Big money, byes and 2024 eligibility all on the line as LIV Golf returns to Saudi Arabia

A lot is on the line at LIV Golf’s regular-season finale in the Kingdom.

The LIV Golf League returns to action this week with the final event of its regular season in Saudi Arabia, where tens of millions of dollars, first-round byes and future eligibility are all on the line.

At the end of LIV Golf Jeddah, once again held at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City, the season-long individual champion will be decided and the winner will take home the lucrative $18 million top prize. Dustin Johnson won the individual title a week before last year’s season finale, but this year’s race is much closer with three players in the mix: Cam Smith, Talor Gooch and Bryson DeChambeau.

Here’s a rundown of what’s on the line this week at LIV Golf Jeddah.

‘This is a joke,’ phones on fire, ‘this can never happen again’: Seven reactions to the PGA Tour-PIF agreement from PGA Tour pros

“Being part of the military, you can imagine where my thoughts fall on it.”

LOS ANGELES — A week has passed since the bombshell news that the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and PIF had reached an agreement to form a new commercial entity and end the litigation between the parties.

While few details are known as to how that will play out, it hasn’t stopped players from voicing their opinions and being asked questions to which they have few answers.

Kyle Westmoreland, a PGA Tour rookie, was competing in Canada last week and attended the player meeting with Tour commissioner Jay Monahan. Westmoreland, a captain in the U.S. Air Force Academy, put his dream of playing on the PGA Tour for five years on hold while he served his country. At the meeting with Monahan, Westmoreland spoke briefly but his words carried weight. “Real quick, Jay, being prior military this is a joke.”

“Being part of the military, you can imagine where my thoughts fall on it,” Westmoreland said in a phone interview with Golfweek.

“I’m a very small fish in this,” he added. “Typical business first, moral ethics second. Current leadership has to figure out how to take ownership and convince the players, the members, that this is the right thing going forward but I think it is an uphill battle.”

“I think it could’ve been handled potentially better,” he continued. “When change like this is sprung on people without any warning and is so opposite of what was said and preached in the past you are going to lose some faith in your leadership. I want to see how they respond to this.”

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What could the PGA Tour have done differently? LIV Golf competitors dish on what could have been

“Listen to the players for once,” said Patrick Reed.

NORTH PLAINS, Ore. — What’s that old adage about communication being the hallmark of a good relationship? Apparently the same goes for professional golfers and their tours as it does for significant others.

Among the many talking points at press conferences this week ahead of the LIV Golf Invitational Series event at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club – where there were enough scripted answers to fill a bingo sheet – was the lack of communication and transparency between the PGA Tour, its players and LIV Golf.

From Patrick Reed saying the Tour should’ve “listened to the players for once” to Pat Perez saying the Tour could’ve at the very least spoken with LIV, here’s a rundown of how players reacted to questions about what could have been.

DP World Tour sanctions LIV pros, including ban from Genesis Scottish Open

“Their actions are not fair to the majority of our membership and undermine the Tour.”

The Genesis Scottish Open will be missing several big names from the field in two weeks.

On Friday, DP World Tour chief executive Keith Pelley banned golfers who competed in the LIV Golf Series from three tournaments, including the Scottish Open, which is being co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour for the first time as part of a “strategic alliance” between the two circuits.

“Every action anyone takes in life comes with a consequence and it is no different in professional sport, especially if a person chooses to break the rules,” Pelley said. “That is what has occurred here with several of our members.”

The tour announced any players who took part in the inaugural LIV event would be ineligible from competing in the Scottish as well as the Barbasol Championship and Barracuda Championship, which are PGA Tour opposite-field events that are being co-sanctioned with the DP World Tour for the first time. PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan previously suspended 17 players who violated Tour rules by competing in the LIV debut event. Pelley also announced that players would be fined 100,000 pounds, or approximately $123,000, and noted that participation in further conflicting tournaments without the required release “may incur further sanctions.”

“Many members I have spoken to in recent weeks expressed the viewpoint that those who have chosen this route have not only disrespected them and our Tour, but also the meritocratic ecosystem of professional golf that has been the bedrock of our game for the past half a century and which will also be the foundation upon which we build the next 50 years,” Pelley said. “Their actions are not fair to the majority of our membership and undermine the Tour, which is why we are taking the action we have announced today.”

