Dustin Johnson has received a special invitation into the PGA Championship for the second consecutive year.

The full 2026 PGA Championship field was unveiled on Tuesday, with Johnson's name confirmed in the list of of 154 players.

It means the two-time Major champion and former World No.1 continues his streak of qualifying for consecutive Majors to 69, dating back to the 2008 PGA Championship.

Johnson has six top-10s in the PGA Championship including back-to-back runners-up finishes in 2019 and 2020.

He perhaps came closes to winning the Wanamaker Trophy in 2010, though, where he thought he had reached a playoff for the title before receiving a penalty for 'grounding' his club in a bunker on the 72nd hole.

He thought it was a waste area but was deemed to have broken the rules, eventually finishing T5 as Martin Kaymer defeated Bubba Watson in extra holes.

The former World No.1 has missed six of his last ten Major cuts and only has two top-10s from 15 Majors since joining LIV Golf.

His exemptions for the PGA Championship and The Open have now expired, having won The Masters in 2020.

He has a lifetime exemption for Augusta, while his US Open exemption expires this year after his maiden Major triumph at Oakmont in 2016.

Johnson currently ranks 468th in the world with best finishes of T17th, in three separate LIV events, this year.

There will be 11 LIV Golfers in the 2026 PGA Championship, with Bryson DeChambeau, Thomas Detry, Tyrrell Hatton, Johnson, Martin Kaymer, Tom McKibbin, Joaquin Niemann, David Puig, Jon Rahm, Cameron Smith and Elvis Smylie all set to tee it up.

Two-time PGA Champion Phil Mickelson has withdrawn as he continues to deal with a private family matter.

Dustin Johnson signed a new deal with the LIV Golf League's 4Aces last week, retaining the two-time Major winner as part of an incredibly strong line-up.

Johnson continues to captain the 2022 Team Championship winners and will be joined by Patrick Reed - who, earlier this week, said he would consider a return to the PGA Tour - Thomas Pieters and new signing Thomas Detry.

However, as has so often been the case with LIV Golf contracts since its inception in 2022, the details of Johnson's terms were initially kept a secret.

The 2016 US Open champion and 2020 Masters winner was confirmed as having agreed a multi-year extension when the news was shared last Wednesday, but it wasn't until almost a week later that the 4Aces broke with protocol and revealed how many years Johnson was sticking around for.

In a post from the six-time team event champions on social media, 4Aces confirmed Johnson had penned a three-year extension with LIV - retaining his services through 2029.

In the same post, Johnson said: "I believe in this team, the direction we’re headed, and what we’re building together. I’m excited to keep it going."

The 4Aces captain will be 44 years old once his second LIV contract expires and he therefore could extend his stay with the PIF-backed circuit beyond that time.

Johnson began his career in 2007 after graduating from Coastal Carolina University and immediately joined the PGA Tour for 2008 after finishing 14th at Q-School.

Over the following 15 years, the Columbia, South Carolina-born pro claimed 22 PGA Tour titles and two Majors before making the switch to LIV Golf. There, he won three more times and captained 4Aces to the league's first Team Championship.

In the first series of Netflix's Full Swing, Johnson explained the primary reasons for his switch in circuits.

He said: "For me it was playing less, making more money. Pretty simple.

"Someone offers anyone a job, doing the same thing they're already doing but less time at the office and they're gonna pay them more. Pretty sure you're gonna take it. And something's wrong with you if you didn't."

After signing his latest contract with LIV, Johnson shared his enthusiasm over the direction of the league in 2026 and beyond.

He said: "I'm obviously very excited about this year. I think we're going to a couple new venues, and that's exciting.

"Obviously, anytime we're going to a new place, especially all the things I'm hearing about South Africa, it's supposed to be amazing. We've got a ton of fans."

Aside from Reed's mildly concerning confession about potentially returning to the PGA Tour if offered the same terms as Brooks Koepka was, the past few days and weeks have been very encouraging for Johnson and co.

The team signed Detry from the PGA Tour while also adding a new apparel sponsor in Under Armour and an energy drink sponsor in Celsius.

The 4Aces will now hope to improve on their overall result from last season where the team finished seventh after no team victories but six podiums throughout the year.

Dustin Johnson has confirmed Thomas Detry has joined his LIV Golf team, 4Aces GC.

The Belgian has opted to leave the PGA Tour after winning his maiden title at last year's WM Phoenix Open, which he won by seven strokes after a final round 65.

He currently ranks 58th in the world and has a best Major finish of T4 at the 2024 PGA Championship.

News of Detry's signing was first reported by The Times earlier this month, which stated he would join Johnson, countryman Thomas Pieters and 2018 Masters champion Patrick Reed on the 4Aces franchise to replace Harold Varner III - who is said to be taking Brooks Koepka's vacant spot on Smash GC.

"I'm obviously very excited about this year," Dustin Johnson said.

"I just re-signed a few months ago an extension and then we got a new player. Thomas Detry is going to be on the team this year, another Belgian, so excited about that. I think he's a really good player.

"I've played with him a few times before over the years, and then obviously got to spend a lot of time with him the last three or four days.

"Really like the kid. He's a good player, very talented. So looking forward to that."

"There’s an amazing vibe around the 4Aces that you feel right away,” Detry said.

“You can see they play with confidence and there’s a definite swagger coming from all the guys… feeling like you belong on the biggest stages. That’s exactly the type of environment I want to be a part of.”

Detry, 33, has played in more than 170 DP World Tour events and has full status on the European circuit this year after a last-gasp finish to his season.

His T7th in the Genesis Championship, the final regular event of the 2025 campaign, moved him from 129th to 113th in the Race to Dubai, with the top 115 earning their cards.

Other new players joining the league this off-season include Victor Perez, Laurie Canter, Scott Vincent, Yosuke Asaji, Richard T Lee and Bjorn Hellgren. Elvis Smylie is also reportedly joining to replace Matt Jones on Cameron Smith's all-Australian Ripper GC team.

While LIV has made a number of moves this winter, the biggest story is Brooks Koepka's departure and his immediate return to the PGA Tour via the Returning Member Program.

The new scheme has seen him pay a number of consequences and is also open to Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith as winners of Majors or The Players Championship from 2022-2025. All three LIV stars have declined the PGA Tour's offer, having publicly confirmed they will be staying with the PIF-backed tour.

Kevin Na has also left LIV Golf, while Jinichiro Kozuma is reportedly without a spot in 2026, too. Na was Iron Heads GC captain but the side has rebranded to Korean Golf Club and are expected to be led by PGA Tour player Ben An this year. No concrete news has been confirmed of the new roster, yet.

The 2026 LIV Golf season gets underway next month in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Dustin Johnson is making a rare Asian Tour appearance this week with the former World No.1 and two-time Major champion headlining the field at the International Series Philippines.

The inaugural Philippines event features plenty of star names and Johnson will hope to extend his 10-year winning streak after a trophyless season so far.

Johnson, who recently said his game was trending and he's targeting the 2027 Ryder Cup, will look to keep his streak alive after winning a tournament in every year since 2014.

“I think growing the game is very important," the LIV Golf man said in his pre-tournament press conference.

"Obviously, LIV Golf has done a great job leading that effort. The International Series and the Asian Tour continue to expand golf’s reach by playing all over the world, bringing golf to parts of the world that I have never been to, and that a lot of golfers have never been to.

“I think this is great for the game. The game of golf is growing a lot, and playing in places like this really helps.”

The American, who missed his second consecutive Ryder Cup this year after going 5-0 in 2021 at Whistling Straits, has a best finish of 3rd in 2025 at the LIV Golf Indianapolis tournament.

He will likely tee it up at the Saudi International next month, an event he has won twice, meaning he may only have two more opportunities to lift a trophy this season.

His last victory came at the LIV Golf Las Vegas tournament early last year, which was his third LIV win.

Johnson burst onto the scene as a pro in 2007 after attending the Coastal Carolina University and representing USA at the Walker Cup. He has gone on to win 24 PGA Tour titles including two Majors, as well as his LIV three victories.

The big-hitter has also spent 135 weeks atop the Official World Golf Ranking.

Dustin Johnson watched all the drama of the Ryder Cup at Bethpage unfold from the comfort of his couch – but he’d like to be front and centre back as part of Team USA for the next one at Adare Manor in 2027.

Johnson has played in five Ryder Cups, winning 12 points from 21 matches including his perfect five wins from five in his last appearance at Whistling Straits in 2021.

Moving to LIV Golf has seen Johnson now miss out on the last two Ryder Cups, and perhaps Keegan Bradley could’ve done with his experience during the first two days at Bethpage.

That lack of Official World Golf Ranking points available to LIV Golf means Johnson is reliant on playing well in the Majors and events on the DP World Tour and Asian Tour to get points.

He’s starring at one of those this week after a superb 64 in the opening round of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship - which continued his recent return to form.

And although many have questioned what ambitions the 41-year-old still holds, he insisted returning to the Ryder Cup for the trip to Ireland in 2027 was very much one of his aims.

“I’d love to,” said Johnson about a Ryder Cup return. “I wanted to be there (Bethpage). I just need to play a bit better and I can be there for Adare.

“I finally feel like I have my game coming back into form. I’ve got a lot more confidence in it and I am starting to swing it well again.

“I went through about a year where I just wasn’t swinging at it very well. But I feel I am now starting to hit a lot of nice shots and feel a lot more consistent. The last few months have been nice.”

Bryson DeChambeau and Tyrrell Hatton showed that it’s possible to play in LIV Golf and qualify for the Ryder Cup - while Jon Rahm was an obvious pick for Luke Donald and responded with another strong performance.

Johnson’s Ryder Cup record would make him an interesting option for whoever captain’s the USA in 2027, but he’d need to display a lot more form in LIV Golf and his Major appearances.

He could also benefit from appearing in more DP World Tour events if he decides to go down a route similar to Brooks Koepka, who is appearing in his fourth in a row at the Dunhill.

Given how poor the USA played in the team aspects of the Ryder Cup, a player with Johnson’s experience and decent record of winning exactly 50% of his foursomes and fourballs matches in the competition would certainly be a tempting pick.

Johnson needs to continue this uptick in form though if he is to swap his couch for the fairways of Adare Manor next time around.

The Open Championship was not quite a last chance for Ryder Cup hopefuls to impress, but it may have been a missed opportunity for some big names to press their claims to make their respective teams.

This seems especially true for Team USA more than Europe - with Luke Donald looking like having a far more settled side with many of the 12 that won in Rome in 2023 set to return.

The big 10 for Europe seem almost assured and make our very own Ryder Cup team predictions pretty settled in terms of the visitors in New York, with Sergio Garcia the 'biggest' name likely to miss out.

One of the Hojgaard twins or Matt Fitzpatrick could be others who miss out but they're likely the only big decisions to make - while for Keegan Bradley he has some Ryder Cup stalwarts nowhere near in good enough form to warrant a pick.

Brooks Koepka

One of America's biggest alpha males, Brooks Koepka has played in four Ryder Cups, won eight points and is unbeaten in singles with a 3-0-1 record when going man-to-man.

But he's just not been himself this season, missing three cuts from four in the Majors and not managing to win on LIV Golf - with just two top 10s ahead of the latest round in the UK.

He's nowhere near qualifying so Bradley would be taking it all on trust that he could find something back at Bethpage, where he won the US Open, but that'll be a huge gamble in this form.

Patrick Reed

Three Ryder Cups, eight points from 12 matches including a perfect three-for-three in singles and a match of the century contender against Rory McIlroy - Patrick Reed has excelled as Captain America over the years.

A fallout with Jordan Spieth and move to LIV saw him miss out on the last two, and after coming third at The Masters and winning on LIV he's fallen away this season and missed the cut at The Open.

Bradley may feel he lacks experience in his side and having Reed around would certainly add a swagger, and raise the temperature and the atmosphere even higher at Bethpage - but he'd be the ultimate wildcard pick.

Dustin Johnson

OK, so it's not really a surprise but Dustin Johnson doesn't look like he'll make the side - making his perfect 5-0 record from Whistling Straits possibly his last action from five Ryder Cups.

Outside the top 100 in the standings, he missed three out of four cuts so surely won't be anywhere near Bradley's thinking unless he's planning a major curve ball for the Europeans.

It's a shame as DJ was dynamite in his perfect 2021 outing - and the best thing about him is that his matches are decisive, as he's never halved a Ryder Cup match with his record being an impressive 12-9-0.

Rickie Fowler

If you had sponsor invites into the Ryder Cup Rickie Fowler might get in! He rode the system nicely to get into The Open and finished T14, but barring a late season charge his race looks run.

He's a five-event veteran in the Ryder Cup, but Fowler's record doesn't breed confidence as he's only won three of his 17 matches and 5.5 points overall.

A huge crowd favorite, yes, but at 42nd in the standings and with that record chances are he'll have more chance being at Bethpage as an extra vice-captain than as a player.

Tony Finau

A nice symetrical won three, lost three record from Tony Finau's matches across two Ryder Cups, but he missed out in Rome last time and is just outside the top 20 in the standings again after a so-so season.

Down in 67th on Data Golf shows he's not been playing that well either, with just that spark missing from his play. He won four times in the 14 months before the last Ryder Cup and still didn't make the team - he looks to stand no chance this time.

Max Homa

Max Homa played really well in his Ryder Cup debut in Rome, winning 3.5 points after being trusted to play all five matches, but his form has fallen off a cliff since.

He's missed cuts by the bucketload and didn't even make the last two Majors of the season, so he's got no chance sadly until he can at least find some of his best form.

The US Open in 2016 held at Oakmont Country Club was a defining moment in the career of Dustin Johnson. It was the first of his two Major victories and helped propel him to become the best player in the world.

Now, Johnson returns to Oakmont nine years later at a very different stage of his career, as he looks to claim the title once more after what were bizarre winning conditions at the time - the American played the last seven holes not knowing his score, while the USGA tried to decide whether to penalize him for a ball that moved on the fifth green.

Joining LIV Golf in 2022, the 4Aces GC captain has won three times on the circuit, but has seen his Major form struggle, claiming just two top 10s.

However, speaking to AP News , Johnson believes he can get back to his best, stating: "I think I’ve got another six years in me... I can grind for another six years. And then I’m going fishing."

When asked 'why grind?', he said, "Because I want to get back, I know I’ve still got it." If anything was to signify his motivation to compete, it's this.

In terms of results, the American has only claimed one top five finish in his last 20 starts on the LIV Golf League and has also missed the cut in five of his last seven Majors.

Since his 2016 US Open success, he has only entered the top 10 three times, missing two cuts, the most recent of which was at Pinehurst last year.

But after a positive result at last week's LIV Golf event in Virginia, where he finished T10, he felt more confident about his game, stating: “I feel like my game’s been really close.

“I haven’t really got a lot out of it. So it was definitely nice to have a nice finish last week. I played good every day. I didn’t... you know, still kind of giving away some shots. I need to clean that up a little bit.”

The 41-year-old is coming to the twilight of his career; however, he will be hoping that good memories of the Major, and in particular this course, will help propel his game in the right direction, before he decides to leave the golf course for good and reside on the fishing lakes full time.

Dustin Johnson's Last 10 US Open Finishes

• 2024 - MC
• 2023 - T10
• 2022 - T24
• 2021 - T19
• 2020 - T6
• 2019 - T35
• 2018 - 3
• 2017 - MC
• 2016 - 1
• 2015 - T2

Since signing for LIV Golf in 2022, Dustin Johnson’s Major appearances have been largely disappointing, with just two top 10 finishes in 12 starts at the big events.

Despite that, his confidence doesn’t appear to have taken a knock ahead of his return to Oakmont for the US Open, the venue for his victory in the tournament nine years ago.

One thing working in Johnson’s favor ahead of his appearance at the Pittsburgh course is some encouraging LIV Golf form, including T10 at last week’s event in Virginia, and the 40-year-old doesn’t think his game is too far away from getting back to its best - although he admitted there are some things he needs to work on if he is to compete at Oakmont.

He told reporters: “I feel like my game's been really close. I haven't really got a lot out of it. So it was definitely nice to have a nice finish last week. I played good every day. I didn't - you know, still kind of giving away some shots. I need to clean that up a little bit.”

“But played really solid every day, hit it nice, gave myself a lot of opportunities. Just still kind of gave some shots away each round that you can't afford to do at a golf course like this. It was nice to finally see the game progress a little bit.”

Among Johnson’s string of disappointing outings at Majors recently was a missed cut at the PGA Championship. However, he doesn’t think his 12-over across his two rounds at Quail Hollow told the full story of his performance.

“I know my score didn't reflect it at the PGA, but I actually played way better than the score,” he insisted. “I just struggled a little bit on the greens. Well, maybe that's an understatement. I struggled really bad on the greens.”

Johnson was also confident his game was moving in the right direction before The Masters, telling reporters at the time that he didn’t think it was too far off the form that saw him win at Augusta National in 2020.

That also resulted in a missed cut, although he remains adamant that he is as close as he’s been in some time to rediscovering his best. He added: “The game is definitely in a lot better shape than it was a few months ago.”

Johnson also refuted suggestions that his move to LIV Golf had taken away crucial sharpness from his game, adding: “Golf is a strange sport. I don't feel like I've slipped any. My scores haven't reflected, but it is a really fine line.

