Tag: LIV Golf Chicago

Greg Norman to visit Capitol Hill to discuss LIV Golf, address Saudi Arabia concerns

The series is on a two-week break before hosting consecutive events in Bangkok, Thailand, and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Greg Norman is heading to Washington, D.C. to talk L-I-V.

LIV Golf’s CEO and commissioner is set to visit with members of Congress this week on Capitol Hill to discuss the upstart circuit that features 54-hole tournaments, no cuts, shotgun starts and massive paydays. The news was first reported by Politico.

“LIV Golf is coming to the Hill this week to meet with lawmakers from both parties,” LIV Golf confirmed to Golfweek. “Given the PGA Tour’s attempts to stifle our progress in reimagining the game, we think it’s imperative to educate members on LIV’s business model and counter the Tour’s anti-competitive efforts.”

Backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, LIV Golf has been criticized as a way for the Kingdom to “sportswash” its human rights record. Saudi Arabia has been accused of wide-ranging human rights abuses, including politically motivated killings, torture, forced disappearances and inhumane treatment of prisoners. And members of the royal family and Saudi government were accused of involvement in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist.

The ongoing power struggle between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour for professional golf supremacy has seen both organizations lobby against the other on Capitol Hill, and it’s a fight that won’t end anytime soon.

Eleven golfers sued the PGA Tour for antitrust violations in August, but only seven remain after four players removed their names. When a judge in California denied the temporary restraining order that would have allowed three LIV players to compete in the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Playoffs, it also was revealed the antitrust case would begin in August of 2023 at the earliest. The United States Department of Justice is investigating the PGA Tour, as well.

Cameron Smith won LIV Golf’s Chicago event Sunday at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois, by three shots over Peter Uihlein and Dustin Johnson. The series is on a two-week break before hosting consecutive events in Bangkok, Thailand, on Oct. 7-9, followed by Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Oct. 14-16.

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Watch: Bryson DeChambeau takes a rope to the face, falls to one knee at LIV Golf Chicago

LIV announcer said “Off with his head” after Bryson DeChambeau tangled with a rope.

Bryson DeChambeau was knocked to a knee in Sunday’s final round of the LIV Golf Invitational Series Chicago.

From video of the mishap posted on social media by Kyle Porter of CBS and others, it appears the former U.S. Open champion tried to walk under a gallery rope at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois, but grossly misjudged the rope’s height. He never put his hands up to grab the rope, which also was being lifted by a volunteer of the event. As he went to pass under the rope, he walked right into it and somehow got it stuck under his hat and appears to possibly have hit himself in the eye. Then DeChambeau fell to one knee as the announcers of the livestream groaned.

One of the announcers appears to have said, “Off with his head.”

Wes Brown was at the event and captured the incident from a different angle. This version contains profanity.

Despite the awkward interaction, DeChambeau – who earlier in the week said it was the PGA Tour’s loss that LIV players will not be allowed to play in team events such as the upcoming Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup – was able to finish his round. He finished in a tie for 10th, seven shots behind winner Cameron Smith.

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Full breakdown of LIV Golf Chicago prize money payouts

Cameron Smith earned $4 million for his win.

Five players finished the LIV Golf Invitational Series stop near Chicago in last place, T-44 at 6 over and a whopping 19 shots behind winner Cameron Smith. For their efforts they’ll each take home $124,000.

That’s the selling point for the upstart series led by Greg Norman and supported by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund: 54-hole, no cut events that offer massive contracts and paydays.

Smith carried his form from the PGA Tour to LIV, finishing T-4 in his first start at LIV Golf Boston and winning this week at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois, by two shots over Dustin Johnson and Peter Uihlein. Smith’s $4 million payday trumps his three previous wins last season on the PGA Tour, where he earned $1.476 million for winning the Sentry Tournament of Champions, $2.5 million for winning the British Open and $3.6 million for winning the Players Championship.

Check out the full prize money payouts for each player at LIV Golf Chicago.