Pelley’s announcement was released while several European Tour stars who have defected from the PGA Tour to the Saudi-backed rival league were competing at this week’s BMW International Open, including Sergio Garcia, Martin Kaymer, and South African Louis Oosthuizen. Allowing LIV players to compete there citing different tour regulations from the PGA Tour made it appear that the DP World Tour might be a safe haven for pros banned indefinitely from the PGA Tour to play beyond LIV Golf’s eight events this season. But Pelley has closed that loophole at least for co-sanctioned events with the PGA Tour, for now.

Four-time major winner Brooks Koepka, who signed with LIV Golf this week, had been announced as part of the Scottish Open field, at The Renaissance Club from July 7-10. It has long been a popular warmup for the British Open the following week. The field is expected to include world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, reigning British Open champion Collin Morikawa, reigning PGA champion Justin Thomas and Jon Rahm.

Sky Sports News reported that fines for DP World Tour players are set to double for those playing in each future conflicting event. It also noted that LIV “will not pay the fines, only possible legal fees players incur for appealing the sanctions.”

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Two-time major champion Martin Kaymer replaces Kevin Na in field for British Open

His best finish at the Open is a T-7 in 2010.

Martin Kaymer is getting another shot at the title of Champion Golfer of the Year.

The winner of the 2010 PGA Championship via a playoff against Bubba Watson and the 2014 U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 will replace Kevin Na in the field for the 149th British Open next week at Royal St. George’s in England. Na, a five-time winner on the PGA Tour, withdrew due to international travel requirements.

“It was a tough decision but for my family and me it is best to skip The Open this year,” said Na in a release from the R&A. “I will be back next year, it is one of my favorite weeks and I would love to hold the Claret Jug one day.”

Cam Davis, who recently earned his first win on Tour at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, is the first reserve but is unable to travel, which opened the door for Kaymer. The next three reserves are Andy Sullivan, Antoine Rozner and Troy Merritt.

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Team Europe adds Graeme McDowell, Martin Kaymer as vice captains for Ryder Cup

Former Ryder Cup stalwarts Graeme McDowell and Martin Kaymer will join Luke Donald as vice captains for Team Europe.

Former Ryder Cup stalwarts Graeme McDowell and Martin Kaymer will join Luke Donald as vice captains for Team Europe for the biennial matches at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin.

Europe captain Padraig Harrington pointed to the two’s vast experience in golf and the Ryder Cup in announcing the selections Wednesday.

“Both, I believe, will bring experience, knowledge, and a great balance to the team room,” Harrington said in a statement. “They have both contributed winning points in Ryder Cup history, have been there and done it, and the other players look up to them. They both have that aura and responsibility in that what they say will have meaning.”

The 43rd matches are September 24-26. Europe is in possession of the cherished cup, having won 17½-10½ in France in 2018. Europe has won seven of the last nine matches.

USA captain Steve Stricker has named Jim Furyk, Davis Love III and Zach Johnson as vice captains. He will bring on at least one other assistant, possibly two. Among the possibilities would be Tiger Woods.

Kaymer played in four consecutive Ryder Cups starting in 2010 and delivered the clinching point when Europe stormed back from a 10-4 deficit to win in 2012 in the Miracle at Medinah. Kaymer is a two-time major champion who won his first major at the 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits.

This will be his first vice captaincy.

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“Martin is somebody I wanted as a vice captain because he has a great personality and brings a calmness, a European element, and a lot of confidence with him,” Harrington said. “The fact that he won around Whistling Straits also brings that level of authority and assurance that you need.”

Said Kaymer: “I admit it took me a while to say yes, because it’s a responsibility, and if I do something. I want to do it properly, so we talked about the role. I’m not the type of guy who is into numbers and statistics. I’m more the person talking to the guys, more of the personal stuff, a bit more of the mental side. I feel like I’m a fairly calm person when I’m playing golf and through my experience I know what they all go through, whether that’s the guys that might be playing the Ryder Cup for the first time or guys that I have played Ryder Cups with before, so I think I understand the feelings quite well.”

McDowell, who won the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, has played in four Ryder Cups. He delivered the winning point at Celtic Manor in 2010. He was an assistant captain with Harrington and Donald in 2018.

“I decided on Graeme as a vice captain a long time ago,” Harrington said. “He’s quite an authority, confident in what he’s doing and saying and knows the scene. The only reason he would not have been a vice captain was if he was going to be a player. Graeme is a strong influence and the players look up to him. When he speaks, people listen, but he doesn’t speak unless he’s got something to say.”