“I remember a few years ago, I missed two cuts in a row. I think I shot 80-80, and then I won the next week. For me it's always really close to being good, but just getting back there and keeping it consistent which over the last couple months I'm starting to see a lot of patterns and the game feels like it's coming back into good form.”

Johnson also insisted he’s not feeling any more pressure to perform, despite LIV Golfers generally only facing the best of the PGA Tour four times a year. He adeed: “No, not really. It's still a Major. It's still the same amount of pressure no matter where you're playing. Yeah, it's a championship. I'm looking forward to playing in it this week and hopefully can contend.”

With the US Open returning to Oakmont you can't help but think back to the last time the event was held at the venue, when Dustin Johnson emerged with his maiden Major - but not without controversy.

Johnson had suffered several heartbreaking near misses in the Majors, and there threatened to be another one as he made his bid for a breakthrough at Oakmont.

He was racining away towards the US Open trophy but for most of his final round he had the spectre of a penalty hanging over his head from his ball moving on the fifth green.

Johnson called a rules official over after his ball moved before he addressed it with his putter, who told him to finish off the hole.

Only on the 12th hole, when Johnson was neck-and-neck with Shane Lowry, was he told he'd likely have a penalty, but the United States Golf Association would decide after his round.

For a player that had seen Majors slip from his grasp before, the next few holes most have been agony for Johnson, who would've feared that looming penalty might make all the difference.

However, Lowry fell away in the closing stretch and Johnson managed to complete a final round of 68 to win by four shots - which was then altered to a 69 and three-shot victory after being assessed that penalty.

"I've had a lot of opportunites that I didn't quite get it done. So this one's definitely really sweet," said Johnson with a mixture of elation and relief after pocketing his first Major championship.

A stunning iron shot on the 18th helped him card a closing birdie and summed up the fact Johnson was just not going to be denied - even by the rules officials.

Perhaps Johnson was destined to win a Major championship this way, having had more than his fair share of close calls - starting when he let a three-shot lead at the 2010 US Open go after a horror start to the final round.

He also had a penalty assessed at the 2010 PGA Championship for grounding his club in one of Whistling Straits' unique bunkers, which cost him a place in a playoff.

And of course at the 2015 US Open he had a 12-foot putt on the last to win the title at Chambers Bay, only to three-putt and lose to Jordan Spieth by a shot.

Just 12 months later though he battled through a penalty issue to lift a fully deserved maiden Major victory.

2016 US OPen leaderboard

• -4 D Johnson
• -1 S Lowry
• -1 J Furyk
• -1 S Pirecy
• E S Garcia
• E B Grace
• +1 K Na
• +2 J Day
• +2 J Dufner
• +2 Z Johnson
• +2 D Summerhays

From dead last in Hong Kong seven days ago to top of the leaderboard at Sentosa Golf Club after a stunning 63 - it's been quite a turnaround for Dustin Johnson at LIV Golf Singapore.

Questions have been raised over how seriously Johnson has been taking his career on LIV Golf for a while now, but he has shown sporadic glimpses of his former self with a tournament win in each season so far.

This season though, Johnson started by finishing T44 and T31 before last week propping up the field in 54th and last as the only player over par in Hong Kong.

He did finish the tournament with a brilliant final round of 64 though, and he's now backed that up with a 63 in Singapore to go from worst to first and a three-shot lead.

Two-time Major champion Johnson insists he was not too concerned with finishing last in Hong Kong - as he explained that he was bothered by an injury that affected his swing.

"I actually had really good practice leading into Hong Kong, and then it felt like I was swinging real well," Johnson explained.

"Woke up Friday morning and I don't know if it was a rib out or something was in my right shoulder, and then I wasn't swinging really well on Friday and Saturday.

"Then kind of loosened up, and I swung a little bit better on Sunday. Then kind of obviously kept that going through this week. But yeah, nothing changed, other than I feel like I'm swinging a little better. Body is moving better.

"I couldn't turn my head to the right, so it was more - it kind of just pulled when I was on the through swing, so I was hitting everything left. It wasn't a whole lot of fun.

"Just worked on it on Friday afternoon, Saturday morning, Saturday afternoon, and then it finally kind of loosened up on Sunday."

Johnson certainly seemed loose in Singapore as he picked up eight birdies without a bogey to build a decent lead at Sentosa Golf Club.

Multiple Major champion Dustin Johnson has many strengths, but one of his greatest assets is being able to hit a very long ball - accurately. The American manages to create effortless power, which is something a lot of amateur golfers would love to be able to do. The good news is that you can copy several of his key moves to hit longer drives and find more fairways.

In this article, Golf Monthly Top 50 Coach Andrew Jones explains how Johnson is able to hit the ball such a long way, and how you can make some simple adjustments to your technique in order to add distance and improve your accuracy...

Dustin Johnson Driving Tips

Quick Tips For Long Drives

1. A wide stance creates a powerful base, helping you to generate resistance against the upper body.

2. The takeaway is crucial as it's here where you can create width in the backswing.

3. A complete shoulder turn helps with power.

4. The hips should have cleared by the time you reach the ball.

5. Do the basics well and a good, balanced follow through should follow.

1. Athletic Address

It might be the only static position in the golf swing, but you can clearly see just how athletic Dustin Johnson is from his address position. His stance is wide and his legs are strong – this creates a powerful base from which he can generate resistance against his upper body as he rotates into the backswing.

His ball position is in the classic left heel spot for a driver. This helps generate the correct launch angle and spin rate to optimise his club speed. Johnson also looks perfectly balanced, with only a slight drop of the right shoulder – his arms hang straight down in a fairly central position. Notice how he has a little tilt of the head to the right, something that assists him with his upper-body turn in the backswing.

2. 'Triangle' takeaway

As Johnson starts the takeaway, his arms and shoulders form a perfect triangle that he moves away from the ball. This creates incredible width in the backswing and ensures his weight shifts onto his right side without swaying away from the target; he keeps his left heel firmly planted and restricts the amount of knee and hip movement. This is the start of the resistance that is so crucial to generating impressive power.

3. Completing rotation

Here we see Johnson complete his upper-body rotation with a shoulder turn that is more than 90˚. This requires immense flexibility, especially when you consider his hips and legs are in a similar position to address. His hands are very high at the top and his left wrist is bowed so the clubface is facing up to the sky.

With the clubface ‘closed’, he is able to rotate aggressively with his body through the ball and hit it both long and straight without releasing the club. By eliminating the need for any clubface rotation, he has become one of the most consistent drivers in the game.

4. Clearing the hips

The speed Johnson rotates through the downswing not only delivers power but is also essential to his accuracy. Without the strong, speedy rotation of his torso back to the ball, his clubface would struggle to stay square, most likely closing down and resulting in pulls and hooks.

The picture above illustrates the point perfectly. His hips have cleared by the time the club reaches the ball, with his body rotation leading the arms towards impact, delivering the club square to the ball. His preferred fade off the tee is easily repeatable with this kind of action.

5. Balance

There is no doubt that Johnson’s work ethic in the gym helps him maintain the fitness levels and core strength required to sustain this incredible swing. The excellent balance and stability you see in the follow-through position is testament to this. He has completely unwound and delivered every last bit of energy efficiently and accurately through the swing.

Unless you are prepared to spend two hours a day in the gym with a personal trainer, his move is possibly not the one to copy. However, if you try and replicate some of his excellent set-up fundamentals and his great balance through the swing, you could add distance to your game.

Dustin Johnson has added European Ryder Cup player Thomas Pieters to his 4Aces GC team in the first of what is set to be many moves of the LIV Golf off-season.

Pieters joined LIV Golf in February 2023 and played for Bubba Watson's RangeGoats GC side in his first two seasons. The Belgian, who has six DP World Tour wins and won four points in his Ryder Cup debut in 2016, finished 33rd in his debut campaign and 30th in 2024.

The move means 4Aces GC currently has five players as RangeGoats did not receive a player in return.

The team currently features captain Dustin Johnson along with Patrick Reed, Harold Varner III and Pat Perez. Perez's contract is reportedly ending on Jan 1, 2025, so it remains to be seen whether he is kept on as the side's reserve player.

He could also find a new team, assume a wildcard spot or act as a reserve for the league, otherwise he would be dropped entirely.

“Happy to have Thomas on the team. He’s a great addition, great player and makes the team stronger. Really excited for next season," Johnson said, with Pieters commenting: "“I’m super-excited about playing for DJ and I look forward to push him as hard as I can.”

“I’m excited to welcome Thomas to the team,” 4Aces General Manager Chris Rosaasen said.

“He’s a solid player with multiple wins in his career. His Ryder Cup record shows he excels in team golf. He’s going to be a great fit for the 4Aces brand both on and off the course.”

4Aces won the 2022 Team Championship and topped the points list in 2023 before finishing 4th in the Team Championship. They fell to 10th in 2024, however, so Johnson will hope that Pieters can help the team climb back up the leaderboard next year.

Pieters leaves RangeGoatsGC with just two confirmed players for next season - Peter Uihlein and Matthew Wolff. The team's captain Bubba Watson was relegated from the league this year, although relegated players can be re-signed if there is a business case for keeping the player.

There will be plenty of moves before the 2025 season gets underway in February, with two new players set to join the league via the upcoming Promotions event and one possibly coming via the International Series rankings.

Tony Finau is currently being heavily linked with a move after YouTuber Mr Short Game Golf reported that he had sources telling him the six-time PGA Tour winner had joined, and rumors were ramped up after he was replaced in this week's Hero World Challenge field by Sepp Straka.

Nothing official has been confirmed, though, with Golf Monthly having contacted Finau's agent and awaiting response.

Dustin Johnson's LIV Golf team 4Aces GC has announced former TravisMathew CEO Chris Rosaasen as the side's new General Manager. 

Rosaasen, who is a long-time friend of Johnson, is also the founder of the team's apparel sponsor Extracurricular and has been CEO of the Omniverse Group for the past four years. 

He joins with more than 20 years of "brand-building, marketing, and business leadership" according to LIV Golf, which says his "record of innovation in the golf industry will strengthen and accelerate the growth of the 4Aces GC brand."

"I have known Chris for many years, witnessing firsthand how he has built multiple successful brands," Dustin Johnson said of the appointment.

“Chris's vision for the team aligns perfectly with what we aim to achieve, and I have full confidence in his ability to propel 4Aces GC to greatness.” 

"What excites me most is the opportunity to create a globally recognized franchise in golf,” said Rosaasen.

“Being at the forefront of innovation in the sports industry is an invaluable opportunity and I am looking forward to the challenge of doing something that has never been done before in golf.” 

He joins with a goal of building the team "into a recognized franchise with monumental value" and will work on creating "a unique and compelling brand identity" as well as captivating sponsors and building a global fan base. 

Other duties including being responsible for management of the team operations including front-office staffing, revenue, marketing, commercialization, and player recruitment.

The 4Aces won the inaugural season of LIV Golf and also finished 1st in the team points list in 2023 before finishing 4th in the season-ending Team Championship. They're currently 7th in the 13-team league after four tournaments of the 2024 season.

The side's four players are: Dustin Johnson (captain), Patrick Reed, Harold Varner III and Pat Perez.

Dustin Johnson's wife Paulina Gretzky says her family were subjected to "death threats" and other "awful, awful, awful things" after the professional golfer's move from the PGA Tour to the LIV Golf League.

Johnson was one of the PIF-backed circuit's first big-money movers when he signed for a reported $125 million back in June 2022. To this day, he remains one of its highest-profile signings.

In season one, episode five of the Netflix golf docuseries, 'Full Swing' - released in 2023 - Johnson revealed the reasons for his controversial decision, which ultimately came down to money and setting his family up for life while spending more time with them as a result of a reduced schedule.

"For me it was playing less, making more money. Pretty simple," Johnson explained.

"Someone offers anyone a job, doing the same thing they're already doing but less time at the office and they're gonna pay them more. Pretty sure you're gonna take it. And something's wrong with you if you didn't."

Meanwhile, Johnson's wife, Gretzky - who also appeared on the first season of 'Full Swing' - spoke in the 2024 release about what kind of effect the move had on her and the pair's family, both positive and initially negative.

Speaking to the Netflix cameras, the daughter of NHL legend, Wayne said: “There were people sending death threats and awful, awful, awful things. People were aggressive, that’s for sure, but that’s when I shut it down for a little bit and I was like ’I don’t need to look at this, everyone has an opinion on it and fine.'

“We have a little bit more time together now since things have changed a little, whereas before it was 'go go go.' We have more control now of how we do things.

"The old life we had, it was 'I had to take a back seat' but now it feels like we’re in the front of the plane together flying. It was the right move.”

Johnson certainly believes it was the correct decision, having earned north of $50 million in prize money since making the switch - including $4 million from his latest victory at LIV Las Vegas last month.

But what does the American think about those PGA Tour golfers who opted not to part with the relative security of the long-running circuit in favor of this brash new upstart?

Rory McIlroy was one of many who stated those players who stayed loyal should be compensated - however - Johnson, who was speaking in 2023, was far from in agreement with the Northern Irishman.

In response to the question "Do you think the PGA Tour owes anything to the guys who didn’t join LIV?", Johnson said: “No I don’t. The guys that went to LIV, we took a lot of criticism. You know, we’re the ones that took the risk so why should they be compensated? Obviously, if this merger comes along there’s gonna be a lot of guys that wishes they signed.

“I’ve played on the PGA Tour for a long time. Joining LIV, I knew I was gonna get s**t for it, you know, the die-hard PGA Tour fans, they were gonna be upset. But if I had to do it over again I’d make the same decision.

"We knew what we were signing up for. I’ve always said it was what I felt was the best decision for me and my family, and it was."

How To Watch LIV Golf Chicago live stream 2023

Sebastián Muñoz, who was one of five men sharing the lead after round one, now has the solo lead after his eight-under-par round on Saturday. He started his second round with three birdies before holing his second shot at the par-4 fifth hole from 123 yards for eagle in a  round which included only 21 putts. He made another eagle at the par-5 10th. Cam Smith is T29, Talor Gooch T6.

To make sure you miss none of the action, below are all the streaming and broadcast details on how to use a VPN to watch a LIV Golf Chicago live stream from wherever you are – including options to watch for free – as well as today's tee times and groups.

Talor Gooch was ahead in the individual standings for a large chunk of the season until he was overhauled by Cam Smith. Smith has won two of the last three LIV Golf tournaments and now has a 21pt lead over Gooch, and a 50pt one over third-placed man Patrick Reed.

In LIV Golf the top half of the finishers get points. The winner gets 40pts; 2nd place, 30pts; 3rd 24pts; right down to 21st to 24th who get a point each. So, in theory, nine men still have a statistical chance of winning the individual prize. But some of the nine require a whole series of results to go their way. For Smith, the route to seasonal glory is much clearer.

If Smith comes first or second in Chicago then it is only him or Gooch who can win. If Smith wins, Gooch must finish top 3 to retain an interest. If Smith comes second, then Gooch needs at least a top-9 finish.

If Smith comes third, then Reed retains a mathematical chance of finishing the season as top dog, so long as he wins in Chicago. A Smith third place will also mean that Gooch can still become Individual Champion so long as he finishes in the top 14.

Elsewhere in the field there will be interest the form of Brooks Koepka, the sole player from LIV appearing next week’s Ryder Cup. Only he and Robert MacIntyre, who is playing in the Open de France, are playing this week of the 24 Ryder Cup players.

Find out how to watch LIV Golf from anywhere, including all the details you need to watch a LIV Golf Chicago live stream, just below.

Watch LIV Golf Chicago: live stream in the UK

All times BST

Friday, September 22: 6.00pm-11.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, September 23: 6.00pm-11.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

Sunday, September 24: 6.00pm-11.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

The LIV Golf Plus streaming service is the place to watch the Saudi-backed venture. It's completely free – provided you're willing to hand over your name and email address. You can also download the LIV Golf Plus app for iOS, Android, Apple TV and FireTV. 

Travelling outside the UK? You will need to use a VPN to unblock LIV Golf Plus. We've tested dozens of VPNs and find ExpressVPN to be the most reliable. Details just below.

Watch from anywhere on the planet

Watch LIV Golf Chicago Live Stream from outside your country

There are loads of easy ways to watch LIV Golf in 2023, including free options in the US, UK and Australia. But what if you're on holiday, in a foreign country? Or maybe working overseas for a while?

Then you'll need a VPN (Virtual Private Network). This simple, legal piece of software lets you to set your location to the UK, US, Australia or almost anywhere else on the planet – and thus unblock your local live stream.

ExpressVPN is our favourite. It's incredibly easy to use – you just press 'Connect' and it does the rest – and hugely reliable. There's even a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can give it a whirl and see for yourself.

Watch LIV Golf Chicago: live stream in the US

All times EDT

Friday, September 22: 1.00pm-6.15pm ( LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, September 23: 1.00pm-6.15pm (LIV Golf Plus); 1pm-6pm (The CW / Fubo TV)

Sunday, September 24: 1.00pm-6.15pm (LIV Golf Plus); 1pm-6pm (The CW / Fubo TV)

LIV has signed a TV deal with the CW network in the United States. Friday's play will be shown only on the CW app, but the weekend action will be shown on Saturday and Sunday 1.00pm-6.00pm ET. The CW website and CW app are free to use, but they're only available when you're in the United States. To get around this geo-blocking we recommend taking a look at our top-rated golf VPN.