Position Player Score Earnings
1 Cameron Smith -13 $4,000,000
T2 Peter Uihlein -10 $1,812,500
T2 Dustin Johnson -10 $1,812,500
T4 Sergio Garcia -8 $1,012,500
T4 Joaquin Niemann -8 $1,012,500
T6 Charl Schwartzel -7 $737,500
T6 Louis Oosthuizen -7 $737,500
T8 Phil Mickelson -6 $576,250
T8 Laurie Canter -6 $576,250
T8 Bryson DeChambeau -6 $576,250
T8 Chase Koepka -6 $576,250
T12 Lee Westwood -5 $332,500
T12 Cameron Tringale -5 $332,500
T12 Patrick Reed -5 $332,500
T12 Scott Vincent -5 $332,500
T16 Matt Jones -4 $236,000
T16 Matthew Wolff -4 $236,000
T18 Charles Howell III -3 $215,333
T18 Richard Bland -3 $215,333
T18 Branden Grace -3 $215,333
T21 Paul Casey -2 $170,000
T21 Brooks Koepka -2 $170,000
T21 Anirban Lahiri -2 $170,000
T21 Jason Kokrak -2 $170,000
T21 Harold Varner III -2 $170,000
T21 Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra -2 $170,000
T27 Abraham Ancer -1 $159,000
T27 Henrik Stenson -1 $159,000
T27 Ian Poulter -1 $159,000
T27 James Piot -1 $159,000
T31 Pat Perez E $152,000
T31 Carlos Ortiz E $152,000
T31 Phachara Khongwatmai E $152,000
34 Kevin Na 1 $148,000
T35 Bernd Wiesberger 3 $145,000
T35 Talor Gooch 3 $145,000
T37 Graeme McDowell 4 $137,000
T37 Wade Ormsby 4 $137,000
T37 Martin Kaymer 4 $137,000
T37 Sadom Kaewkanjana 4 $137,000
T37 Jediah Morgan 4 $137,000
T37 David Puig 4 $137,000
43 Sam Horsfield 5 $130,000
T44 Marc Leishman 6 $124,000
T44 Sihwan Kim 6 $124,000
T44 Shaun Norris 6 $124,000
T44 Hudson Swafford 6 $124,000
T44 Turk Pettit 6 $124,000

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Cameron Smith wins LIV Golf Chicago event; Dustin Johnson’s 4 Aces win fourth consecutive team title

Smith finished T-4 in his LIV Golf debut earlier this month in Boston.

Cameron Smith is feeling right at home on the 54 Tour.

After finishing T-4 in his LIV Golf debut earlier this month in Boston, Smith won in his second start at LIV Golf Chicago on Sunday at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois. The 29-year-old Aussie entered the final round with a three-shot lead and walked off the course with a three-shot win, with Peter Uihlein and Dustin Johnson T-2 at 10 under.

Ranked No. 3 in the world, Smith hasn’t lost his form since joining the Greg Norman-led upstart series that’s currently at odds with the PGA Tour. In 18 starts last year on Tour, Smith earned seven top-10 finishes, including a trio of wins at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, the Players Championship and Open Championship (his first major title).

Led by captain Dustin Johnson, the 4 Aces won the team title for the fourth consecutive event, this time at 24 under. Brooks Koepka and his Smash GC finished second at 22 under.

Backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, LIV Golf has been criticized as a way for the Kingdom to “sportswash” its human rights record. Saudi Arabia has been accused of wide-ranging human rights abuses, including politically motivated killings, torture, forced disappearances and inhumane treatment of prisoners. And members of the royal family and Saudi government were accused of involvement in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist.

The series will take a two-week break before heading to Stonehill Golf Club in Bangkok, Thailand, Oct. 7-9, followed by Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, Oct. 14-16.

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Dustin Johnson continues strong play, opens with 63 at LIV Golf Chicago

Dustin Johnson is on a hot streak.

It’s safe to say Dustin Johnson is playing good golf right now.

Coming off his win two weeks ago at LIV Golf Boston, his first worldwide victory since February 2021 where he hit a long eagle putt on the first playoff hole, Johnson is off to an excellent start at LIV Golf Chicago at Rich Harvest Farms. The par-72, 7,408-yard layout was no match for Johnson on Friday, who opened in 9-under 63 to take a three-shot advantage over Cam Smith, who shot 66.

“The course is great … it’s in perfect condition,” Johnson said. “I played really nicely, hit the ball really well. Hit it close to the hole a lot of times, all day long, so obviously put together a really nice score.”

Johnson went out in 6-under 30, including four straight circles on the card from Nos. 6-9. He missed a birdie putt on the par-5 18th hole that would’ve tied him with the lowest score (62) in any LIV event thus far.

