Ancer, Dean Burmester tied for lead at LIV Golf Hong Kong; Phil shoots 80

Scores were all over the place in the opening round.

LIV Golf is at Hong Kong Golf Club in Hong Kong for its fourth event of the 2024 season, a unique course measuring only 6,700 yards.

Some players, like Abraham Ancer and Dean Burmester, took advantage Friday during the opening round. Others, like Anthony Kim and Phil Mickelson, did not.

Ancer and Burmester are tied for the lead after 7-under 63s on Friday. Burmester carded six birdies, an eagle and a bogey while Ancer fired a bogey-free round.

“I think it’s definitely a golf course that everybody likes,” said Ancer. “Like Dean was saying, even the long hitters enjoy it, as well, because if they’re going to hit some irons, they prefer hitting irons over 3-woods whenever it’s a really tight fairway. I think it just brings everybody in. It’s a great golf course to showcase where everybody is at.”

Meanwhile, in his fourth round of professional golf since his return, Anthony Kim shot 6-over 76, but he isn’t in last place on the leaderboard. He’s beating Lefty, who shot 10-over 80 in the first round. Mickelson had no birdies, three doubles and four bogeys.

Kim once again had a slow start, as he was 4 over after four holes.

There are six players tied for third at 6 under, including Louis Oosthuizen and Martin Kaymer. Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau are sitting at 5 under. Jon Rahm and Joaquin Niemann are T-18 at 3 under after the opening round.

Abraham Ancer outlasts Cameron Young to win 2023 PIF Saudi International

Ancer won wire-to-wire to claim his fourth professional victory.

Another LIV Golf and PGA Tour duel played out on Sunday, this time on the Asian Tour and with a little less hostility.

The field at this week’s PIF Saudi International featured a heavy dose of LIV Golf, as well as a few PGA Tour players who were granted releases to play. Cameron Young – who has expressed his interest in LIV in the past – gave chase in the final round but came up short of LIV’s Abraham Ancer, who won wire-to-wire by two shots at 19 under. Lucas Herbert, also a player on Tour, finished third at 15 under.

Ancer, 31, shot 64-68 on the weekend at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City for his fourth professional win. The Mexican-American previously claimed the PGA Tour’s 2021 WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational as well as the PGA Tour of Australasia’s 2019 Emirates Australian Open and 2015 Nova Scotia Open on the Korn Ferry Tour before he joined LIV Golf last year. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is LIV’s financial backer, as well as the title sponsor of the Saudi International.

The Saudi International was created in 2019 by the regime’s Public Investment Fund and offered lucrative appearance fees to attract PGA Tour stars like Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau, who all later jumped to LIV. The tournament was originally a DP World Tour stop, but the European circuit, like the Tour, is also now being sued by LIV, which invested more than $200 million in the Asian Tour last year.

The LIV Golf League makes its 2023 season debut later this month at Mayakoba in Mexico while the Asian Tour returns to play next week with the International Series Oman.

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It’s a PGA Tour-LIV Golf showdown, this time between Abraham Ancer and Cameron Young at PIF Saudi International

It’s a two-horse race.

It’s a two-horse race, and Abraham Ancer has a slight edge coming around the final corner.

Ancer and Cameron Young have pulled away from the field at the PIF Saudi International at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in Saudi Arabia, with Ancer sitting at 17 under and Young at 15 under, five shots clear of a trio tied for third place. Ancer, who has led after every round, shot 6-under 64 in the third round while Young shot his third consecutive 5-under 65.

Matthew Wolff, Sadom Kaewkanjana and Lucas Herbert are tied for third at 10 under in the Asian Tour event.

Last week, it was Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed battling it out in Dubai. Now, it’s Ancer and Young, the PGA Tour’s 2022 Rookie of the Year, at the venue where LIV Golf’s championship event will be come November.

“Yeah, another very solid round. Happy with no dropped shots,” Ancer said. “That’s always my goal. On a golf course like this where it’s blowing pretty good, I’m really, really happy.

“Not really focused on what everybody else is doing. Just trying to play the same game I’ve been playing the past three days.”

Wolff had the round of the day, shooting 7-under 63 to vault up the leaderboard. However, Young is Ancer’s closest pursuer, and he’s looking forward to Sunday.

“Yeah, I think I’ve played really solidly,” Young said. “Obviously Abe’s playing some really nice golf. So I think tomorrow will be fun.”

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As LIV golfers like Cameron Smith and Phil Mickelson miss cut, this 15-year-old is T-6 at PIF Saudi International chasing Abraham Ancer

A 15-year-old made the cut while Cameron Smith didn’t.

Golf is a strange game.

At the PIF Saudi International, an Asian Tour event that’s littered with LIV Golf players and a couple from the PGA Tour, it’s a 15-year-old who’s stealing the show near the top of the leaderboard.

Ratchanon Chantananuwat, from Thailand and ranked 16th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, is 7 under and four shots off the lead heading to the weekend at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in Saudi Arabia. Abraham Ancer paces the field for the second straight day, and Cameron Young, the PGA Tour’s Rookie of the Year for 2021-22, is a shot behind.

“I think one of the reasons I played really well today was — the past two days was I had no expectations,” Chantananuwat said, “and not looking at the leaderboard, and ironically as soon as I started looking at the leaderboard on 8 and when the cameras came, that’s when I started not being as sharp. I think I’m just going to try and shut myself off tomorrow, Sunday, as well, keep my head down.”

