The LIV Golf roster features an impressive selection of star players, and the league added reigning Masters champion Jon Rahm to captain a 13th side for 2024.
Rahm joins a number of Masters champions in the league as well as Major champions like Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith and Bryson DeChambeau.
His arrival means that there are now seven players on the LIV line-up who have won the Green Jacket. One of the many perks of winning The Masters is that the champions get to return each and every year.
The seven LIV players who have won The Masters and will be returning every year are:
LIV Golfers To Win The Masters
Jon Rahm - 2023
Rahm became the fourth Spaniard to win The Masters in 2023 on Seve Ballesteros' birthday.
He picked up his fourth win of the year after a strong final round of 69 to take down LIV Golf's Brooks Koepka in the final group. He, of course, would go on to join the Saudi-backed circuit and is one of 13 LIV Golfers in The Masters field for 2024.
Sergio Garcia - 2017
The Spaniard won the 2017 Masters, coming through a playoff against Justin Rose. He was the third Spanish player to win the event at the time, following Seve Ballesteros and Jose Maria Olazabal.
Sergio had finished in the top-10 in 22 Majors prior to breaking his duck at Augusta in 2017.
Dustin Johnson - 2020
DJ had finished a shot behind Tiger Woods in the 2019 Masters but a year (and a bit) later he got the job done, winning the 2020 Masters.
Owing to the Covid pandemic, the 2020 Masters was rescheduled and contested in November. Johnson won the event with a tournament record score of 20-under-par 268. He finished five clear of Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im.
Phil Mickelson - 2004, 2006 and 2010
Phil Mickelson is a three-time Masters champion. He played in his first Masters tournament in 1991 and finished as low amateur.
In total, he’s played in 30 Masters. His first victory came in 2004. He birdied the final hole to beat Ernie Els by one and claim his maiden Major title. He won again two years later in 2006, seeing off South Africa’s Tim Clark. His third title came in 2010 when he fired a closing 67 to beat fellow LIV player Lee Westwood by three.
Patrick Reed - 2018
Reed’s Masters victory came in 2018. He took the lead with a second round of 66 and held the advantage to the tape. Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth mounted a challenge in the final round but Reed had just enough to see them off along with playing partner Rory McIlroy who faltered.
He won by a stroke from Fowler.
Charl Schwartzel - 2011
2011 looked like being Rory McIlroy’s year. He opened with a 65 and followed with two more under par rounds to take a four-shot lead into the final round.
But the young Northern Irishman crumbled on the Sunday and that left the tournament wide open. It was South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel who stood up and claimed the title. He birdied the last four holes to win by two from Jason Day and Adam Scott.
Bubba Watson - 2012 and 2014
The American is a two-time Masters champion. He won in 2012 and again in 2014. The first of his victories came in a playoff against Louis Oosthuizen. Left-handed Watson hit one of the greatest Masters shots of all time from the pine straw deep in the woods to the right of the 10th hole to seal the win.
Watson won again in 2014, in that event – by three shots from Jordan Spieth and Jonas Blixt.
Can LIV Golfers Play In The Masters?
In December 2022, Augusta National Golf Club released a statement, signed by Chairman Fred Ridley, in which it was written that the club is disappointed by recent developments that have divided men’s professional golf.
No names were given, but it’s safe to say LIV Golf was being referred to. The statement went on to say that those eligible for invitation to the 2023 Masters, under their current criteria, would be invited. But it also said that those criteria may be modified for future tournaments.
Qualifying for The Masters has become more difficult for LIV Golfers due to its lack of world ranking points, but they are allowed to compete - as long as they meet the entry requirements.
That being said, Joaquin Niemann was invited into the 2024 Masters after winning the 2023 Australian Open and two LIV events in early 2024. He is also a former Latin America Amateur Championship winner, a tournament that Augusta National co-founded.