“The game is in really good form,” he said. “It’s been solid day in and day out, so seeing a lot of the same shots and very consistent. That’s always what I’m looking for, just consistency in the flights and in what I’m trying to do, and obviously right now it’s going pretty well.”

Smith, who finished a shot out of a playoff and tied for fourth during his first event in Boston two weeks ago, continued his strong play, as well.

“This is my first time here. I love it,” Smith said. “I think the course is great. I think it played great today, firming up a little bit.”

Johnson’s 4 Aces, which have won the past three events in the team competition, again are in the driver’s seat at 11 under following the first round. Punch, which Smith captains, is in second at 10 under.

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Photos: 2022 LIV Golf Invitational Series Chicago at Rich Harvest Farms

Check out the action at Rich Harvest Farms.

The LIV Golf Invitational Series is marching on, with its fifth event underway outside of Chicago at Rich Harvest Farms.

The course is a par-72 layout measuring at 7,408 yards. It hosted the NCAA men’s and women’s championships in 2017 and the Solheim Cup in 2009.

Dustin Johnson won the last event two weeks ago at The International in Bolton, just outside of Boston. He jarred an eagle putt on the first playoff hole to beat Joaquin Niemann and Anirban Lahiri for his first worldwide victory since February 2021. There are three LIV events remaining in 2022 following the Chicago event.

Here’s a look at some of the best photos from LIV Golf Chicago:

Phil Mickelson is reportedly considering dropping out of the LIV Golf lawsuit against the PGA Tour

Only seven of the original 11 plaintiffs remain in the lawsuit.

Phil Mickelson may be having a change of heart.

Many people have asked the question as to whether Phil Mickelson was in the right in light of recent PGA Tour changes, including boosted purses and elevated events, when he was one of the original critics. Now, according to a Sports Illustrated report, Mickelson may be dropping his name from the antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour.

“Now that LIV (Golf) is involved, it’s not necessary for me to be involved,’’ Mickelson said at Rich Harvest Farms, site of this week’s LIV Golf event in Chicago. “I currently still am. I don’t know what I’m going to do, really.

“The only reason for me to stay in is (monetary) damages, which I don’t really want or need anything. I do think it’s important that the players have the right to play when and where they want, when and where they qualify for. And now that LIV (Golf) is a part of it, that will be accomplished if and when they win.’’

Mickelson was one of 11 golfers who originally sued the PGA Tour for antitrust violations in August. Since then, four golfers (Abraham Ancer, Jason Kokrak, Carlos Ortiz and Pat Perez) have dropped their names from the lawsuit, and Lefty may be next. A judge also ruled against Talor Gooch, Matt Jones and Hudson Swafford playing in the 2022 FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Of the original 11 plaintiffs, seven remain: Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau, Gooch, Jones, Ian Poulter, Swafford and Peter Uihlein.

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Bryson DeChambeau calls out Presidents Cup, Ryder Cup for ‘only hurting themselves’ by not allowing LIV Golf players to compete

“It is sad that those governing bodies have not allowed us to be able to qualify. That’s all I can say to that.”

Bryson DeChambeau is focused on LIV Golf’s fifth event this week near Chicago, but with the 2022 Presidents Cup just a week away, the three-time member of Team USA as a professional said it’s sad he and his fellow LIV players will be stuck watching from home.

“I personally think that the team events are only hurting themselves by not allowing us to play, not allowing us to qualify through some capacity, in some facet,” DeChambeau said during his pre-tournament press conference Thursday at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Illinois.

“But I would say from a team aspect, it is sad that those governing bodies have not allowed us to be able to qualify. That’s all I can say to that,” DeChambeau said before continuing. “I want to play in numerous events on the PGA Tour. It would be awesome. That’s what LIV Golf has tried to, they have allowed us to play on the PGA Tour. It’s the PGA Tour barring us from doing so.”

The PGA Tour has suspended players who have competed in LIV Golf events, following its own Tournament Regulations dating back to the first round of suspensions after the start of LIV’s first event in London. Despite the sour thoughts, DeChambeau will “absolutely” be watching the action at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, next week as the Internationals look to win on American soil for the first time in the event’s 28-year history.

“Look, I’m a golf fan, first and foremost. I’m going to watch golf wherever it’s played with some of the best players in the world, whoever it is,” explained DeChambeau. “I think down the road that’ll change. I think that this will become something special, even more special than what it is now, and moving forward in the future, I’ll still watch other tournaments that I’ve won and done well at before.”