Said McDowell: “If you can’t play on the team, being part of the support network and the vice captaincy is the next best thing. One of our big roles is to help Padraig delegate responsibility. He’s a very intelligent guy, he’s got a lot of information in that head. From a vice captain’s point of view, helping get that out of his head and communicate it to the players, to me, is one of the roles that is extremely important to us.”

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Martin Kaymer sinks long birdie to gain piece of 54-hole lead at Austrian Open

Martin Kaymer finished the third round of the Austrian Open with a 69, and has a piece of the 54-hole lead at Diamond Country Club.

Martin Kaymer overcame a pair of bogeys to finish the third round of the Austrian Golf Open with a 69, giving the 11-time European Tour champ a piece of the 54-hole lead at Diamond Country Club near Vienna.

Kaymer is nine under, as is Alejandro Canizares, who shot a 70 on Saturday to grab a share of the lead.

American John Catlin is two shots back after struggling a bit en route to a 71. The University of New Mexico product held the lead after the second round, but suffered through a rough three-hole stretch in the middle of his round that dropped him out of the lead. He rebounded with birdies on three of the final seven holes to get close to the top again.

As for Kaymer, he made bogey on the 15th hole, but followed by burying a long putt on No. 16 to get back into the lead.

Aside from Kaymer, the only player from the world’s top 100 within seven shots of the lead is American Kurt Kitayama, who is at 2 under for the tournament after a 71 on Saturday.

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Winning clubs at the Players Championship

Check out the winning clubs at TPC Sawgrass over the years at the Players Championship.

TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, is one of the most visually intimidating golf courses in the world, with water and sand everywhere you look. The final stretch, holes 16, 17 and 18, demand that a player hold his nerves when faced with daunting tee shots and approach shots that require precision.

The Pete Dye masterpiece ranks No. 1 in Florida on Golfweek’s Best Courses You Can Play list, No. 11 for all resort courses in the United States and No. 22 in the U.S. for all Modern Courses built in or after 1960.

The players on the list below were able to handle the pressure and win the PGA Tour’s crown-jewel event, the Players Championship. Check out the equipment they used to get the job done.

The Players: TPC Sawgrass yardage book

Have a laugh on this Monday courtesy of the European Tour’s latest video, ‘Angry Golfers’

Have a laugh on this Monday courtesy of the European Tour’s latest video, “Angry Golfers.”

Tyrrell Hatton has been on a great run the last year.

The 29-year-old Englishman has won three times since hoisting the trophy at March’s Arnold Palmer Invitational, most-recently claiming last weekend’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and October’s BMW PGA Championship.

Maybe Hatton is just riding the momentum of re-signing his equipment deal with Ping. Or maybe he’s finally getting help.

Hatton, who jumped from No. 9 to No. 5 in the latest world golf ranking, admittedly wears his heart on his sleeve, which has produced some hilarious on-course moments over the years, like his club toss in disgust at the CJ Cup and when he used his putter as a rifle to shoot at – then give the finger to – a pond.

In a hilarious video posted by the European Tour last week, Hatton admitted to being an “angry golfer.”

In the video, Tommy Fleetwood hosts a group therapy session for some of the angriest golfers on the European Tour, featuring Hatton, Eddie Pepperell, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Henrik Stenson and Ian Poulter. Each player has a little fun made at their expense, with Hatton taking the most shots. Two-time major champion Martin Kaymer even makes an appearance.

Next time you’re on the course, just remember: “When you’re feeling glum, pop up your thumb.” It worked for Hatton.

New Golf in Dubai event sees Andy Sullivan jump into opening-round lead

Andy Sullivan birdied four of the first five holes and then each of the final four en route to a 61 to lead the Golf in Dubai Championship.

A new event on the European Tour has its first-ever leader.

Andy Sullivan, a four-time Euro Tour winner, put together some incredible bookends — he birdied four of the first five holes and then each of the final four — in firing a 61 to take the first-round lead at the Golf in Dubai Championship.

The event is taking place at the Jumeirah Golf Estates’ Fire Course this week and has a handful of recognizable names in the field, including former World No. 1 Martin Kaymer and 2016 Masters champ Danny Willett.

Believe it or not, even with no bogeys on the day, Sullivan might still be thinking about the one that got away. The Englishman just missed a short putt on No. 18 for a 60 that would have marked his best professional round. He managed a 61 in 2016 at the Portugal Masters, although that course was a par 71.

Golf in Dubai Championship: Leaderboard

A trio of players — Antonie Rozner, Matt Wallace and Ross Fisher — all sit two strokes behind Sullivan while Kaymer and Robert McIntyre are T-12, five shots off the lead.

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