If you want to watch The CW live on your TV, you may need to sign up to a streaming service. Our top choice would be Fubo TV. Packages start from $74.99 a month, which isn't cheap, but new users get a 7-day free trial and there are no long contracts.

Finally, there's the option to watch free on LIV Golf Plus, which is now available to anyone Stateside.

Watch LIV Golf Chicago: live stream in Australia

All times AEST

Saturday, September 23: 3am-8.15am (7plus)

Sunday, September 24: 3am-8.15am (7plus)

Monday, September 25: 3am-8.15am (7plus)

Channel 9 and the 7plus streaming service have the rights to show all 14 LIV Golf events in Australia. That means Aussies can watch every shot of LIV Golf Chicago live and for free.

As ever, Aussies out of the country can access their favourite streaming service just as they would at home via ExpressVPN.

Watch LIV Golf Chicago live stream in Canada

All times EDT

Friday, September 22: 1pm-6.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, September 23: 1pm-6.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

Sunday, September 24: 1pm-6.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

In Canada, the LIV Golf rights belong to TVA Group, which means Canadians can watch the action live on Game TV. 

Prefer to watch online or on-demand? Head over to the LIV Golf Plus streaming service.

LIV Golf Chicago tee times and groups: Round 3

Leaders' groups, tee times (PDT/EDT/BST/AEST) and scores:

• 10.05am/1.05pm/6.05pm/3.05am T Gooch (-7), T Pieters (-8), A Ancer (-8)
• 10.05am/1.05pm/6.05pm/3.05am S Vincent (-6), M Leishman (-7), C Ortiz (-7)
• 10.16m/1.16pm/6.16pm/3.16am D Johnson (-8), A Lahiri (-10), S Muñoz (-13)

2023 LIV Golf calendar

• 20-22 October Trump National Doral, United States
• 3-5 November Royal Greens Golf Course, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Disclaimer

We recommend VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example

1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service) 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad

We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. 

Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing. 

How To Watch LIV Golf Bedminster live stream 2023

Cameron Smith extended his lead at the top of the leaderboard to four shots when he birdied three of his last four holes on Saturday for a four-under 67. Phil Mickelson and Dean Burmester are in second. Mickelson has yet to win on the LIV tour. His best finish this season is 15th, and he stands 44th in this season’s rankings. Bryson DeChambeau added another 73 to his opening round 73.

To make sure you miss none of the action, below are all the streaming and broadcast details on how to watch a LIV Golf Bedminster live stream from wherever you are – including options to watch for free – as well as today's tee times and groups.

Henrik Stenson returns to the scene of his debut in LIV Golf and his one and only victory on this tour so far. Having abandoned the Ryder Cup captaincy in favour of LIV Golf, his 11-under total of 202 was enough for him to win by two strokes from Dustin Johnson and Matthew Wolff.

Another with only one win on the LIV circuit is Bryson DeChambeau, who won last week at LIV Golf Greenbrier. His win was as headline-grabbing as Stenson’s had been, as DeChambeau became the seventh man in professional golf to card a 58. The LIV Tour became the sixth tour to have a round of 58 on it, after the PGA Tour, the Japanese Tour, where it has happened twice, the Korn Ferry Tour, European Challenge Tour and the Canadian Tour.

For DeChambeau, who even managed to get a bogey into his 58, it was a sign that his form continues to surge. Having finished on average in 26th over the first five events of the LIV season, he has top-10 finishes in four of the following five events.

This is the 11th event of LIV’s 14-tournament season, and the second of three events scheduled at a Trump-owned venue. This Tom Fazio design is from the penal school of golf architecture, with many forced carries. It hosted the US Women’s Open of 2017. It was due to host the PGA Championship in 2022, which would have made it the first Trump-owned course to host a men’s Major. But following the storming of the Capitol by Trump supporters, the PGA of America moved this tournament to Southern Hills Country Club.

Find out how to watch LIV Golf from anywhere, including all the details you need to watch a LIV Golf Bedminster live stream, just below.

Watch LIV Golf Bedminster live stream in the UK

All times BST

Friday, August 11: 6pm-11.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, August 12: 6pm-11.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

Sunday, August 13: 6pm-11.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

The LIV Golf Plus streaming service is the place to watch the Saudi-backed venture. It's completely free – provided you're willing to hand over your name and email address. You can also download the LIV Golf Plus app for iOS, Android, Apple TV and FireTV. 

Travelling outside the UK? You will need to use a VPN to unblock LIV Golf Plus. We've tested dozens of VPNs and find ExpressVPN to be the most reliable. Details just below.

Watch from anywhere on the planet

Watch LIV Golf Bedminster Live Stream from outside your country

There are loads of easy ways to watch LIV Golf in 2023, including free options in the US, UK and Australia. But what if you're on holiday, in a foreign country? Or maybe working overseas for a while?

Then you'll need a VPN (Virtual Private Network). This simple, legal piece of software lets you to set your location to the UK, US, Australia or almost anywhere else on the planet – and thus unblock your local live stream.

ExpressVPN is our favourite. It's incredibly easy to use – you just press 'Connect' and it does the rest – and hugely reliable. There's even a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can give it a whirl and see for yourself.

Watch LIV Golf Bedminster live stream in the US

All times EDT

Friday, August 11: 1pm-6.15pm ( LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, August 12: 1pm-6.15pm (LIV Golf Plus); 1pm-6pm (The CW / Fubo TV)

Sunday, August 13: 1pm-6.15pm (LIV Golf Plus); 1pm-6pm (The CW / Fubo TV)

LIV has signed a TV deal with the CW network in the United States. Friday's play will be shown only on the CW app, but the weekend action will be shown on Saturday and Sunday 1pm-6pm ET. The CW website and CW app are free to use, but they're only available in the United States. To get around this geo-blocking we recommend taking a look at our top-rated golf VPN.

If you want to watch The CW live on your TV, you may need to sign up to a streaming service. Our top choice would be Fubo TV. Packages start from $74.99 a month, which isn't cheap, but new users get a 7-day free trial and there are no long contracts.

Finally, there's the option to watch free on LIV Golf Plus, which is now available to anyone Stateside.

Watch LIV Golf Bedminster live stream in Australia

All times AEST

Saturday, August 11: 3am-8.15am (7plus)

Sunday, August 12: 3am-8.15am (7plus)

Sunday, August 13: 3am-8.15am (7plus)

Channel 9 and the 7plus streaming service have the rights to show all 14 LIV Golf events in Australia. That means Aussies can watch every shot of LIV Golf Bedminster live and for free.

As ever, Aussies out of the country can access their favourite streaming service just as they would at home via ExpressVPN.

Watch LIV Golf Bedminster live stream in Canada

All times EDT

Friday, August 11: 1pm-6.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, August 12: 1pm-6.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

Sunday, August 13: 1pm-6.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

In Canada, the LIV Golf rights belong to TVA Group, which means Canadians can watch the action live on Game TV. 

Prefer to watch online or on-demand? Head over to the LIV Golf Plus streaming service.

LIV Golf Bedminster tee times and groups: Round 3

Leaders' groups and tee times (PDT/EDT/BST/AEST)

• 10.05am/1.05pm/6.05pm/3.05am M Leishman (-2), J Kokrak (-2), B Grace (-3) 
• 10.05am/1.05pm/6.05pm/3.05am P Reed (-4), B Watson (-4), A Lahiri (-4)
• 10.16am/1.16pm/6.16pm/3.16am P Mickelson (-5), D Burmester (-5), C Smith (-9)

2023 LIV Golf calendar

• 22-24 September Rich Harvest Farms, Chicago, United States
• 20-22 October Trump National Doral, United States
• 3-5 November Royal Greens Golf Course, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Disclaimer

We recommend VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example

1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service) 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad

We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. 

Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing. 

How To Watch LIV Golf Greenbrier live stream 2023

First round leader Matthew Wolff has been joined at the top of the leaderboard after round two by David Puig. Wolff made a three-under 67 on Saturday; Puig 65. But the lowest round of the day was by Bryson DeChambeau, who shot 61, and he has leapt 22 places to T3. The final round has been brought forward by four hours due to anticipated bad weather later.

To make sure you miss none of the action, below are all the streaming and broadcast details on how to watch a LIV Golf Greenbrier live stream from wherever you are – including options to watch for free – as well as today's tee times.

The Greenbrier Classic was held at The Old White at The Greenbrier from 2010 to 2019. Danny Lee won it 2015 and Kevin Na and Joaquin Niemann won its final two editions, by which time it had been rebranded as A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier.

It could have been four future LIV-golfer winners, as Sebastian Munoz led after each of the first three rounds in 2017, with 61-67-68. However a final round 72 saw him fall to T3. Munoz’s 61 was not a record, as 59 has twice been made here. The course tends to yield low scores, and its tree-lined narrow fairways and smallish greens put a premium on accuracy rather than length.

Twenty-seven of the 48-man field have played in the Greenbrier Classic, many of them without a huge amount of success. Only Charles Howell III, Mat Jones, Pat Perez and Cameron Tringale, apart from the four already mentioned, have top-10 finishes here. Tringale is the most experienced, having played in all nine Greenbrier Classics. However, as he missed four cuts, Charles Howell III chalked up as many competitive rounds in his eight appearances as Tringale did in nine, with a T9 and a T30 Howell’s best results, and set against his own three missed cuts.

Talor Gooch, who is leading the LIV standings, is returning to a venue where he missed the cut in 2019 and came T21 in 2018.

Find out how to watch LIV Golf from anywhere, including all the details you need to watch a LIV Golf Greenbrier live stream, just below.

Watch LIV Golf Greenbrier live stream in the UK

All times BST

Friday, August 4: 6.15pm-11.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, August 5: 6.15pm-11.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

Sunday, August 6: 2pm-7.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

The LIV Golf Plus streaming service is the place to watch the Saudi-backed venture. It's completely free – provided you're willing to hand over your name and email address. You can also download the LIV Golf Plus app for iOS, Android, Apple TV and FireTV. 

Travelling outside the UK? You will need to use a VPN to unblock LIV Golf Plus. We've tested dozens of VPNs and find ExpressVPN to be the most reliable. Details just below.

Watch from anywhere on the planet

LIV Golf Greenbrier Live Stream: watch from outside your country

There are loads of easy ways to watch LIV Golf in 2023, including free options in the US, UK and Australia. But what if you're on holiday, in a foreign country? Or maybe working overseas for a while?

Then you'll need a VPN (Virtual Private Network). This simple, legal piece of software lets you to set your location to the UK, US, Australia or almost anywhere else on the planet – and thus unblock your local live stream.

ExpressVPN is our favourite. It's incredibly easy to use – you just press 'Connect' and it does the rest – and hugely reliable. There's even a 30 day money-back guarantee, so you can give it a whirl and see for yourself.

Watch LIV Golf Greenbrier live stream in the US

All times EDT

Friday, August 4: 1.15pm-6.15pm ( LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, August 5: 1.15pm-6.15pm (LIV Golf Plus); 1pm-6pm (The CW / Fubo TV)

Sunday, August 6: 9am-2.15pm (LIV Golf Plus); 1pm-6pm (The CW / Fubo TV)

LIV has signed a TV deal with the CW network in the United States. Friday's play will be shown only on the CW app, but the weekend action will be shown on Saturday and Sunday 1pm-6pm ET. The CW website and CW app are free to use, but they're only available in the United States. To get around this geo-blocking we recommend taking a look at our top-rated golf VPN.

If you want to watch The CW live on your TV, you may need to sign up to a streaming service. Our top choice would be Fubo TV. Packages start from $74.99 a month, which isn't cheap, but new users get a 7-day free trial and there are no long contracts.

Finally, there's the option to watch free on LIV Golf Plus, which is now available to anyone Stateside.

Watch LIV Golf Greenbrier live stream in Australia

All times AEST

Saturday, August 5: 3.15am-8.15am (7plus)

Sunday, August 6: 3.15am-8.15am (7plus)

Sunday, August 7: 11.05pm-4.15am (7plus)

Channel 9 and the 7plus streaming service have the rights to show all 14 LIV Golf events in Australia. That means Aussies can watch every shot of LIV Golf Greenbrier live and for free.

As ever, Aussies out of the country can access their favourite streaming service just as they would at home via ExpressVPN.

Watch LIV Golf Greenbrier live stream in Canada

All times EDT

Friday, August 4: 1.15pm-6.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, August 5: 1.15pm-6.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

Sunday, August 6: 9am-2.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

In Canada, the LIV Golf rights belong to TVA Group, which means Canadians can watch the action live on Game TV. 

Prefer to watch online or on-demand? Head over to the LIV Golf Plus streaming service.

LIV Golf Greenbrier tee times and groups: Round 3

Leaders' tee times, scores and groupings  (PDT/EDT/BST/AEST)

• 6.05am/9:05am/2.05pm/11.05pm on 1st tee B Steele (-10), T Gooch (-11), R Bland (-11)
• 6.05am/9:05am/2.05pm/11.05pm on 2nd tee B Grace (-10), M Pereira (-10), H Varner III (-10)
• 6.16am/9.16am/2.16pm/11.16pm on 1st tee B DeChambeau (-11), M Wolff (-12), D Puig (-12)

2023 LIV Golf calendar

• 11-13 August Trump National Bedminster, United States
• 22-24 September Rich Harvest Farms, Chicago, United States
• 20-22 October Trump National Doral, United States
• 3-5 November Royal Greens Golf Course, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Disclaimer

We recommend VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example

1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service) 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad

We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. 

Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing. 

Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland have produced some incredibly talented golfers through the years from Ryder Cup legends to World No.1s and multiple Major champions.

Similar to rugby, the island of Ireland is united when it comes to golf with both Republic of Ireland golfers and Northern Ireland golfers playing under the Golfing Union of Ireland at amateur level as well as in the Olympics.

Irish golfers have also produced some truly iconic moments in the game. So who are the best?

We have taken a look at 13 of them here, starting with modern great Rory McIlroy.

Best Irish Golfers Of All Time

Northern Ireland Golfers

Rory McIlroy

• Born: 1989
• Tour Wins: 37
• Majors: 4

McIlroy was tipped to be the next big thing as a youngster and he has delivered on that early promise in his career so far. Four Major titles, 24 PGA Tour wins, three FedEx Cups, four Race to Dubais and over 100 weeks as World No.1. He has played in six Ryder Cups for Europe, winning four times.

When his career is all said and done, he will go down as one of the greatest ever.

Darren Clarke

• Born: 1968
• Tour Wins: 21
• Majors: 1

A winner all over the world, Darren Clarke is considered to be one of Europe's great modern ball strikers. He famously won the 2011 Open Championship, where he saw off the challenges of Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson to win his only Major title.

He also played in five Ryder Cups and captained the Europeans in 2016. Clarke also won the 2022 Senior Open.

Fred Daly

• Born: 1911
• Tour Wins: 26
• Majors: 1

Fred Daly was the first player from either Northern Ireland or the Republic of Ireland to win a Major title and play in the Ryder Cup.

His Major win came at the 1947 Open Championship at Royal Liverpool and he also represented Great Britain that year too.

Graeme McDowell

• Born: 1979
• Tour Wins: 16
• Majors: 1

An 11-time winner on the European Tour, McDowell has several moments that have defined his superb career.

He won the 2010 US Open at Pebble Beach, holed a crucial birdie putt on the 16th hole at Celtic Manor at the 2010 Ryder Cup which would go on to help Europe secure victory, and he also once beat Tiger Woods in a playoff to win the 2010 Chevron World Challenge.

Ronan Rafferty

• Born: 1964
• Tour Wins: 14

Another multiple time European Tour winner, Rafferty's finest career moment came at the 1989 Ryder Cup in which he delivered a crucial singles point on Sunday. He beat Mark Calcavecchia 1-up to help Europe retain the Cup in a famous 14-all tie.

The Northern Irishman won seven European Tour titles including the 1989 Volvo Masters at Valderrama.

Republic of Ireland Golfers

Padraig Harrington

• Born: 1971
• Tour Wins: 37
• Majors: 3

Padraig Harrington is one of Ireland's greatest players thanks to a resume that includes two Open Championships, a PGA Championship, 15 European Tour wins and six Ryder Cups (four victories).

The Irishman also won the 2022 US Senior Open following his Ryder Cup captaincy in 2021. Harrington is known as one of the grittiest competitors on tour with one of the very best short games.

Joe Carr

• Born: 1922
• Amateur Wins: 3

Perhaps a lesser-known name compared to others on this list, Joe Carr has a strong case for being Ireland's greatest ever amateur.

He won three British Amateur titles, was a semi-finalist in 1961 for the US Amateur, and was the first Irishman to play in The Masters. He did so in 1967 and played the first two rounds at Augusta National with Jack Nicklaus.

Shane Lowry

• Born: 1987
• Tour Wins: 6
• Majors: 1

Lowry turned professional after winning the 2009 Irish Open as an amateur, and ten years later he would win his first Major title at the 2019 Open Championship, which was famously hosted at Royal Portrush. 