DeChambeau was a member of Team USA at both the 2018 Ryder Cup in Paris and 2021 Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits and holds a 2-3-1 record. He made his Presidents Cup debut for the red, white and blue in 2019 at Royal Melbourne, where he compiled an 0-1-1 record.

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David Puig said playing opportunities made for ‘pretty easy decision’ to leave Arizona State and join LIV Golf

“LIV was very supportive, and they gave me two exemptions as an amateur, which I really appreciated them a lot.”

David Puig will make his professional debut at this week’s LIV Golf Invitational Series stop outside Chicago, but the former standout from Arizona State is no rookie on the upstart circuit.

The 20-year-old Spaniard played in two previous events for the Greg Norman-led and Saudi Arabia-backed series as an amateur this summer, finishing T-41 at LIV’s debut in London and T-42 at LIV Golf Bedminster. Puig said his reason for leaving college early (and after the start of the fall season) was because LIV provided him playing opportunities.

“LIV was very supportive, and they gave me two exemptions as an amateur, which I really appreciated them a lot,” explained Puig. “They also gave me an opportunity to play against the best players in the world, so it was obviously a tough decision to leave ASU, but it was a pretty easy decision to join LIV.”

When Puig was later asked if he had looked into PGA Tour exemptions while at Arizona State and if he had written to the Phoenix Open or other events, his response was, “Not really.”

“At least for what I know, getting into the Phoenix Open is pretty tough, especially when a guy is from Spain. I would say, I don’t know, Preston, one of my teammates, he had the chance to play in the Phoenix Open, and he deserves it. He’s an awesome guy, awesome player, but I think when he was 10 years old he was already a member at TPC Scottsdale or helped with the tournament somehow or something like that,” Puig said referencing the Arizona State’s Preston Summerhays, who received an exemption to the 2022 WM Phoenix Open. Other recent college players to earn exemptions as amateurs include Matthew Wolff, an All-American at Oklahoma State, in 2019 and Jon Rahm, also a Sun Devil who hails from Spain, in 2015.

“Yeah, and then on the other tournaments, being from Spain, I would say it’s just pretty tough because I would say they’d rather give the exemptions to people that are local.”

Quite a bit of speculation for someone who admittedly didn’t really make an effort.

Puig was not selected for Arizona State’s first event of the fall season, a second-place showing at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate down the road from campus at Mirabel Golf Club in Scottsdale. This summer during his time with LIV Golf he played for Cleeks GC in Bedminster and Fireballs GC in London. This week he’ll tee it up for newly-announced Joaquin Niemann’s Torque GC.

“I’m not nervous. You know, at the end when you play golf, it’s pretty much every time the same. You’ve just got to hit a golf ball and just try to make as less shots possible,” Puig said. “Obviously first tournament as a pro, I’ve got some expectations that I want to do or get, like I don’t know, play a round under par, which I still never did in LIV, or had a chance to win or help my team to win, too.

“But I’m not nervous. It’s just what I do every day. I mean, I’ve practiced for this, to try to be one of the best players in the world. Yeah, I’m not nervous, I’m just excited to start going.”

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Arizona State’s David Puig turns professional, will make debut at LIV Golf Chicago

Puig previously played in two LIV Golf events as an amateur.

On the eve of the final match of the 2022 NCAA Championship back in May, news broke that Arizona State junior David Puig would be competing in the first LIV Golf Invitational Series event in June.

This week he travels to Illinois, but it’s not to play for the Sun Devils. Instead of competing at the Fighting Illini Invitational in Olympia Fields, Puig will make his professional debut at LIV Golf Chicago at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove.

The Spaniard has made two starts for the Greg Norman-led and Saudi Arabia-backed series as an amateur, finishing T-41 in London and T-42 at LIV Golf Bedminster. LIV Golf events feature no cuts, 54 holes of shotgun start play and fields of just 48 players and 12 teams. Supported by the Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, the series has been criticized as a means for Saudi Arabia to sportswash its controversial human rights record.

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Puig was not selected for Arizona State’s first event of the fall season, a second-place showing at the Maui Jim Intercollegiate down the road from campus at Mirabel Golf Club in Scottsdale. This summer during his time with LIV Golf he played for Cleeks GC in Bedminster and Fireballs GC in London. This week he’ll tee it up for newly-announced Joaquin Niemann’s Torque GC.

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