2023 PIF Saudi International
Ratchanon Chantananuwat of Thailand tees off from the 5th hole during Day Two of the PIF Saudi International at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club on February 03, 2023 in Al Murooj, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Tom Dulat/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Cameron Smith (2 over), ranked third in the Official World Golf Ranking, is heading home after missing the cut (even), along with other LIV golfers Phil Mickelson (1 over), Bryson DeChambeau (7 over) and Bubba Watson (2 over).

However, Marc Leishman and Louis Oosthuizen are in a tie for third at 8 under, along with Sadom Kaewkanjana, chasing Ancer, who shot 66 on Friday after opening with a 7-under 63.

Young has fired consecutive 5-under 65s to begin.

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LIV Golf (and one PGA Tour player) dominate early leaderboard at PIF Saudi International

Of the 37 players under par after the first day of play, 24 play for LIV Golf and three are on the PGA Tour.

It’s a LIV Golf party in the Kingdom this week, and a few PGA Tour players have been invited.

After the opening 18 holes of the 2023 PIF Saudi International at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City, Abraham Ancer finds himself at the top of the leaderboard at 7 under, one shot clear of LIV’s latest reported player, Sebastian Munoz.

Cameron Young – one of the few PGA Tour players granted a release to play in the Asian Tour event sponsored by the Public Investment Fund, the same financial backer for LIV Golf  – is T-3 at 5 under alongside LIV’s Sergio Garcia and Louis Oosthuizen. Other PGA Tour players in the field include Lucas Herbert (T-18) and Cameron Champ (T-30).

Of the 37 players under par after the first day of play, 24 play for LIV Golf.

The Saudi International was created in 2019 by the regime’s Public Investment Fund and offered lucrative appearance fees to attract PGA Tour stars like Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau, who all later jumped to LIV.

The tournament was originally a DP World Tour stop, but the European circuit is also now being sued by LIV, which invested more than $200 million in the Asian Tour last year.

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Two more LIV Golf members have reportedly dropped out of antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour

Originally 11 LIV members were part of the lawsuit. The number is down to seven.

On August 3, the Wall Street Journal originally reported that 11 LIV Golf Series members including Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau filed a lawsuit against the PGA Tour.

Six days later, Carlos Ortiz withdrew his name from the lawsuit. Pat Perez announced during a phone interview August 19 that he, too, decided to remove his name. Now two more players have moved on.

Jason Kokrak and Abraham Ancer have been removed in an amended complaint that was filed Friday, August 26, according to a report from Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard.

The remaining seven players, Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau, Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford, Matt Jones, Ian Poulter and Peter Uihlein, are challenging their suspensions by the PGA Tour for their actions in joining the Greg Norman-led series, which is backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

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Awkward at Wentworth? Nearly 20 members of LIV Golf to play in BMW PGA alongside Rory McIlroy, Matt Fitzpatrick

“It’s going to be odd seeing certain people at Wentworth. That is going to be a bit weird,” Matt Fitzpatrick said.

On June 28, the PGA Tour and DP World Tour announced a 13-year expansion to their existing “strategic alliance” to an “operational joint venture partnership.”

Despite the agreement, the circuit formally known as the European Tour operates separately from the American tour.

What does that mean? Well, it means 18 LIV Golf Series members are currently in the field for next month’s BMW PGA Championship despite those players being banned from the PGA Tour.

Jason Kokrak, Abraham Ancer and Talor Gooch are among the group of Saudi employees in the field, getting in by an exemption that allows players from the top 60 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Lee Westwood gained entry by the Race to Dubai winners exemption. Patrick Reed is also in the field.

BWM PGA: Full entry list

Each LIV Golf Series member will be subject to a six-figure fine for playing in the event, according to Golf Channel.

Several of the PGA Tour’s biggest backers are also currently in the BMW PGA field including Rory McIlroy, Matt Fitzpatrick, Jon Rahm and Billy Horschel.

Will it be awkward?

“It’s going to be odd seeing certain people at Wentworth. That is going to be a bit weird, and obviously, it’s a little bit disappointing. It’s going to be interesting to see what happens,” Fitzpatrick said after his opening-round 6-under 64 at the Tour Championship. “Obviously they’re (the DP World Tour) not quite in as strong a position as the PGA Tour are in terms of regulations. I guess we’ll just have to see how it plays out.”

The BMW PGA is scheduled for September 8-11.

The next LIV Golf Series event is next week in Boston, September 2-4.

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A Reddit user created a list of 15 hypothetical matchups between PGA Tour and LIV players. Let’s predict the winners.

Spoiler alert: It’s a bloodbath.

As more and more players decide to leave the PGA Tour for the LIV Golf Series, it becomes interesting to look at the top players in each league.

Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas continue to represent the PGA Tour and a move from one of them seems incredibly unlikely. However, two big names are rumored to soon make the jump.

The latest Champion Golfer of the Year, Cameron Smith, and Hideki Matsuyama are thought to be the next high-profile players to sign on with the Saudi-backed circuit.

A Reddit user created a list of the top 15 players in each league and pitted them against each other. Our partners at The Caddie Network posted the table to Twitter and it sparked a heated conversation on who would come out victorious.

The best part may be Tiger Woods and Greg Norman as the captains.

Here are my predictions for all 15 hypothetical matchups: