After testing the waters and ultimately causing a storm that ripped through the sport last year, LIV Golf returns for its first official season in 2023.
From eight “beta” events in 2022, get ready for 14 across seven countries this year, and yes, team names such as 4 Aces, Majesticks and Hy Flyers are here to stay – with the inclusion of new teams including RangeGoats and Ripper.
Mickelson pocketed a reported $200m (£166m) for joining the Saudi-backed series last year, and stressed LIV Golf is “going to do a lot of good for the game as well” when quizzed on Saudi Arabia’s human rights violations.
Smith, meanwhile, was ranked world No 2 when signing up in August, and the Australian admits it “hurts” to know that LIV Golf does not carry points towards the rankings system – one of the myriad contentious issues this series has generated.
“I feel as though I was really close to getting to No 1, and that was definitely something I wanted to tick off,” Smith said.
“I think when you rock up at a tournament, you know who you have to beat, whether there is a world ranking or not. There are generally seven-eight guys that are in that field that you know are going to put up a pretty good fight.
“However, the longer this stuff goes on, I think the more obsolete those rankings become. Do we need them? It would be nice, but you know who you’ve got to beat when you get on the golf course.”
Smith and Mickelson are among the headline names in action this year, along with former world No 1 Dustin Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau.
Even before LIV Golf’s incursion into traditional tour territory, world No 1 McIlroy was just as easily cast as the good guy as Reed was the bad. That they find themselves on opposite sides of golf’s internecine dispute, McIlroy camped with the traditional forces, Reed at the vanguard of the Saudi takeover, is manna for any whose business is selling drama.
Rory McIlroy said Patrick Reed is not ‘living in reality’ (Photos: AP/Getty)
Reed, a golfer who has made a career of alienating his peers, maintains a solid grip on the fundamentals of shithousery, nicely demonstrated during the festive period when his legal representatives issued McIlroy with a subpoena understood to relate to the anti-trust case in which LIV Golf alleges the PGA Tour is trying to destroy it. That case, in which McIlroy, Tiger Woods and Davis Love III are alleged co-conspirators, is set to begin in January 2024.
Reed’s attempt at a convivial exchange on the Dubai range before the tournament was, therefore, rum at best, and ended with the now legendary storm in a tee cup. McIlroy joked that had he flicked a tee in Reed’s direction he would have been served with a law suit. Asked by a reporter if there might be a bridge to better relations between the pair McIlroy’s features contorted into a look pained disbelief.
Fronting the LIV series is CEO and commissioner Greg Norman, the two-time Open champion who has been unabashed since its launch.
“We received tremendous feedback from fans throughout our beta-test year, with one resounding theme: LIV Golf’s team format, innovations, and festival-like events are delivering a one-of-a-kind golf experience,” Norman said ahead of the start of the 2023 series.
“Last year helped lay the foundation for the future of golf at extraordinary courses that have hosted some of the world’s top competitions. LIV Golf’s schedule features fantastic venues and championship sites for our official league launch that will carry the sport into a new era.”
LIV Golf 2023 schedule
24-26 February: El Camaleón Golf Course, Mayakoba, Mexico
17-19 March: The Gallery Golf Club in Tucson, Arizona, USA
31 March-2 April: Orange County National in Orlando, Florida, USA
21-23 April: The Grange Golf Club in Adelaide, Australia
28-30 April: The Serapong at Sentosa Golf Club in Singapore
12-14 May: Cedar Ridge Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA
26-28 May: Trump National Golf Club, Washington D.C., USA
30 June-2 July: Real Club Valderrama in Andalucía, Spain
7-9 July: Centurion Club outside London, UK
4-6 August: The Greenbrier in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia, USA
11-13 August: Trump National Golf Club Bedminster, New Jersey, USA
22-24 September: Rich Harvest Farms outside Chicago, Illinois, USA
20-22 October: Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami, Florida, USA
3-5 November: Royal Greens Golf & Country Club near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Can I get LIV Golf tickets?
Golf fans in the UK may wish to watch the three-day event at the Centurion Club, near Hemel Hempstead, on 7-9 July 2023.
Tickets are not available yet but a link will be posted on the official website here, where tickets for the opening five events are currently possible to purchase.
Majesticks – Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson, Lee Westwood
RangeGoats – Bubba Watson
Ripper – Cameron Smith
Smash – Brooks Koepka
Stinger – Louis Oosthuizen
Torque – Joaquin Niemann
Liv Golf 2023 format explained
This year, LIV Golf will feature 48 players divided into 12 teams. The four players on each team will all compete individually, with the lowest score across 54 holes – 18 holes per day across three days – winning the event.
There will be 14 events in total, and the team with the lowest combined score will also be crowned the team winners of each event. There is also a “shotgun” start where all players tee off at the same time around the course, and there is also no cut, meaning all 48 players feature every day.
Last year, the series ended with a team championship event, which incorporated match play and resulted in just four teams competing on the final day.
The overall prize money on offer for the 2023 season is $405m (£337m).