The popular Irishman won the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in 2015 and went on to win the 2022 BMW PGA Championship. He made his Ryder Cup debut in 2021, playing under good friend and European captain Padraig Harrington.

Christy O'Connor Senior

• Born: 1924
• Tour Wins: 65

During the 1950's and 60's, O'Connor Sr couldn't stay out of the winners circle as he eventually racked up 65 wins as a professional.

He also played in ten Ryder Cups, being on the winning side once in 1957.

He and Harry Bradshaw won the Canada Cup, now more commonly known as the World Cup of Golf, in 1958 for Ireland.

Harry Bradshaw

• Born: 1913
• Tour Wins: 18

Bradshaw won many times as a pro on the European circuit and in Ireland as well as the 1958 Canada Cup, but perhaps his most famous moment came in 1949 at The Open.

During the second round his ball came to rest near broken glass of a beer bottle but instead of getting relief he played it as it lied and dropped a shot at the hole. It would prove crucial as he tied with Bobby Locke after four rounds of regulation play and then lost in a playoff the next day.

Christy O'Connor Junior

• Born: 1948
• Tour Wins: 16

Another iconic O'Connor, Christy Junior is best known for beating Fred Couples at the 1989 Ryder Cup with his iconic 2-iron on the 18th hole at The Belfry.

He won four times on the European Tour, including the 1975 Irish Open and 1992 British Masters. He was also T3 at the 1985 Open.

Des Smyth

• Born: 1953
• Tour Wins: 26

A total of 22 years separated Smyth's first and last wins on the European Tour. His first came in 1979 and last came in 2001 which makes him one of three golfers to have won in four different decades. Mark McNulty and Lee Westwood are the others.

Smyth won eight times on the European Tour and five times on the European Senior Tour. He played for Europe twice in the Ryder Cup and had a best Major finish of T4 at the 1982 Open.

Eamonn Darcy

• Born: 1952
• Tour Wins: 16

Darcy's crowning achievement as a professional was beating Ben Crenshaw during the singles of the 1987 Ryder Cup which staved off the charging Americans.

He won four times on the European Tour, including the 1983 Spanish Open. His best Major finish of T5 came at the 1991 Open and he made four appearances for Europe in the Ryder Cup between 1975 and 1987.

Coming away from Whistling Straits the strong sentiment was that the United States had found their spine and not much was going to change in the next two years, particularly the result. This is how many of our minds work all through the game; someone wins a Major and we’re preparing ourselves for world domination and, a decade later on, we’re waiting for the next one.

Dustin Johnson came away from Whistling Straits with a perfect 5-0-0 record and, as the ‘old man’ of the team at 37, he appeared to have found his place in the team, racking up points with Collin Morikawa. If ever there was a foursomes team that could rely on one player to lace it 300-plus yards down the fairway and his partner to then knock it close it was these two.

It was as exhausting for the Europeans as it was predictable. He even left Wisconsin with the inaugural Nicklaus-Jacklin Award. The award ‘commemorates sportsmanship, teamwork and performance in the context of better decision-making’ which should be roughly translated as being the leading points scorer – Sergio Garcia was the European recipient. 

Even for much of last season where Johnson dominated the LIV Golf scene many suspected that he would still get a pick. This year there was a play-off win in Tulsa but, if you did want to get your nose in Zach Johnson’s trough, then you probably had to do it in the Majors. 

With the qualification set to conclude after the BMW Championship on August 20, and Captain Johnson set to round out his six picks after the Tour Championship, this week was a huge chance to stake a claim in some ways – not that Royal Liverpool in July bears much of a resemblance to Marco Simone in September. Johnson (D) finished this week at 13-over with only one player shooting worse than him on Friday after his 10-over 81. The Masters and PGA were both ordinary weeks, the US Open began with a 64 before tailing off. 

With the wealth of talent at the skipper’s disposal Johnson now looks to be surplus to requirements - for the record there are two more LIV events before the naming of the wildcards after the Tour Championship on August 27.

Talor Gooch has three LIV wins this season which could mean as much or as little as you believe in it. One of those came at Valderrama which certainly leaves a mark but, again, the depth of skills on the PGA Tour might count against him. His 2023 Major record was T34 at Augusta and blank weekends at the PGA and Royal Liverpool while a rule change meant that he missed the US Open. The jury is still out on his chances, another LIV win or a couple of high finishes might sway his chances but, given Zach Johnson won’t be attending any LIV events, you would probably side with him not making the trip to Rome.

Phil Mickelson's last dalliance with the Ryder Cup, a competition that he holds the American record (12) for appearances, was a misplaced pull off the 16th tee at Le Golf National and an immediate shaking of the hands with Francesco Molinari. Then he finished second at Augusta this year and Rome in September looked slightly more attainable, as quick as he appeared back in our thoughts, he then as quickly disappeared.  

Bryson DeChambeau didn’t lose a match at Whistling Straits but he won’t get a look in, likewise Patrick Reed who arrived in Paris with the potential to be one of the American cup greats and left it as maybe one of its biggest nuisances. Harris English and Patrick Berger were both part of Steve Stricker’s team in 2021 – the latter hasn’t played since last year’s US Open due to a back injury while English is now ‘out of the weeds’ from a hip injury but his play doesn’t merit a selection.

Then there’s Will Zalatoris, who underwent back surgery in April, and is yet to play a match – he will be 29 when the 2025 matches roll around at Bethpage. 

Finally, there’s Tony Finau from the 2021 team whose place remains up in the air assuming Justin Thomas will be on the plane. Finau won in Mexico in April, has done nothing in the Majors but should, with six picks, just about squeeze through. The sentiment is that total driving, so both distance and accuracy will be at a premium, so that should be a tick in the Finau box. 

It's going to be a fascinating month ahead.

The crucial 'no poaching' clause of the PGA Tour's framework deal with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) has been dropped in response to the US Justice Department's inquiry into the merger.

The landmark deal announced on June 6 did not have too many firm details in it, but one of the few - along with dropping all legal proceedings on both sides - was an agreement that neither side would try and poach players from the other.

The clause stated that the PGA Tour and LIV Golf would not "solicit or recruit any players who are members of the other tours" as the two parties looked to work together.

Greg Norman's LIV Golf made such a big splash in the golf world when investing Saudi's sovereign wealth into paying huge sign-on fees to Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka and other big names to take them away from the PGA Tour.

That led to a clause in the initial agreement between the PGA Tour and PIF that prohibited any more poaching of players by either side.

The New York Times reported that the Justice Department had already raised concerns about the language in the framework agreement, with antitrust experts also warning that it could break federal law on the integrity of labour markets.

Now, the 'no poaching' clause has been removed from the agreement, with the PGA Tour insisting the spirit of it will remain as both parties negotiate "in good faith" towards a final deal.

"The Framework Agreement sets the stage for an exciting future for professional golf that re-establishes competition at the highest levels of the sport and creates the biggest stage for everyone - players, sponsors, and fans," the PGA Tour told Sky Sports.

"Based on discussions with staff at the Department of Justice, we chose to remove specific language from the Framework Agreement.

"While we believe the language is lawful, we also consider it unnecessary in the spirit of cooperation and because all parties are negotiating in good faith."

PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan will return to work on Monday after illness with his main priority to work on the deal that will set-up a new for-profit company that will run the commercial and rights arms of the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf.

With just the bare bones of a deal though, it could still be on shaky ground as it is examined by both the US Justice Department and the US Senate - which released documents about suggested proposals for the future of golf.

One of which had Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy as LIV Golf captains - a suggestion the Northern Irishman responded to by saying he'd rather retire.

There's likely to be many other sticking points going forward for the two parties as they look to agree on a deal before the December 31 deadline set out in the initial agreement - although the two can agree to an extension.

Dustin Johnson is one of the most decorated players in the game, having won two Major championships, a FedEx Cup while also occupying the world No 1 spot for 64 consecutive weeks, the fifth longest run in the history of the sport. The 39-year-old, who joined up with LIV Golf last year, is widely regarded as one of the best golfers of his generation and is known for his power with the driver and consistency with his putter. And if you want to putt like the 2020 Masters champion, then why not follow his lead by using the Perfect Practice putting mat, which is on sale on Amazon for 37 percent off!

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World No.1 Scottie Scheffler admits he is concerned over the lack of detail about the proposed deal between golf's rival factions and worried at a recent high-level exit from the PGA Tour.

The PGA Tour and DP World Tour sent shockwaves through the game of golf last month by announcing a link up with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, which has bankrolled LIV Golf and temped recent Major winners away like Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Cameron Smith.

But Scheffler insists he and fellow players are still in the dark even after two PGA Tour officials gave evidence to a Senate subcommittee in Washington DC on Tuesday, which lasted almost three hours.

"I just think that yesterday we didn't really learn a whole lot again," Scheffler reflected. "As a player on Tour, we still don't really have a lot of clarity as to what's going on and that's a bit worrisome.

"They keep saying it's a player-run organisation but we don't really have the information that we need. I watched part of yesterday and didn't learn anything.

"It's just a framework agreement right now so I don't know what that entails. We are not involved in any of the discussions. None of the players were involved in the original framework agreement."

Players Championship winner Scheffler, 27, feels the five players who sit on the PGA Tour's policy board - Rory McIlroy, Patrick Cantlay, Charley Hoffman, Webb Simpson and Peter Malnati -  should have been consulted before the original agreement was revealed.

"We are the ones that voted to put them in that position to be there and we want their voices to be heard, and that was really the only frustration with the original announcement is that none of those four or five guys were involved at all," he added.

"I love playing golf on the PGA Tour and I'm hoping that's going to exist for a long time. I felt like we were doing a good job before and then the agreement happened and now we have to navigate the whole deal.”

Scheffler admits he was concerned to see Randall Stephenson, a former AT&T executive and PGA Tour policy board member since 2012, resign from his position because he "had serious concerns” with the deal.

He said: “It was a little bit concerning that someone like him wouldn't be on board. 

“We have players reps and we have other people that are on that advisory board, and any time we lose one of those members is definitely a bit concerning. Those guys are put in position for a reason, and for anyone to leave is tough for us. We'll see what happens.”

Scheffler is in Scotland preparing for Thursday’s Genesis Scottish Open at the Renaissance Club outside Edinburgh. 

He is looking to pick up his third win of the season after dismissing criticism of his putting, which has left him ranked 112th on tour with the flat stick.

He said: "If you're hitting the ball as good as I have been in the past year, it's very difficult to make all the putts. 

"I don't really get to choose what kind of putts I have.  As my putting struggles have continued in your minds, I've got back to No. 1 in the world and I've had a bunch of top five finishes. 

“Granted, if I can make a few more putts, those would have been more wins.

“But at the end of the day I'm proud of tournaments this year and playing solid golf, and that's what I'm working on.”

Greg Norman has confirmed a major late change to the LIV schedule this season which will see the finale move from Saudi Arabia to America. 

LIV Golf Jeddah, previously scheduled for November 3-5, will now take place from October 13-15 at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club.

It was previously meant to be the final event of the LIV season but the 2023 LIV Golf League team championship will now take place from October 20-22 once again at Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami. 

The iconic Blue Monster course will stage the seeded three-day tournament featuring both matchplay and strokeplay to determine the team champions, which will wrap up the season two weeks earlier than originally planned.

“We’re thrilled to return to the Blue Monster at Doral to celebrate a historic year and crown the 2023 LIV Golf League team champion,” confirmed LIV Golf CEO and Commissioner Norman. 

“The team concept has come to life this year in exciting new ways as our players and fans embrace the launch of team golf. 

"We’re building up for an action-packed weekend with headline entertainment that will put an exclamation point on another can’t-miss LIV Golf event.” 

Now LIV Golf Jeddah has effectively switch places with Doral which was originally scheduled to be the thirteenth and final tournament of the regular season.

That will now take place a month earlier in October in the Kingdom to determine the individual champion and the top three players receive bonuses. 

The final team standings following LIV Golf Jeddah will then determine seeds 1-12 for the team championship. 

After nine events, 4 Aces GC – featuring two-time Major winner Dustin Johnson, 2018 Masters champion Patrick Reed, Peter Uihlein and Pat Perez – top the team standings after winning in London on Sunday.

Torque GC, featuring Chilean stars Joaquin Niemann and Mito Pereira, Colombian Sebastian Muñoz, and Spanish rookie David Puig, are in second. 

RangeGoats GC, led by two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson and current individual standings leader Talor Gooch, trail closely behind in third.

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Cameron Smith managed to hold off his Ripper GC teammate, Marc Leishman and 4 Aces', Patrick Reed, with Smith carding a final round 68 to claim a second LIV Golf title and first trophy since the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship in November 2022.

The individual tournament had been exciting to watch, but it was also the team portion where attention was turned as 4 Aces GC, Ripper GC and Stinger GC battled it out. But, despite winning the individual portion, it was Smith who missed his final putt on the 18th, which meant his Rippers' side missed out to the 4 Aces by a single shot.

Beginning on Sunday, it was the Australian who held a three-shot lead over his fellow countryman Leishman. However, out the gate that advantage was reduced quickly, with players scoring well early on.

Smith, though, fired back and, going into the back nine, he had managed to recover his three shot lead from the start of the day. Soon though, Smith was joined by Reed who was making his typical Sunday charge, with the American carding six birdies in an eight hole run from the eighth to the 15th.

Reed was still a few shots back off Smith but, at the par 5 15th, the Australian opened the door slightly as he pulled his tee shot left into the trees. Luckily, his ball came to rest just to the right of them and, after parring both 15 and 16, he made a birdie at the par 3 17th to sit two shots clear with Reed playing the last.

If Reed had birdied the 18th then Smith may have been slightly more nervous but, after the American made par, it gave the Australian some breathing space, a good thing after he found the bunker with a wedge for his third shot. Although he splashed out to under six-feet, Smith couldn't convert, with his putt sliding just by on the right side.

Picking up the individual title, Smith's Ripper GC side, who he captains, missed out on a playoff with Dustin Johnson's 4 Aces. The American trio of Reed, Pat Perez and Johnson shot rounds of six, five and four-under to scoop yet another team title. 

In the Ripper GC camp, Leishman, Smith and Jed Morgan carded rounds of five, three and two-under, but their efforts weren't enough as they came up a shot shy. Along with the two teams, Stinger GC's Louis Oosthuizen, Dean Burmester and Branden Grace fired a seven-under round for a 29-under team total to finish five shots back of the 4 Aces.

It's the final Major of the year and the most historic in golf as the 151st Open Championship takes place at Royal Liverpool on July 20-23.

And it's also a final chance to see all of the best players in the world battling against each other as players from the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and LIV Golf will all compete at Hoylake.

There's still no Official World Golf Ranking points available for the 54-hole, shotgun start tournaments in the LIV Golf League, but with Major champions among their ranks and a host of top performers before the split in golf there will still be a decent group from LIV.

And the band of LIV contenders will be led of course by defending champion Cameron Smith, who joined Greg Norman's new tour shortly after lifting the Claret Jug at the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews last year.

Previous winners Phil Mickelson, Henrik Stenson and Louis Oosthuizen can play in the Open until they're 60, and they will be joined by fellow Major champions Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed.

Koepka has a fresh five-year exemption after winning this year's PGA Championship, while Johnson and DeChambeau are in the third year of their exemptions from winning the Masters and US Open respectively in 2020.

Reed is in the final year of his exemption from winning the 2018 Masters but could book a return next year with a top 10 finish at Hoylake.

Fellow LIV golfers Charl Schwartzel, Brandon Grace and Laurie Canter all secured their spot through Final Qualifying, taking the total number of LIV Golf players in the Open field to 16.

LIV Golfers who are in the Open Championship

• Abraham Ancer
• Brooks Koepka
• Bryson DeChambeau
• Cam Smith
• Dustin Johnson
• Henrik Stenson
• Joaquin Niemann
• Louis Oosthuzien
• Patrick Reed
• Phil Mickelson
• Richard Bland
• Talor Gooch
• Thomas Pieters
• Charl Schwartzel
• Brandon Grace
• Laurie Canter

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How To Watch LIV Golf London live stream 2023

Cameron Smith extended his first round lead of one shot into three shots going into the final round after carding a 67 that he described as “a good day of grinding. I really stuck in there today. But probably a little bit of work to do on the range.”

Best round of the day was 63 by Louis Oosthuizen who had five birdies and an eagle in his first 10 holes. He is now in a three-way tie for second with Marc Leishman and Thomas Pieters.

To make sure you miss none of the action, below are all the streaming and broadcast details on how to watch a LIV Golf London live stream from wherever you are, as well as today's tee times.

Perhaps it is just as well LIV Golf has been here before, for if you go to London expecting to find the Centurion Club... well you won’t. It is in Hertfordshire. London is not even the nearest city - that is St Albans. The course, which opened in 2013, was designed for professional tournaments. The week after LIV Golf has left town, the club hosts a Ladies European Tour sanctioned event.

Sergio Garcia, who played in that inaugural LIV event, described Centurion as “not an easy golf course. You have got to drive it well. It is very tight.” Dustin Johnson concurred: “The course demands quality golf shots, especially off the tee. You’ve got to hit a lot of different clubs and you’ve got to drive it well.”

Ian Poulter was born and raised in Hertfordshire, and started his golf career as assistant pro at a Hertfordshire course. He now has a home in neighbouring Buckinghamshire and says he “might take the opportunity to stay at home for the week and sleep in my own bed.” However his best result this season was last week’s 12th place at Valderrama, so it is unlikely the trophy will be adorning his Milton Keynes mantlepiece.

He is one of five English golfers in the field, but any home country winner looks unlikely. The best-performing of them is Paul Casey, but he is 30th in this season’s standings. Between them, the five have managed one top-10 finish all year.

Make sure you know how to watch LIV Golf from anywhere including all the details on the LIV Golf London live stream just below.

UK TV Schedule – Watch LIV Golf London live stream

All times BST

Friday, July 7: 2.15pm-7.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, July 8: 2.15pm-7.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

Sunday, July 9: 2.05pm-7.15pm (LIV Golf Plus)

The LIV Golf Plus streaming service is the place to watch the Saudi-backed venture. It's completely free – provided you're willing to hand over your name and email address. You can also download the LIV Golf Plus app for iOS, Android, Apple TV and FireTV. 

Travelling outside the UK? You will need to use a VPN to unblock LIV Golf Plus. We've tested dozens of VPNs and find ExpressVPN to be the most reliable. Details just below.

Watch from anywhere on the planet

LIV Golf London Live Stream: watch from outside your country

There are loads of easy ways to watch LIV Golf in 2023, including free options in the US, UK and Australia. But what if you're on holiday, in a foreign country? Or maybe working overseas for a while?

Then you'll need a VPN (Virtual Private Network). This simple, legal piece of software lets you to set your location to the UK, US, Australia or almost anywhere else on the planet – and thus unblock your local live stream.

ExpressVPN is our favourite. It's incredibly easy to use – you just press 'Connect' and it does the rest – and hugely reliable. There's even a 30 day money-back guarantee, so you can give it a whirl and see for yourself.

US TV Schedule – Watch LIV Golf London live stream

All times EDT

Friday, July 7: 9.15am-2.15pm ( LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, July 8: 9.15am-2.15pm (LIV Golf Plus); 1pm-6pm (The CW / Fubo TV)

Sunday, July 9: 9.05am-2.15pm (LIV Golf Plus); 1pm-6pm (The CW / Fubo TV)

LIV has signed a TV deal with The CW network in the United States. Friday's play will be shown only on the CW app, but the weekend action will be shown on Saturday and Sunday 1pm-6pm ET.  The CW website and CW app are free to use, but they're only available in the United States. To get around this geo-blocking we recommend taking a look at our top-rated golf VPN.

If you want to watch The CW live on your TV, you may need to sign up to a streaming service. Our top choice would be Fubo TV. Packages start from $74.99 a month, which isn't cheap, but new users get a 7-day free trial and there are no long contracts.

Finally, there's the option to watch free on LIV Golf Plus, which is now available to anyone State-side.

Aus TV Schedule - Watch LIV Golf London live stream

All times AEST

Friday, July 7: 11.15pm-4.15am (7plus)

Saturday, July 8: 11.15pm-4.15am (7plus)

Sunday, July 9: 11.05pm-4.15am (7plus)

Channel 9 and the 7plus streaming service have the rights to show all 14 LIV Golf events in Australia. That means Aussies can watch every shot of LIV Golf London live and for free.

As ever, Aussies out of the country can access their favourite streaming service just like they would at home via ExpressVPN.

Canada TV Schedule - Watch LIV Golf London live stream

All times EDT

Friday, July 7: 9.15am-2.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

Saturday, July 8: 9.15am-2.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

Sunday, July 9: 9.05am-2.15pm (Game TV / LIV Golf Plus)

In Canada, the LIV Golf rights belong to TVA Group, which means Canadians can watch the action live on Game TV. 

Prefer to watch online or on-demand? Head over to the LIV Golf Plus streaming service.

LIV Golf London tee times and pairings: Round 3

Leading players’ tee times (PDT/EDT/BST/AEST), scores and hole on which they start:

• 6.05am/8.05am/2.05pm/11.05pm on 3rd hole Chase Koepka (-6), Dustin Johnson (-6), Kevin Na (-6)
• 6.05am/8.05am/2.05pm/11.05pm on 1st hole Henrik Stenson (-7), Patrick Reed (-8), Louis Oosthuizen (-9)
• 6.16am/8.16am/2.16pm/11.16pm on 1st hole Marc Leishman (-9), Thomas Pieters (-9), Cameron Smith (-12)

2023 LIV Golf calendar

• 4-6 August Old White Golf Course, Greenbrier, United States
• 11-13 August Trump National Bedminster, United States
• 22-24 September Rich Harvest Farms, Chicago, United States
• 20-22 October Trump National Doral, United States
• 3-5 November Royal Greens Golf Course, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Disclaimer

We recommend VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example

1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service) 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad

We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. 

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Time flies when you’re having fun and winning lots of money. It doesn’t seem that long ago since the controversial LIV Golf teed off in Hemel Hempstead, and here we are once again at Centurion, where Charl Schwartzel pocketed an eye-watering $4.75m a little over 12 months ago.

The South African and his fellow Stinger GC team members have been speaking ahead of LIV Golf London, and the former Masters champion casted his mind back to last year’s opener, one that proved particularly healthy for his bank balance.

Asked for his thoughts on scooping such a huge prize, Schwartzel replied: “At this stage coming in, trying to win a tournament, I wasn't thinking of the money. But then when everything sinks in afterwards and you're celebrating with the guys and you start thinking, wow, that was a lot of money I just won.”

Schwartzel won the 2011 Masters and with it a cheque for just shy of $1.5m. The prize money on LIV Golf, however, dwarfs those seen in other other professional Tour events around the world. In fact, not including his signing on fee, Dustin Johnson has already banked over $40m in LIV Golf prize money.

“Everything we do in life is for money, too,” said Schwartzel, who also described his huge payday as “surreal”. “People say they do it for the love; we do it for the love because we love playing the game, but you also do it to support your family. You want to make money.”

LIV Golf players have had their competitiveness questioned over the last 12 months, many suggesting that they would no longer be sharp enough to compete at Major Championships. Schwartzel, who has qualified for this month’s Open at Royal Liverpool, doesn’t agree.

“I think what you see out here is guys, because we play less tournaments, and then obviously less holes, 54 holes, guys still come out on a Monday night, and it seems like preparation now is a little bit more prepared for the tournaments than what we were when we played more golf and more holes.

“Guys come and spend more time. I think their games are sharp when they do start the tournaments, and I think we can see why the scores that are being shot, the guys are playing really good out here. What it does is it's broken up nicely for us so you can stay sharp.”

“We saw Brooks [Koepka] obviously win the PGA, and a lot of the LIV guys have done pretty good. The guys are staying sharp, so I think playing out here definitely doesn't give you a disadvantage in playing Major tournaments.”

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Team USA Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson says nothing has changed in terms of LIV Golf players "technically" still being eligible to be selected for his team - while praising Brooks Koepka's "extremely impressive" bid to qualify.

Although LIV Golf players were suspended from the PGA Tour, their membership of the PGA of America remained and therefore they've always been eligible to qualify for the Ryder Cup.

The new peace deal between the PGA Tour and Saudi Public Investment Fund does not change things as far as Johnson is concerned.

Koepka looks certain to qualify but the likes of Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Talor Gooch and even Patrick Reed must stand a better chance of getting captain's picks if the PGA Tour is not at war with LIV.

And Johnson says that nothing has changed as far as he's concerned, saying that LIV players are still eligible for selection.

"These guys that left the PGA Tour that had status and left to play on that other tour, the LIV Tour, they're still members of the PGA of America, so they are still able to garner points," said Johnson at the John Deere Classic.

"They're able to play in the PGA Championship as a result because that's what the PGA of America runs. Obviously, technically, can still be a part of Team USA."

As for what this new deal will look like, Johnson is as much in the dark as the rest of the golfing world - but still sees it as a PGA Tour issue and nothing to do with Ryder Cup qualification.

"What's transpired, there's still a lot of unknowns," he added. "I think we have a pretty good idea as to what the intentions and motivations are for the PGA Tour.

"But when it comes to the Ryder Cup, our system, if you will, was already intact arguably last year even when we decided as a Ryder Cup committee as to how we wanted to navigate the landscape.

"My point in saying that is that what's transpiring in professional golf from a competitive level, competition level, is PGA Tour; right? It's not PGA of America. 

"So the individuals that are Americans that play on other tours that are not the PGA Tour, they could play, I mean, technically the Latin Tour or the Asian Tour or wherever. 

"More times than not they're going to be members of the PGA of America for a number of reasons."

'Extremely impressive' Koepka close to qualifying

Johnson has previously said he doesn't watch LIV Golf so perhaps their players may struggle to get in his thinking for wildcard picks.

Koepka, though, has powered up the USA Ryder Cup standings with his Major performances - looking a nailed-on qualifier now after finishing second at the Masters then winning the PGA Championship.

"Brooks is third on the list. The top six earn their berth after the BMW," said Johnson.

"So after that Sunday the top six are solidified, and then we make our six picks. The next week is the Tour Championship. The Tuesday after the Tour Championship is when I make the picks.

"We'll formulate 12 by then, but he has worked his way - he worked his way to second after the PGA Championship because of how well he played at the Masters and at the PGA Championship. The Majors kind of last year too, but they were smaller in points.

"He is third now after Wyndham Clark has had a nice little run. He has a really good chance of making the team, earning his way on the team, which is extremely impressive."

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Talor Gooch's prolific winning form in the LIV Golf League should be enough to "definitely" make the USA Ryder Cup team, according to Bubba Watson.

Two-time Masters champion Watson is Gooch's team captain with the Range Goats in LIV Golf, and he believes his fellow American is playing well enough to get one of Zach Johnson's six picks for Rome.

Gooch is the only three-time LIV Golf tournament winner after claiming the trophy at Valderrama last week, and is again among the favourites for this week's event at Centurion.

The 31-year-old is being talked about as a possible Ryder Cup rookie for America, and Watson says that alongside the resurgent Rickie Fowler, Gooch should be a captain's pick.

"Well, he has to be - gosh, I don't know where Rickie Fowler is on the Ryder Cup standings, but he's got to be up there, too," Watson said of Gooch.

"But I would have to say those two have been the impressive ones the last few weeks, just their high finishes and how they've been playing pretty much all year. 

"If they're not already - if Rickie is not already in in points, he's definitely getting a pick, and Talor should definitely get a pick. He's playing that well, and he plays really good outside the US."

Watson added that Gooch is very much a quiet man on his team, and just enjoys having his family with him while out playing golf.

"You know what, he's so quiet, he's so to himself. But having his family travel with him, being able to spend a lot of time with his family, being able to spend time with his young one, his in-laws, he's just down to earth, and he's just focused on the next shot," Watson added. "He's just been grinding out.

"Solid player, we've all known that, and for him to quietly jump ship out of nowhere to come over here because he loves team golf, it was cool to see."

Due to LIV Golf not receiving ranking points and Gooch not playing in PGA Tour events, he won't qualify through the USA Ryder Cup standings.

Like Brooks Koepka, who seems certain to qualify, and Dustin Johnson, who will be a big candidate for a pick, LIV players remain eligible for Ryder Cup selection.

For Gooch himself, he just wants to keep playing well to press his claims to be on the plane to Marco Simone Golf Club in September.

“The better I play, the more that is just going to be a discussion hopefully,” Gooch said after winning in Spain. 

"I’ve got to go win, and I’ve got to go prove that I’m worthy of having a discussion about.”

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Dustin Johnson is known for being one of the best ball strikers on the planet, with the American claiming multiple professional titles over a number of decades and Tours. However, at LIV Golf Andalucia, we saw something which we aren't used to seeing, as Johnson in fact shanked his second shot at the par 5 17th!

Starting the second round on Saturday, Johnson was in a share of the lead with Jason Kokrak but, after bogeying the opening hole, a run of pars would lead to yet another bogey at the sixth which put him two-over for his round.

Throughout the day, it was clear that Johnson had been struggling slightly with his long game, with DJ heading straight to the range following the conclusion of his round. It was the putter that had saved him on multiple occasions at Valderrama and, after holing a birdie putt at the par 4 eighth, he somehow turned in one-over-par.

Another birdie followed at the par 5 11th, but yet another bogey at the 13th put him back to level. DJ wasn't giving up though and, following a birdie at the 16th, he found the fairway safely at the iconic par 5 17th. Then though, came the relatable moment that even a club golfer would be smirking about.

Striking a 7-iron, the ball hit the hosel of the club and headed straight right into the spectators at the side of the hole. Luckily, for the 39-year-old, his golf ball finished just shy of the shrubbery surrounding the course and, as a result, he was able to play a third with no real issue.

The American, though, failed to find the green but that didn't really matter as he then struck a putt that never left the hole, eventually dropping for a birdie that even caused Johnson to give out a rare smile.

Although he would go on to bogey the final hole, a level-par round of 70 was certainly a good score considering the ball-striking from DJ. Sitting at four-under for the tournament, he is five shots back of Crushers GC Captain, Bryson DeChambeau, who fired an incredible round of 63 to sit one shot ahead of Talor Gooch.

Martin Kaymer says LIV Golf players should be allowed to play in the Ryder Cup in the future, but admitted Europe shouldn’t make a late change for this year as “there’s too much chaos anyway” in the current men’s game.

The PGA Tour and Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) may have agreed a deal to try and bring men’s golf back together again, but for now Ryder Cup qualification remains a headache.

European captain Luke Donald is moving forward towards Rome without any LIV Golf involvement – meaning the likes of Kaymer, Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood will play no part on or off the course at Marco Simone later this year.

The waters are a bit muddier for Zach Johnson with Brooks Koepka looking nailed-on to finish in the automatic qualifying spots in the Team USA Ryder Cup standings, while Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau and even Patrick Reed could press their cases with strong showings at the Open next month.

And Kaymer, forever written into Ryder Cup folklore as the man who finished off the Miracle of Medinah in 2012, would like to see LIV Golf players included in future events – even though for this year at least there’s “too much chaos” to change European plans this late in the day.

“I think this year nothing should change, if you ask me. There’s too much chaos anyway, obviously the US team is their own thing,” said Kaymer.

“But, going forward, it would be nice for the golf fans and us players who want to play against the best players from both continents and I think it shouldn’t matter where you play, whether it is LIV, DP World, PGA Tour.”

Kaymer wants golfers from all tours to be eligible for future Ryder Cup, but accepts it’s too late to change things for Europe now – which includes quashing any talk of Henrik Stenson being included after the Swede lost the captaincy after switching to LIV.

“Wherever you play, you should be eligible for the Ryder Cup if you’re good enough,” Kaymer added. “This year it should stay the way it is because imagine the chaos that would come out if Henrik Stenson was being picked! 

“For the future I think the fans want to see the best players competing and that would be my way forward.”

McDowell hopeful of Ryder Cup return

McDowell, another man to grab the winning point in the Ryder Cup as he completed the 2010 success at Celtic Manor, agrees with Kaymer about the best players qualifying regardless of where they play.

And although he's not playing well enough right now, he thinks he could play his way back into future Ryder Cups.

"I’m not playing well enough to be considered for the 12 places," said McDowell. "Do I believe I can play in the future? Yes, I believe I’m good enough to be out there. 

"Would I like to be in Rome to help Luke Donald out? Of course I would love to be there. There’s too much water under the bridge regarding the prep which Luke and his backroom staff have done and we wish them well. 

"Do I think there are any players on LIV good enough to play on the European Ryder Cup team? Yes, I do think there are a couple of guys and we’ll have to see how it all shakes out. 

"I think it should be the 12 best European players against the 12 best US players. In the end, it doesn’t matter where they play.”

Martin Kaymer “would love” to return to playing on the DP World Tour in the future if he is allowed to compete alongside playing in LIV – with Graeme McDowell echoing his sentiments of wanting to support events in his home country.

The former World No.1 says LIV Golf is still his priority, but would like to return to European golf “here and there”, most notably back home in Germany.

McDowell would also like to be able to compete back in both Europe and also at the PGA Tour in his favourite events – saying he’d like to play in the Irish Open.

Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson don't seem in any rush to return to the PGA Tour, but a couple of European stalwarts have a different opinion.

For two-time Major champion Kaymer, he would relish the chance to return to action on the DP World Tour – which does seem far more possible after the huge agreement between the PGA Tour and Saudi Public Investment Funds (PIF) seemingly brought the golfing factions closer together.

Just how that works out remains to be seen, but 38-year-old Kaymer – with eight DP World Tour victories to go along with two Majors and a WGC – is certainly keen to return, even if not full-time.

“I would love to play on the European Tour,” said Kaymer. “I had great success there, I have good friends out there, I have very good relationships with the guys. 

“I enjoyed the tournaments that they played and I believe that the Tour can be one of the strongest, especially with all the venues that they can provide in Europe. 

“So, once we have the possibility to play in Europe again, I would like to support the few events here and there because I enjoy playing them but, on the other hand, my commitments are towards the LIV Tour. 

“This is my priority, this is what I wanted to do, this is what I want for the future, but I hope we find some common ground and we have more possibilities. 

“In my case, last week I would loved to have played in Germany and I would love to have played in my home country again. If that’s a possibility in the future then that would be nice.”

G-Mac wants to support Irish Open

McDowell would also like to play in selected events in Europe and America if given the opportunity, with the 2010 US Open champion ideally wanting to support the Irish Open.

The 43-year-old, who also hopes to return to the Ryder Cup after the merger is completed, wants to supplement his LIV schedule to stay sharp. 

“My priority right now is the LIV Tour,” said McDowell. “But moving into the future, having no idea what it looks like, would I love the opportunity to support PGA Tour events and European Tour events that I care about and have relationships with via my sponsors, ones that we care about, the Irish Open for me? 

“Will I have the chance to play the Irish Open in September? Probably doubtful the way it’s going. In the short term, I would love to be there and support, there’s no doubt. 

“I think 14 events a year is a lot of golf, but to stay sharp, and I’ve always played between 20-30 events a year, so I’ve always wanted to supplement my LIV schedule with other events to stay sharp and to compete, so I would welcome that opportunity and I hope one day we get there.”

Despite players being keen, there are still far more questions than answers about the mechanism for LIV Golf, the PGA Tour and DP World Tour to all co-exist together in a new era of men’s professional golf.

LIV Golf's Martin Kaymer says there has been no shortage of interest in players wishing to join the circuit since the Saudi Public Investment Fund that finances it agreed a merger with the PGA Tour DP World Tour.

Ever since the announcement of the deal, there have been questions as to whether LIV Golf has a future, with six-time Major winner Nick Faldo thinking its days are numbered and Jimmy Dunne, who helped broker the deal, claiming that PGA Tour CEO Jay Monahan can disband the circuit if he wants to.

Those suggestions have been refuted in some quarters, including from Phil Mickelson, while it’s been business as usual for LIV Golf in the build-up to this week’s tournament at Valderrama in Spain, with one of its teams, Majesticks GC, announcing a sponsorship deal earlier in the month.

While the golf world awaits clarity on how the future of the elite game will play out, Kaymer says there was interest from DP World Tour players keen on joining the circuit from the day of the announcement.

“That evening I got six messages from six different players on the DP World Tour wondering if there was a future for them on LIV,” Kaymer said. “I think you will be surprised how many players want to play all different Tours.”

Kaymer doesn’t think that would be a bad outcome, either, adding: “This will be great for the game of golf if we have all opportunities, PGA Tour, DP World Tour can play LIV events. I don’t know how that will work and don’t know all the details and vice versa because, ultimately, I think this is what the golf fans want and want it to happen.”

Several players have already committed their futures to LIV Golf, and may yet be able to return to the PGA Tour should they wish, depending on how the merger shakes out.

Despite that, Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson have said they have no plans to return to the PGA Tour, and neither does Mickelson, who described the player experience on LIV Golf as “incredible.” 

Sergio Garcia is another who has expressed reservations on rejoining the Tour, while Kaymer - along with his Cleeks GC teammate Graeme McDowell - also appears settled.

“I think you can only speak for yourself, and me and G-Mac are very happy where we are and we’re very happy when that merger came out because I think it was proof that we definitely made the right decision,” Kaymer said.

“Some people said it was risky and you don’t know what you are going to get into, but these days, in life, you just never know and you’ve got to go by trust and, after all, with the way things are shaping, it’s pretty good.”

Keegan Bradley says he’s “still got a lot to show the captain” after his home victory at the Travelers Championship catapulted him right into the thick of the race for the automatic spots in the Team USA Ryder Cup standings.

Bradley’s second win of the wraparound PGA Tour season vaulted him up 13 places in the Ryder Cup standings into seventh place – just one outside of the top six that get automatic places on Zach Johnson’s team for Rome.

The 37-year-old also rose up into No.18 in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), which is his highest mark since 2014 – the year he made his second Ryder Cup appearance in his last outing for Team USA in any team event.

And Bradley is determined to get back onto Team USA as they look to win on European soil for the first time in 30 years – turning his attention to it immediately after his Travelers win.

"It is the first thing I said to my wife walking up to sign my card: This is a pretty big step towards (Ryder Cup qualification)," said Bradley after winning the Travelers.

"I'm 37 years old. I hope to play in multiple more. I don't know how many more with everybody so good and the younger kids, just the team is incredible."

The 2011 PGA Championship winner’s resurgence offers Johnson yet another option, but in a way adds to his selection headache with so many players pushing for inclusion.

Johnson already has the LIV Golf scenario to deal with – Brooks Koepka looks pretty safe in the third automatic spot, with a strong finish at the Open probably tying up his place, while Scottie Scheffler and Wyndham Clark also look locked in.

It’s a scramble for the other three automatic spots though and the six captain’s picks could be tricky with Dustin Johnson wanting to play and having that brilliant perfect record at Whistling Straits in 2021 – he’d be tough to leave out.

You could also throw in Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed from LIV Golf, while among those currently outside of the automatic spots are Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Rickie Fowler, Tony Finau, Cameron Young and Sam Burns.

Bradley wouldn’t have been too high up on Johnson’s list for wildcards, but if he continues his form and manages to qualify or just falls short, he’ll have to also be thrown into what is a crowded mix for places.

Bradley has had mixed experiences in his two Ryder Cups, making a huge splash in 2012 despite the Americans suffering that huge upset defeat in the Miracle of Medinah comeback by Europe.

A splendid partnership with Phil Mickelson saw them win all three of their matches, before Bradley lost to Rory McIlroy in that epic Sunday singles.

Qualifying for 2012, Bradley was then a wildcard pick for captain Tom Watson at Gleneagles in 2014, where he went 1-2 and lost the decisive singles match against Jamie Donaldson – so he’ll be keen to get back in the side to put that record straight.

Sergio Garcia says Valderrama deserves to stage this week’s LIV Golf League event, calling it “the best field they’ve ever had” while voicing his disappointment that the DP World Tour failed to deliver such star names to his favourite course.

Garcia is a three-time Andalucia Masters champion at Valderrama – where he has 14 top 10 finishes in 15 appearances at what he says is his favourite golf course in the world.

That Andalucia Masters was part of a long-running deal with the DP World Tour that Valderrama has ended after becoming frustrated with the quality of the field for events being held there.

And Garcia voiced those same frustrations after saying his favourite track is getting the field it deserves when hosting the LIV Golf League this week.

“This is my favourite golf course and one of the best golf courses in the world in my opinion,” said Garcia. “It’s No.1 for me, and obviously it suits me if you look at my stats here.

“Now we’re going to have the kind of field that they’ve never had at Valderrama and the kind of field they deserve. I love that Valderrama is finally getting the chance to have the kind of field that it deserves.

“For too many years, unfortunately, the DP World Tour has been promising me and other Spanish players that have been involved in the tournament playing there, and the course itself, that the field was going to get better, more great players were going to come and play and it never happened.

“I think Valderrama deserves a lot more than that. It’s just 48 players but it’s going to be the best field they’ve ever had and that makes me very proud because that’s my favourite golf course.” 

Valderrama's general manager Javier Reviriego says it was not easy to cut ties with the DP World Tour after an association of about 25 years, but felt that bringing big names like Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson to the course was of more benefit.

"It was not an easy decision, obviously," said Reviriego. "We have a partnership for many years, 25 years, I think, of partnership.

"But when we evaluated the progress of our previous event, we considered that it was not what we wanted. I'm not blaming anyone. I'm not blaming the European Tour. I'm just saying that our expectations of growth of the event when we started (were higher). 

"It's just that we're not happy. When the possibility and the discussions started with LIV, we saw a potential opportunity to host an event with top talent, top players, to host an event with quality. 

"We saw an opportunity to host a world-class tournament, and that's what we wanted. It's as simple as that.

"It's not easy because it was a long-time partnership before. But looking back now, especially with the news of the last few weeks, I feel pretty confident. I'm pretty happy that we made the decision."

Big names at Valderrama

Garcia is likely talking about the Andalucia Masters specifically when stating it's the best field ever at Valderrama - with many pointing to the two WGC events staged at the course in 1999 and 2000.

The WGC-American Express Championship attracted the very best players at the time over to Spain, with Mickelson joining headliner Tiger Woods and a host of stars.

Garcia himself played in the events with the likes of Darren Clarke, Retief Goosen, Vijay Singh, Davis Love III, Ernie Els, Stewart Cink, Bernhard Langer, Jim Furyk, Jose Maria Olazabal, Justin Leonard, Nick Price, Colin Montgomerie and David Toms.

Woods won the first event in 1999 in a playoff against Miguel Angel Jimenez after triple-bogeying the 17th to help throw away a four-shot lead, while Canadian Mike Weir won in 2000 before going on to win the Masters three years later.

Apart from those events though, and the first ever Ryder Cup to be held on mainland Europe, Valderrama has had some lean times in terms of big names.

Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson say they have no desire to return to the PGA Tour even if allowed under the big merger - saying LIV Golf will only get bigger and better.

The future of LIV Golf and the possible reintegration of their players back onto the PGA Tour are two of the biggest questions to answer after Jay Monahan's decision to team up with Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) boss Yasir Al-Rumayyan.

Johnson insists he's happy to stay with LIV Golf, which he says will get better as a result of a deal between the PGA Tour and PIF - and certainly doesn't want to play more golf.

"I'm excited for the future," said Johnson ahead of the LIV Golf tournament at Valderrama. 

"I think with this agreement, the only thing that's going to happen is LIV is going to get even better than what it is now, which it's already great. I'm happy exactly where I am, and I'm definitely not looking to play more golf than I'm playing now, that's for sure."

Koepka was not quite as fully committed as Johnson as he takes a more wait and see approach, but he's also happy where he is at the moment.

"I've been pretty happy with my decision to be here at LIV," said Koepka. "I've enjoyed it. 

"I'm not going to speak for everybody else, but I would say everybody is pretty excited, and everybody is pretty happy with where they're at right now. 

"It's tough to look into the future and say - I don't have any control over what other guys do, but I know I'm happy where I'm at right now, and just take it one day at a time."

LIV schedule 'definitely helped' Major prep

Both Americans are also in agreement when it comes to their scheduling at LIV Golf, which they believe helps when it comes to preparing for Majors.

Although Johnson says he's playing about the same amount of tournaments as he has done for about the last seven years - he says the schedule has been good for Majors this year.

"For me, there hasn't really been much of a difference," said Johnson. "I've played about the same amount of tournaments I think the last seven or eight years. 

"The schedule has been pretty good. We've had some breaks. There's been some stretches where we've played a lot, but we've also had some nice breaks, too.

"We had a week off after the US Open, and then coming over here, we've got a couple weeks, then get a nice break, and then obviously get ready for the Open Championship. I think our schedule has been really nice."

The fact that Phil Mickelson finished second at the Masters before Koepka won the PGA Championship reflects well on the LIV schedule, according to Koepka.

"I think it's been fantastic," said the five-time Major champion. "I think you can see the way the schedule has played out how everyone has played in Majors. 

"Phil second, I got second at the Masters. Good showing by a bunch of LIV guys at the PGA, and then the US Open, as well. I think the schedule has been fantastic. It's definitely helped us in the preparation for the Majors, as well."

Rory McIlroy came up short in his efforts to secure a 24th PGA Tour win at the Travelers Championship and eventually had to settle for a tie for seventh.

However, that performance at TPC River Highlands was enough to see the 34-year-old reach a new career milestone. McIlroy earned $650,000 in Connecticut, which saw him pass $75m in career earnings on the PGA Tour to stand at $75,819,307.

That has moved McIlroy past Dustin Johnson to third on the all-time list, albeit still over $20m behind Phil Mickelson, who stands at $96,572,310. Unsurprisingly, far beyond either McIlroy or Mickelson is 15-time Major winner Tiger Woods, who won’t be caught any time soon despite the certainty of a limited PGA Tour schedule in the future. Woods, who has 82 wins on the Tour, stands at $120, 895,206.

While McIlroy’s earnings are a reflection of his consistency since joining the PGA Tour in 2010, he is far from the highest earner in 2023 so far.

After months of fine form, Jon Rahm broke the money record for a PGA Tour season after his runner-up finish in April’s Mexico Open. That moved his earnings to $14,462,840, and he is currently on $15,210, 983, with only the most consistent player in the game at present, World No.1 Scottie Scheffler, ahead of him, on $18,548, 392. In contrast, McIlroy is currently fifth on the list on $9,644,758.

Nevertheless, given the longevity of his career so far, it is not surprising that McIlroy remains on significantly more career earnings than the two, with Rahm in 11th on the career money list at $50,335, 026 and Scheffler in 23rd on $40,099,279.

There are also signs that McIlroy’s earnings may accelerate in the weeks to come. His performance at the Travelers Championship was his fifth top 10 finish in a row and, while most of the designated events, which have elevated purses, have now been played, there are still big-money tournaments in the pipeline, including July’s Open Championship and the season-ending FedEx Playoffs.

With promising form and several opportunities to earn big money coming up, it wouldn’t be a surprise to find McIlroy finishing the season significantly closer to LIV Golf player Mickelson than he currently stands.

Let’s look at how the teams currently look in the 2023 Ryder Cup standings, the pinnacle of team golf, being held in Italy at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome.

Team Europe, captained by Luke Donald, will host Zach Johnson’s Team USA in the showpiece event from September 29 – October 1, 2023, as the visitors defend the trophy they won so convincingly at Whistling Straits in 2021.

Let’s see how the Ryder Cup teams are lining up and how players can book their place on the 12-man teams for the 44th edition of golf’s biggest team event.

European team Ryder Cup standings & qualification

Qualification for the European team for the 2023 Ryder Cup started after the 2022 BMW PGA Championship on September 11, and runs until September 3, 2023.

The big change for this year is that skipper Donald will have six Captain’s Picks to make instead of the three Padraig Harrington had for the last Ryder Cup in Wisconsin.

Automatic Ryder Cup qualification will still come from two points lists, but this time just three players will qualify from the European Points List, with a further three qualifiers being the top three on the World Points List that aren’t already qualified.

Current Team Europe Ryder Cup standings

(Players in bold qualify automatically | Q = qualification confirmed)

European Points List:
1. Rory McIlroy (4033.5) Q
2. Jon Rahm (3417.23) Q
3. Robert MacIntyre (1743.57)
4. Yannik Paul (1652.9)
5. Adrian Meronk (1614.21)
6. Tommy Fleetwood (1534.37)
7. Victor Perez (1527.95)
8. Rasmus Hojgaard (1516.86)
9. Adrian Otaegui (1430.01)
10. Shane Lowry (1290.23)

World Points List:
1. Rory McIlroy (399.29)
2. Jon Rahm (392.72)
3. Viktor Hovland (321.67) Q
4. Tyrrell Hatton (199.17)
5. Tommy Fleetwood (180.52)
6. Matt Fitzpatrick (178.62)
7. Sepp Straka (144.46)
8. Shane Lowry (105.21)
9. Justin Rose (100.32)
10. Robert MacIntyre (92.32)

Team USA 2023 Ryder Cup standings & qualification

Team USA had six Captain’s Picks for the last Ryder Cup, which worked out rather well, so Johnson will have the same option this time around.

The American Ryder Cup qualification system comprises of just one qualifying list, with points allocated over a longer stretch of golf – with seven big events in 2022 including the four Majors having points attached to them.

Ryder Cup qualification points are then awarded at all PGA Tour events from January 2023 with double points awarded for winners of the four Majors.

Current Team USA Ryder Cup standings

(Players in bold qualify automatically)

1. Scottie Scheffler (27,617.735) Q
2. Wyndham Clark (13,738.920) Q
3. Brian Harman (11,100.539) Q
4. Patrick Cantlay (10,946.750) Q
5. Max Homa (9,638.764) Q
6. Xander Schauffele (9,450.269) Q
7. Brooks Koepka (9,421.145)
8. Jordan Spieth (8,188.332)
9. Cameron Young (8,127.308)
10. Collin Morikawa (7,683.230)
11. Keegan Bradley (7,642.974)
12. Sam Burns (7,334.703)
13. Rickie Fowler (7,116.241)
14. Denny McCarthy (6,761.272)
15. Justin Thomas (6,539.195)
16. Lucas Glover (6,341.609)
17. Kurt Kitayama (5,918.269)
18. Russell Henley (5,551.880)
19. Will Zalatoris (5,529.134)
20. Harris English (5,456.686)

Qualifying will end after the second FedEx Cup play-off event on the 2023 PGA Tour schedule, the BMW Championship, on August 20, 2023, with the top six eligible players on the points list securing spots on Team USA.

Johnson will then announce his six Captain's Picks after the season-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta.

With 100 days to go the run-up to the Ryder Cup has well and truly begun, with now players starting to establish themselves in the points standings and as possible captains picks, but who will likely make their debuts in Rome?

Both European captain Luke Donald and Team USA skipper Zach Johnson have plenty of freedom in their teams, with just six players qualifying on each team leaving them with six wildcards each to select.

LIV Golf is making a big impact in different ways, with Team Europe stalwarts like Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood out of the picture but Brooks Koepka looks like an automatic qualifier for the US while the likes of Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau are all eligible for selection. The US will be missing current World No.11, Will Zalatoris, though, who is sidelined after back surgery.

Who will be the rookies making their big Ryder Cup debuts though? Based on the current world rankings, we take a look at six contenders for Team USA and Europe...

Possible Team USA Ryder Cup rookies

Wyndham Clark

It’s not always as simple as win a Major, get in the Ryder Cup team, but if there was any doubt then the way Clark won the US Open means even if he somehow doesn’t qualify Johnson will hand him a pick. He was cool, calm and collected under the most intense pressure, and having never even made the cut at the US Open before. 

Holding off Rory McIlroy down the stretch, he showed clear thinking and a wonderful short game when it really mattered. His putting was magnificent and that’s always crucial in Ryder Cups.

Max Homa

He’s still got those Major question marks after drawing another blank on home turf at the US Open, but he’s won six times on the PGA Tour and has got all kinds of game that make him a walk-on to this USA team surely?

Homa was impressive in last year’s Presidents Cup with a perfect 4-0-0 record which will take him a long way, and he’d also be great guy to have around the team room.

Sam Burns

Burns is not the first name on everyone’s lips, but he has been a top 10 player in the world with five PGA Tour wins under his belt – with his latest being the most crucial with it coming in the WGC-Match Play.

His one Presidents Cup appearance didn’t go to plan, but beating Patrick Cantlay, Scottie Scheffler and Cameron Young in the gruelling Match Play in Texas will stand him in good stead.

Cameron Young

Speaking of Cameron Young, he was the overwhelming winner of the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year award last year where he produced some stellar performances despite not banking a win. He saved his best for the Majors with a runner-up spot at the Open at St Andrews and a T3 at the PGA Championship last year, followed by a T7 at the 2023 Masters.

He won 1.5 points at the Presidents Cup and making the Match Play final in Austin will make Johnson comfortable with selecting him as a pick if he chooses.

Kurt Kitayama

A two-time DP World Tour winner, Kitayama’s crowning glory was his maiden PGA Tour success at the Arnold Palmer Invitational this year when he recovered from a final-round triple bogey to make a late birdie and win by one at Bay Hill from Harris English and Rory McIlroy.

That took guts and, along with a quarter-final at the Match Play and T4 at the PGA Championship, will be used to back-up his case for inclusion.

Sahith Theegala

The former college standout could be a bit of a wildcard selection but he’s a hugely popular figure with a dashing game and some decent results even this early in his career – including a top 10 finish on his Masters debut this year.

He led the PGA Tour in birdies last season thanks to his attacking game and he’d certainly bring some entertainment value to the Ryder Cup if selected.

Possible Team Europe Ryder Cup rookies

Sepp Straka

Aiming to follow Bernd Wiesberger as just the second Austrian to play in the Ryder Cup, Straka is the first from his country to win on the PGA Tour after claiming the 2022 Honda Classic.

He was up there challenging at the PGA Championship when finishing T7 so has some big event experience under his belt, which could stand him in good stead if he’s part of Donald’s team.

Seamus Power

Also a regular on the PGA Tour, Irishman Power has two wins on the US circuit with the last coming at the start of the wraparound season in October. He showed brilliant consistency with six straight top 15 finishes, including two top fives and big performances in Phoenix and Riviera. 

He’s had no joy in the Majors yet but a top 20 at Quail Hollow showed he does have big-game mentality – but he’ll need a few more eye-catching displays to get the nod against the likes of Straka.

Victor Perez

The Edinburgh-based Frenchman is vying with Yannick Paul and Adrian Meronk for the third qualifying spot on the European points list, and has some good form in two Italian Open appearances on the Ryder Cup course to back-up his claims if he needs a pick.

Winning in Abu Dhabi gave his year a huge boost to start with, but he'll need a couple more big displays to force Donald's hand.

Yannik Paul

Yannik Paul is looking to become the third German to play in the Ryder Cup and is the man in possession of a qualifying spot after a win in Mallorca last October followed by some consistent performances including two runners-up spots and a third.

Given the quality around him and the veteran players on the world points list you’d think Paul probably needs to qualify automatically to make it to Rome.

Pablo Larrazabal

The Spanish have a proud tradition in the Ryder Cup and Donald may aim to partner Jon Rahm up with compatriot Larrazabal, who would be making his debut aged 40 if he can get into the team.

He’s not in the qualifying spots, but with two tournament wins this year, taking his DP World Tour total to nine, and cracking the top 50 in the world for the first time he’s certainly got some decent credentials.

Adrian Meronk

The first Polish player to qualify for the Open and first to win on the DP World Tour, Meronk got inside the top 50 in the world and having the latest of his three wins (all national opens) coming at the same Marco Simone course staging the Ryder Cup must be a huge asset for him in Donald’s thinking.

The Travelers Championship is one of the most exciting, energized events on the PGA Tour and will host the 2023 edition at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut, this week. The Travelers is an elevated event with a $20 million purse and massive FedExCup points at stake, which is becoming more important with each event as we near the FedExCup playoffs in August. Fans enjoy creating a raucous atmosphere on a course that rewards accuracy and finesse over power.

Xander Schauffele won by two strokes at the 2022 Travelers Championship, logging -7-under-par outings in each of his first two rounds to build an insurmountable lead en route to his victory. Harris English, Dustin Johnson, Chez Reavie, Bubba Watson, and Jordan Spieth are previous outright winners at TPC River Highlands. This week, Spieth has opted to skip this designated event, while English is 75/1, and Reavie is a massive 400/1 longshot via DraftKings Sportsbook’s current outright winner odds. 

Wyndham Clark just secured his first major win at the 2023 U.S. Open, playing great from start to finish with a strong driver, accurate irons, and consistent putting. He’s currently landing 35/1 odds, which is a massive value hit compared to the 75/1 odds most sportsbooks valued Clark at ahead of his win at LACC. Of course, Scottie Scheffler and Jon Rahm continue to stay atop the outright winner odds as the World No. 1 and World No. 2 ranked golfers, followed by Rory McIlroy, Xander Schauffele, and Patrick Cantlay.

Let’s review the rest of the current outright betting odds ahead of the 2023 Travelers Championship, including previous winners, relevant betting stats, and an in-depth review of the course layout. Then, we’ll get into a few of my top players and reveal the reasoning to bet them outright ahead of Thursday’s opening round from TPC River Highlands. 

Before we get into our picks for the Travelers Championship, make sure to take a moment to check out these awesome sports betting offers for this week. We have teamed up with OddsChecker to ensure that you turn $6 into $400 worth of guaranteed bonuses, or you can use one of the HUGE first bet offers to wager with more confidence on your 2023 Travelers Championship selections this week.

Travelers Championship Betting Odds

2023 Travelers Championship Betting Preview

Previous Winners

• 2022 - Xander Schauffele (-19)
• 2021 - Harris English (-13)
• 2020 - Dustin Johnson (-19)
• 2019 - Chez Reavie (-17)
• 2018 - Bubba Watson (-17)
• 2017 - Jordan Spieth (-12)

Relevant Betting Stats

• Strokes Gained Off-the-Tee
• Strokes Gained Approaching the Green
• Scrambling
• Total Driving
• Strokes Gained Tee-to-Green
• Sand Save percentage

Course Layout

TPC River Highlands is a par 70 that is less than 7,000 yards. Designed by Pete Dye, this course places a premium on ball-striking, which means players who possess powerful, accurate irons will have a leg up on the rest of the field. Most of the par 4s are under 450 yards and will create ample birdie opportunities, but players should be weary of the numerous hazards that come along with these shortened track. These include tall rough, rows of trees, and a mixture of bentgrass and Poa Annua greens that will change the pace of putts and approach shots. More water hazards will emerge, starting at the 8th hole, and continue throughout most of the back nine.

Only two par 5s will provide relief, but the lack of length will allow accurate, powerful shots to get to the greens within one or two strokes. There are only two par 4s that run north of 260 yards, which is a much different layout than the distance baked into recent designated and major events. Four par 3s, evenly distributed along the front and back nine, run anywhere from 158 yards to 229 yards in length. Most of the fairways are doglegged and use trees as a shield to block the hole location on the greens, along with an abundance of circular sand bunkers flanking the greens and fairways. Players who can find the fairways consistently will avoid the tall rough, along with dozens of sand bunkers and water hazards, but there won’t be much undulation in comparison to LACC. 

Top Players To Bet For Outright Travelers Championship Winner

Scottie Scheffler (+600) (Bet $100 to collect $700) DraftKings for the best Scottie Scheffler odds

Scottie Scheffler dominates every event with his ball striking. Only the putter has held him back from collecting more outright wins this season. While Scheffler hasn’t won in a couple of months, he’s logged five consecutive T5 finishes, which is a testament to his consistency and brilliance with his irons. 7/1 is not extremely valuable since Scheffler is once again the outright betting favorite, but he has improved each year at TPC River Highlands, cracking a T15 finish after previously logging a T47 in 2021. Scheffler is due for his third outright win soon, so with a rowdy atmosphere and a course that rewards accuracy and iron play, we need to lay a healthy unit wager on Scheffler’s current +700 outright odds before they dry up once play gets underway.

Viktor Hovland (+2000) (Bet $100 to collect $2,100) For the best Viktor Hovland odds go to DraftKings

Watching Viktor Hovland extend his annual outright winning streak to four years at The Memorial Tournament, which was an elevated event, showcased how good the Norwegian’s ball-striking talent can be. He struggled to make a few birdie putts at the U.S. Open, putting him out of contention, but expect Hovland to be prepared for a strong bounce-back effort at TPC River Highlands. He hasn’t competed here since 2020 when he logged a T11 finish after starting -7-under-par. Hovland has minimal difficulty finding greens in regulation and scrambling when he doesn’t, so as long as the putter acts more like it did at Memorial than it did at the U.S. Open, we’re due for a nice payout at 20/1 odds. Let’s bet this number with confidence.

Collin Morikawa (+2500) (Bet $100 to collect $2,600) Head to DraftKings for the best Collin Morikawa odds

I haven’t been on Collin Morikawa much this season. He’s struggled to be consistent in all four rounds, but his irons are still the best part of his game. Morikawa has built momentum entering Travelers, though, going T26, T29, WD, and T14. He is ranked 13th in total strokes gained, including fifth tee-to-green, second approaching the green, and 25th off-the-tee. His putter has been his Achilles heel, ranking 143rd this season. However, he’s able to hit greens in regulation at over a 69.6 percent rate, which bodes well for his outlook this week. Morikawa’s previous finish here was a missed cut in 2020, but I like how his ball striking has looked lately, so let’s put a small bet on Morikawa at 22/1 on DraftKings Sportsbook.

Tommy Fleetwood (+2500) (Bet $100 to collect $2,600) DraftKings has the best Tommy Fleetwood odds

Tommy Fleetwood is one of my favorite outright prospects to bet on at TPC River Highlands this week. After a forgettable start at the U.S. Open, the Englishman went -7-under-par in the final round, one week after he nearly secured the first outright win of his PGA Tour career in a four-hole playoff against Nick Taylor at the RBC Canadian Open. Fleetwood’s stats are enticing. He’s ranked sixth tee-to-green, 23rd approaching the green, and 10th around the green. Plus, his 24th strokes gained putting, which is a huge skill set to possess on top of the premium ball striking he can deliver. An accurate driver and 18th scrambling rank should launch Fleetwood up all of our outright betting boards this week. I love the value we’re getting at 35/1, even though we haven’t seen Fleetwood collect an outright win yet. It’s only a matter of time, and he’s red-hot right now, so let’s wager confidently on his outright odds this week.

Tom Kim (+3500) (Bet $100 to collect $3,600) Go to DraftKings for the best Tom Kim odds

Tom Kim surged briefly at the U.S. Open before settling back into his average, winding up with a T8 finish. The 20-year-old South Korean prospect burst onto the scene in 2022, but it’s been a bit of a sluggish showing in recent events before LACC. Kim has bounced around between T7 and T34 finishes, while he logged two consecutive missed cuts before a better outing at the U.S. Open. Kim will make his debut at TPC River Highlands, where he could produce a monster outing due to ranking 17th tee-to-green, eighth approaching the green and 14th total driving. He finds greens in regulation at nearly a 70 percent clip, so at 45/1, I really like his outlook to contend down the stretch. Let’s sprinkle on Kim’s 45/1 odds and watch his irons keep him near the top of the leaderboard at TPC River Highlands. 

In an exciting and thrilling finale at the 123rd US Open, viewers were treated to a fantastic battle between Wyndham Clark and Rory McIlroy which resulted in Clark claiming his first Major scalp and biggest victory of his career!

Along with the duo, we also saw a great finish from Cameron Smith who, on the back nine, posted a three-under-par score that was significantly less than what others had been shooting during the final round.

Because of his play, the Australian placed as the best LIV golfer for the week finishing in fourth place. Speaking after his round, he stated: "I feel like the game has been trending in the right direction. This is kind of a big tick of the box, I think. Obviously a world-class field, world-class venue, and it got really tough on the weekend, as well. So the game is feeling really good, and just probably a little bit of confidence."

As Smith finished inside the top-5, Dustin Johnson claimed a top-10 spot as he fired a two-over-par final round for a three-under tournament total. Once again, just like the rest of his tournament, DJ struggled on the greens with his putter failing to get hot as he played the final round at LACC.

The next LIV player on the leaderboard was Brooks Koepka, who produced a one-under final round for a one-under tournament total. The American had stated on Friday that he wasn't a fan of the course, with Koepka one of the few players to voice their view of LACC's layout.

Take a look at how all of the LIV players got on at the 2023 US Open below:

LIV GOLF LEADERBOARD AT THE US OPEN

• -6 Cameron Smith
• -3 Dustin Johnson
• -1 Brooks Koepka
• +1 Bryson DeChambeau
• +2 Sergio Garcia
• +3 Joaquin Niemann
• +4 David Puig
• +6 Sebastian Munoz
• +7 Abraham Ancer
• +8 Patrick Reed
• CUT LINE (DIDN'T MAKE THE WEEKEND)
• +3 Phil Mickelson, Mito Pereira
• +4 Thomas Pieters
• +6 Martin Kaymer
• +9 Carlos Ortiz

The notoriously difficult US Open hasn't quite been that so far this week at Los Angeles with a number of records beaten or matched by the world's best players.

LACC is a demanding test of golf, but softer-than-usual conditions for the US Open along with benign conditions have meant that low scoring has been a storyline so far in what already is a record breaking championship.

Here we look at some of the US Open records to have been beaten or matched this week...

62

Rickie Fowler's 10 birdies and two bogeys on Thursday set the single round scoring record in a US Open, with the five-time PGA Tour winner becoming the first man in history to card a 62 in America's national open.

A mere 20 minutes later, Xander Schauffele had matched him - meaning that Fowler and Schauffele joined Branden Grace as the only golfers to shoot 62 in a men's Major championship.

130

A record matched this week was Martin Kaymer's 36-hole scoring record that he set in 2014 at Pinehurst. He posted back-to-back 65s for a 130 total after two days nine years ago, and that was matched by Rickie Fowler on Friday at Los Angeles Country Club.

Rickie's historic 62 was followed up with a 68 to post 10-under-par and the fabled 130 after two rounds.

71.38

The record breaking opening round at LA Country Club saw a 71.38 scoring average throughout the 156-man field, which comfortably broke the previous first round record of 72.29 set in 1993 at Baltusrol.

18/36 birdies

This one Rickie Fowler now has on his own. The American made an incredible 18 birdies (50% of his holes!) after two days to record the most ever birdies through two rounds in a US Open.

29

Tom Kim matched the championship's lowest ever nine hole score on his first nine in the third round at LACC.

The two-time PGA Tour winner made six birdies and three pars to go out in six-under and 29. It's the fifth 29 in over nine holes in a US Open and the first since Louis Oosthuizen in 2015 at Chambers Bay.

No 80s

The first day's play at Los Angeles Country Club saw 156 players take on the North Course and not a single one register a score in the 80s. That's the first time that has ever happened.

65

Thursday's opening day saw the most ever rounds of 65 or better in a US Open. There were six in total, beating the previous record of four from the second round of the 2009 US Open at Bethpage Black.

Another 65-related statistic revolves around Dustin Johnson, whose 65 on Thursday was the tenth of his career in Majors to tie Tiger Woods.

Hole-in-one by the defending champion

Matt Fitzpatrick made the third hole-in-one of the 2023 US Open on day two, with all three of them coming at the short 15th.

It was the Englishman's first ever ace on the PGA Tour and the first time a defending champion has ever made a hole-in-one during their title defence.

Back-to-back rounds in the 60s

Rory McIlroy's second round 67, to go along with his opening 65, meant that he had recorded back-to-back rounds in the 60s to start a US Open for the fourth time - having also done it in 2011, 2019 and 2022.

Nobody in history has done that four times. Until now.

Fastest to -10

Rickie Fowler reached 10-under-par in a US Open quicker than anyone in history.

He started round two birdie-birdie to get to -10, which was six holes faster than Rory McIlroy did in 2011.

Rickie reached 11-under on the very next hole to take that record away from McIlroy, too.

Shortest ever hole

Not scoring related but a record nonetheless. In Saturday's third round, the superb par 3 15th was playing at just 81 yards - making it the shortest hole in US Open history.

The previous record was 92 yards on the 7th at Pebble Beach in the final round of the 2010 US Open.

Dustin Johnson had an up-and-down ride during the second round of the 123rd US Open, with the American creating a piece of history in the process as he tackled Los Angeles Country Club. 

Johnson, who fired a first round of six-under (64) on Thursday had been the top LIV golfer heading into the Friday of the third men's Major of the year. However, after parring his opening hole, the American then made a mess of the par 4 second, with a quadruple bogey putting him to four-over for the round.

There's no denying though that Johnson doesn't give up and, despite the quadruple at the second, he battled back with five birdies and a bogey over his remaining 16 holes putting him back to level-par. In the process, he became the only player in the last 30 years to make a quadruple bogey in a US Open round and still shoot par or better.

Following his round, DJ claimed that he was proud of his performance, with the 2016 US Open champion stating: "Obviously you get to No. 1, you want to get obviously off to a good start, and didn't do that. But making a quad on No. 2 definitely didn't get the day started off kind of how I envisioned it starting today. 

"But to battle back and get it back to even par for the day and 6-under for the tournament, so still right in the mix going into the weekend, so yeah, definitely proud of the way I came back and finished off the round."

On Thursday, Rickie Fowler and Xander Schauffele became the first players to ever shoot 62 in the US Open, as well as the the second and third individuals to fire 62 in Major championships.

Many have claimed that the conditions for a US Open at least are a bit easy, but the leaderboard still remains tight. According to DJ, who was in the morning wave of players on Friday: "I mean, even yesterday, other than there was -- there was a couple 62s, but if you take those away the scores weren't -- it wasn't like it was that low."

He went on to add: "Obviously I played a really, really good round. Today definitely the greens are a little bit firmer, pins are tucked a little bit more. It was definitely a lot harder to get it close to the hole."

After a day of unusually low scoring on Thursday at the 2023 US Open, there have already been signs the USGA and Los Angeles Country Club are biting back. And the first player to really come unstuck was two-time Major winner Dustin Johnson.

DJ looked back to something near his best on day one as he mixed seven birdies with just a single dropped shot to sit on six-under and just two behind Rickie Fowler and Xander Schauffele after 18 holes.

Being on the opposite side of the draw, Johnson then had a chance to pass the leaders early on Friday but instead lost serious ground after having a nightmare on the long, 490-yard par-4 second.

The 2016 US Open champion found the bunker off the tee and then made a rookie error in hitting his recovery shot into the thick bermuda rough. Over his third, Sky Sports commentator Henni Koyack wisely warned of "compounding errors" with the treacherous barranca guarding the green short, but things just went from bad to worse for Johnson.

He found the barranca and had such a bad lie he was forced to take a penalty drop, before carelessly hitting his short fifth shot over the green and failing to get up-and-down. When all was said and done, it was a quadruple-bogey eight for the American that dropped him from six-under to two-under and seven behind Wyndham Clark.

Here's how it all played out:

WATCH: Johnson's nightmare quad

It was a reminder, as if it was needed, that this game will never be mastered and that even the best players in the world can be made to look foolish. To his credit, Johnson recovered with a birdie at the par-5 eighth as he sets about repairing the damage and putting himself in position to land a third Major over the weekend in LA. 

Dustin Johnson may have just the two Major titles compared to Tiger Woods’ 15, but after yesterday’s opening round of 64 at the US Open, the 2016 champion did move alongside the great man for rounds of 65 or better at Majors.

After the LIV golfer, who also won The Masters in 2020, carded a classy 64 at The Los Angeles Country Club to position himself just two shots off the lead, he made it ten rounds of 65 or better at Major Championships.

With three rounds left to play at the 123rd US Open – and with scoring conditions seemingly set to stay fairly favourable – Johnson may well end the week leading that particularly record, especially given injured Woods isn't playing. Both players have shot plenty of 65s or better during their stellar careers, but rounds in the mid sixties at the game’s big four events are hard to come by.

“I just try to shoot as low as I can every day,” said Johnson, who’s never one to overthink matters. “What that number is at the end of the week, I have no idea. I wish I could predict that, though. That would be nice.”

Johnson’s 64 also saw him move ahead of Jack Nicklaus (9) and Rory McIlroy (8), who posted another magic number himself in the opening round, a five-under 65 that puts the Northern Irishman right in the mix.

It's a record neither player is likely to be aware off. Both will be more focused on adding to their Major tallies. McIlroy, in particular, has had a monkey on his back for some time, with his last Major title coming at the 2014 PGA Championship.

Although the Ulsterman didn’t speak to the media after his round, Johnson was happy to share his thoughts for the weekend ahead. “I had a great practice leading into it. I've been playing pretty solid,” he added. “Obviously won in Tulsa [LIV Tour] a few weeks ago. But the game has been trending in the right direction, and obviously I feel really comfortable over the golf ball right now.”

Should Johnson add to his joint-record of 65s or better at Majors and beat one of Woods' many records this weekend, it’s sure to put him right into contention for a third Major title.

Although still just speculation and hypothetical, Bryson DeChambeau has listed the events he’d love to get back to playing on the PGA Tour if he’s allowed to following the deal with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) aimed at bringing golf back together.

DeChambeau thinks that LIV Golf will remain in some form, but in the announcement of the PGA Tour’s deal with PIF Jay Monahan talked about the mechanism that would be put in place for players to return to the Tour.

And 2020 US Open champion DeChambeau admitted “it’ll be good to be back out there” if he is allowed to return to the PGA Tour at some stage – especially for a few of his favourite events if not a full schedule.

“I don’t think (LIV Golf) will go away,” DeChambeau told Golf Digest's Evin Priest, adding it was “highly speculative” to suggest LIV golfers could return to the PGA Tour.

If they are though, DeChambeau says: “I would love to play the heritage events. Travelers has always been a great event, the RBC heritage, the Arnold Palmer, Mr. Nicklaus’ event (the Memorial Tournament), Riviera and the Rocket Mortgage Classic. Probably won't be too many, but it’ll be good to be back out there.”

The 29-year-old backed up Dustin Johnson’s comments about the 2024 LIV Golf schedule going ahead – according to PIF boss Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who will act as chairman of the new joint golfing entity.

With a lot of talk about what role LIV will now play in golf, DeChambeau added that Al-Rumayyan still had big “global” plans for the team event.

“That is what was talked about,” he said. “Those are private conversations and I don't know exactly what (Al-Rumayyan’s) future plans are, because he was right about to go on CNBC, but he had a couple other cool ideas that I think could be interesting for the game of golf. We'll see if it all happens because you’ve still got to dial in the details.

“I don't want to speak for him. But he did tell me something that could be a big global event that could be really cool.”

Away from the continued LIV Golf conversation, DeChambeau feels his game is in decent shape as he looks to captured a second US Open title this week.

Sergio Garcia’s future in the next few months will be one of the more interesting storylines as we begin to shake out the details from the new partnership between the PIF and the PGA and DP World Tours.

Garcia played a practice round ahead of this week’s US Open with his compatriot and Ryder Cup partner Jon Rahm and was asked what he knew of how things might play out away from the course and where he might be playing his golf in 2024?

“Not much. I wish I could tell you more but unfortunately not much," Garcia told Sky Sports. "I guess things will come out as everything settles and stuff. At the end of the day, it (the new partnership) is probably where we should have been from the beginning and I think it's better for everyone, so that's the most important thing” .

Garcia resigned his membership of the DP World Tour last month after being informed by his good friend and Ryder Cup skipper Luke Donald that there was little chance of him being involved in this year’s matches in Rome but, if LIV Golf was to fold and disappear, then he would consider returning to the PGA and DP World Tours.

"If there's no LIV Golf of course I'll have to go somewhere! We'll see. It doesn’t look like I’ll be able to do it this year unfortunately, it’s all speculation so we’ll find out more in the next few weeks.”

If he isn’t a member of the DP World Tour then he won’t be able to play in the Ryder Cup though the likes of Rahm and Matt Fitzpatrick would both be keen on the team being picked on whoever gave Europe the best chance of winning the cup back. 

On the other side Rory McIlroy, who has notably fallen out with Garcia in the past year, doesn’t believe that the LIV players should be part of Donald’s side. As things stand the Americans will be able to pick from anyone so the likes of Brooks Koepka and maybe Dustin Johnson will again feature.

If LIV Golf is set to continue, and Johnson has said that they are already working on putting together a full schedule, then the Spaniard might be happy to continue playing a similar limited calendar. 

"I went to LIV to play less, so if we still have our 14 events around the world and stuff like that, I don't know with that and the majors if I want to play more than 18-20 events a year," the 43-year-old told Golf Channel.

"I enjoyed playing on the PGA Tour and am very thankful for everything they did for me, but I've enjoyed watching our kids grow and spending time with friends and family in Austin. I guess we'll cross that bridge when we'll get there."

Dustin Johnson might not say a lot but, when he does, he offers some genuine nuggets. With nothing concrete in terms of what the new golfing world will look like after the recent partnership announcement between the Saudi Public Investment Fund and the PGA and DP World Tours, the future of the LIV Golf League has been questioned.

Now though Dustin Johnson, who is captain of the 4Aces GC team, is confident that LIV will be on the calendar and that it will be a full 14-tournament schedule similar to this year.

"As far as I know, LIV will go into 2024 and they're doing the schedule now," Johnson told Sky Sports. "That's the plan but I can't answer really any further than that. I mean I've talked to the guys but yeah, as far as I know, it's going to 2024 and is going to be a full schedule just like we did this year."

Johnson then confirmed that it was the PIF governor, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, that he had spoken to which added even more weight to his story. What's more, the two-time Major winner also spoke to the Golf Channel and he added that he would look forward to there being more of the game's greats at the same tournaments in the future.

"I just hope we can get all the best players playing at the same time at golf tournaments. Obviously it's a little split right now, but PGA Tour has great events and LIV has great events and to get everybody playing together would be fun and exciting."

How that would look remains anyone’s guess. The PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan was asked last week if there might be a scenario that the PGA Tour and LIV have concurrent events, as we have this year, and that the players can go back and forth between the two tours.

“I can't see that scenario but I haven't gotten into the full evaluation, full empirical evaluation of LIV that I'm going to do to be able to comment on that. But I don't see that scenario, no. To me, any scenarios that you're thinking about that bridge between the PGA Tour and LIV would be longer term in nature,” explained Monahan.

As for the prospect of the LIV Golf League not existing in a year’s time, Monahan refused to be drawn. 

“We're in a framework agreement. We haven't concluded the definitive agreement. I have not had the opportunity that I'm going to have to conduct a comprehensive empirical evaluation. I don't want to make any statements or make any predictions. But what is in place is a commitment to make a good-faith effort to look at team golf and the role it can play going forward.”

Rory McIlroy will needless to say be glad to see the back of LIV Golf and he said last week that there might be more team golf but away from what we’ve witnessed in the past 12 months with Greg Norman’s tour.

"I would say an element of team golf might still stay. My hope is it won't be under the LIV umbrella. It's something that the PGA Tour will control, the PGA Tour will operate. And it will hopefully look very different to what LIV has been.”

On the flipside Norman was reported, via Sports Illustrated, to have told his staff that, as Johnson explained, LIV Golf will continue and that they’re already working on the calendar for as far ahead as 2025.

“LIV is and will continue to be a standalone enterprise,” Norman said. “Our business model will not change. We changed history, and we’re not going anywhere. The spigot is now wide open for commercial sponsorships, blue-chip companies, TV networks.”

Every year Forbes, the global media company that focuses on finance, industry, investing, and marketing, releases various lists around the money within sport and, recently, they revealed the top 18 highest-paid golfers for 2023.

Given the news around LIV Golf and the reported signing-on fees that players have been offered, as well as the prize money available, it's no surprise to see players from the Saudi-backed circuit dominate with six featuring inside the top 10.

Obviously, given the news of the recent merger between the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and Public Investment Fund, it is unclear as to what the future holds for professional golf but, with the new list revealed, it's certainly clear that golfers are earning the biggest paydays of their careers.

According to Forbes, upfront payments from LIV boosted the earnings of the 18 highest-paid golfers by more than $500 million, with hundreds of millions more coming on the backend if the guarantees are fully paid out. Such is the money involved, the combined amount of the highest earners reached just shy of $1.1 billion, with the value of the top 10 rising 16% since the 2022 figures were released.

Topping the list for 2023 is Dustin Johnson, who made an estimated $111 million, with $106 million of that being on-course earnings and the remaining $5 million being off-course. Certainly, after LIV Golf's debut in 2022, Johnson was the biggest earner, with the American scooping $35 million over the eight tournament series.

Such was the success of Johnson, he actually finished sixth in the highest paid athlete list, with seven golfers featuring inside the top 20. The next highest paid golfer, was Phil Mickelson, who secured $107 million, with $105 million of that coming from on-course earnings. It's worth noting that, last year, Lefty finished top of both the highest paid golfer and athlete list with $138 million.

Grabbing the final podium spot is Rory McIlroy, who secured $80 million for 2023. Rather conveniently it was a 50/50 split in on and off-course earnings, with the Northern Irishman picking up $40 million in both. 

After McIlroy is Brooks Koepka and Cameron Smith, with 15-time Major winner, Tiger Woods sitting in sixth position. Woods made $75 million, with $60 million of that coming in off-course earnings. To round out the top 10, Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed sit in seventh and eighth, with Jon Rahm and Scottie Scheffler completing the line-up.

Outside of the top 10, we see LIV players dominate again, as six of the remaining 8 ply their trade in the league. In 11th spot is Jordan Spieth with $47 million and, in the 18th and final spot is Xander Schauffele, who earned $33 million.

Between the two Americans are Sergio Garcia ($47 million), Joaquin Niemann ($43 million), Talor Gooch ($41 million), Abraham Ancer ($39 million), Bubba Watson ($39 million) and Branden Grace ($34 million).

FORBES' HIGHEST-PAID GOLFERS 2023

The war is over, but there’s still plenty to sort out between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour – with one major talking point being the reintegration of the so-called rebels back onto the main tour.

And in doing so, those players who stayed loyal to the PGA Tour want to see that loyalty rewarded, with Jay Monahan saying himself that it would be a major priority of his to make sure that happens.

So while the likes of Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka may have to stump up some of their LIV Golf cash to get back in their Tour’s good books – those loyal remainers will want some sort of financial recompense.

Rory McIlroy was not one of those though, as he revealed during his recent epic press conference that he’d never actually been offered any money by LIV Golf.

But just how much did some of them give up to ensure they remained on the PGA Tour playing in the blue chip league at the biggest and most historic events in golf? 

We don't have definitive numbers on some with these negotiations always done in private, but some of them reportedly passed up on a small fortune…

Tiger Woods - $700-$800m

There have been plenty of reports about just what Tiger Woods was and wasn't offered to join LIV Golf - but Greg Norman himself said they'd offered him around $700-$00m.

"Tiger is a needle-mover and of course you have to look at the best of the best,” Norman said. “So they had originally approached Tiger before I became CEO. So, yes, that number was somewhere in that neighborhood.”

Whether Woods even entertained the offer is another story, but it wasn't going to stop the ambitious LIV bosses from at least presenting the offer.

Tiger's an exception of course, and has a huge wealth already so whether he'd be seeking some sort of reward for his loyalty and backing the PGA Tour remains to be seen.

Hideki Matsuyama - $400m

Behind Tiger nobody has seemingly been offered more money to join LIV than Hideki Matsuyama, with a reported $400m put on the table for the Japanese star.

LIV recognised that as the best Asian player in the world right now he could open up a huge market for them, but the Masters champion decided against the move having been "torn between the money and his legacy" when weighing up his options.

Jon Rahm - $400m

Fellow Masters champion Jon Rahm is reported to have been offered around the same as Matsuyama to jump ship and join LIV Golf even though he's been a big defender of the PGA Tour himself.

The Spaniard hasn't been critical of players making the move though but as a golf historian he has always put legacy and winning Majors and big events first.

However, with Brooks Koepka thriving in Majors despite playing on LIV, Rahm may have been wavering as some reports suggest he was deep in talks and thinking of possibly making the switch just before the merger was announced.

Will Zalatoris - $130m

According to Fred Couples, Will Zalatoris turned down $130m to join LIV Golf - which was a hugely improved offer after an opening gambit of $35m was flat-out rejected.

Couples, who was busy mouthing off against anyone and everyone at LIV at the time, said: "I give Will a lot of credit; he wants (to stay with) the PGA Tour.”

Zalatoris has since had back surgery so has missed plenty of time on the sidelines and may just wish he'd have taken the money if he doesn't get back to the form that saw him regularly challenging in Majors.

Other players reported to have LIV offers

It was a surprise Patrick Cantlay never joined LIV Golf as he was one of the most strongly linked players right from the start, and never really denied an interest in moving.

However, it never materialised and he stayed on the PGA Tour with the likes of Justin Thomas, who did hold talks with Norman but never really warmed to the idea.

Jordan Spieth surely must have had an offer but he also never really entertained it while Scottie Scheffler is another PGA Tour loyalist who also seems incredibly happy just to be playing on Tour and doesn't strike you as a man who would go in search of such wealth.

Perhaps a list of exactly who and exactly how much was offered by LIV Golf will emerge in time, but we know certainly that several players seem to have lost out on huge life-changing sums only for the PGA Tour to merge with the Saudi backers anyway.