LIV Golf is back for a second season in 2023 with the Saudi-backed venture looking to gain momentum with its players poised to play in the majors.
The Masters confirmed it will honour invitations to those exempt and those inside the top 50 players in the world according to the OWGR.
That means we may see more drama as the best from LIV take on the best on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour on the biggest stage, with Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed’s thrilling battle at the Dubai Desert Classic showcasing the theatre in the sport currently.
Charles Howell III was the surprise winner of the first event of the season in Mayakoba and helped lead the Crushers to the team title in Mexico.
Here’s everything you need to know about LIV Golf for season two in 2023:
What is LIV Golf?
LIV Golf is the breakaway league fronted by two-time Open champion Greg Norman as chief executive and backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
The PIF has invested unprecedented sums of money into the sport, both for players to sign up and also purses for each event, attracting condemnation from human rights charities such as Amnesty International.
The new competition rules and format bring a fresh look to golf, with the team aspect emerging as its unique selling point.
There will be 12 teams and 48 players in each field, with the tournament played over 54 holes and three days - rather than the traditional 72 holes and four days. There is no cut, unlike the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, while LIV Golf also added the shotgun start, which they say promotes faster play with groups starting at different holes across the course and playing it in different orders.
LIV Golf schedule 2023
24-26 February: El Camaleon Golf Course, Mayakoba, Mexico - Individual winner: Charles Howell. Team winner: Crushers GC
17-19 March: Gallery Golf Club, Tucson, United States
31 March - 2 April Orange County National, Orland, United States
21-23 April Grange Golf Club, Adelaide, Australia
28-30 April Sentosa Golf Club, Singapore
12-14 May Cedar Ridge Country Club, Tulsa, United States
26-28 May Trump National Golf Club, Washington DC, United States
30 June - 2 July Real Club Valderrama, Sotogrande, Andalucia, Spain
7-9 July Centurion Club, St Albans, UK
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
Who is playing?
LIV Golf League 2023 - Full Field:
Aces
Dustin Johnson
Patrick Reed
Peter Uihlein
Pat Perez
Cleeks
Martin Kaymer (replaced by Laurie Canter for first event of the season due to injury)
Bernd Wiesberger
Graeme McDowell
Richard Bland
Hyflyers
Phil Mickelson
Cameron Tringale
James Piot
Brendan Steele
Majesticks
Henrik Stenson
Ian Poulter
Lee Westwood
Sam Horsfeld
Crushers
Byrson DeChambeau
Paul Casey
Charles Howell III
Anirban Lahiri
Iron Heads
Kevin Na
Scott Vincent
Sihwan Kim
Danny Lee
Smash
Brooks Koepka
Matthew Wolff
Jason Kokrak
Chase Koepka
Fireballs
Sergio Garcia
Abraham Ancer
Carlos Ortiz
Eugenio Chacarra
Range Goats
Bubba Watson
Talor Gooch
Harold Varner III
Thomas Pieters
Torque
Joaquin Niemann
Sebastian Munoz
Mito Pereira
David Puig
Ripper
Cameron Smith
Marc Leishman
Matt Jones
Jed Morgan
Stinger
Louis Oosthuizen
Charl Schwartzel
Branden Grace
Dean Burmester
Players not retained from 2022 LIV Golf season
- Oliver Bekker
- Itthipat Buranatanyarat
- Laurie Canter
- TK Chantananuwat (Amateur)
- Hennie Duplessis
- Oliver Fisher
- Justin Harding
- Yuki Inamori
- Sadom Kaewkanjana
- Phachara Khongwatmai
- Ryosuke Kinoshita
- Jinichiro Kozuma
- Shergo Al Kurdila
- Pablo Larrazabal
- Viraj Madappa
- Jediah Morgan
- Shaun Norris
- Andy Ogletree
- Wade Ormsby
- Adrian Otaegui
- Turk Pettit
- JC Ritchie
- Travis Smyth
- Ian Snyman
- Hudson Swafford
- Hideto Tanihara
- Blake Windred
- Kevin Yuan
Is it on TV?
LIV Golf has yet to be picked up by a major broadcaster in the UK, but viewers can watch the coverage for free via the newly-launched LIV Golf Plus app and LIV Golf Plus website.
LIV has signed a TV deal with The CW network - compared to UK comedy channel Dave - in the United States. The first round of action will be available on The CW App through smart TVs and mobile devices, with login or subscription required to watch. The second and third rounds will be available on The CW, as well as the app.
How much is the prize money?
The prize money for 2023 is up 63 percent to $405 million.
Each LIV Golf event will have a purse of $25 million - $20m for the individual event and $5 million for the team event. The Team Championship will have $50 million up for grabs. In addition to the 14 LIV Golf events, there are 11 international series, each boasting a $5 million purse.
The individual winner of each event will take home $4 million, while the winning team adds $3 million - $750,000 per player. Last place, 48th, in the individual standings will still take home $120,000.
The winning team from the Team Championship takes home $16 million, or $4 million per player.
Bonuses
Individual season finish bonuses will be given to the top three players, first takes home an extra $18 million, the runner-up banks $8 million and third takes home $4 million from the $30 million bonus pool.
Scoring
The individual events will see regular strokeplay scoring to decide the champion each week.
The team event will see the best two stroke play scores from each of the first two rounds count for each team. For the third and final round, the best three scores will count, with the lowest overall team score after 54 holes being named the team winner.
Each team has a captain with four players in total.
The Team Championship in Jeddah, the 14th event of the season, will see a seeded four-day, four-round, match play knock-out.
Points
Individual
The winner each week will pick up 40 points and only those inside the top 24 players – half of the 48-man field – will earn points. The leading points scorer after the 13 regular LIV Golf events will be crowned individual champion.
- 1st – 40 points
- 2nd – 30 points
- 3rd – 24 points
- 4th – 18 points
- 5th – 16 points
- 6th - 14 points
- 7th – 13 points
- 8th – 12 points
- 9th – 11 points
- 10th – 10 points
- 11th – 8 points
- 12th - 7 points
- 13th – 6 points
- 14th - 5 points
- 15th - 4 points
- 16th - 3 points
- 17th - 3 points
- 18th - 2 points
- 19th - 2 points
- 20th - 2 points
- 21st - 1 point
- 22nd - 1 point
- 23rd - 1 point
- 24th - 1 point
Team
To determine seeding for the Team Championship, teams will be awarded points for each event.
- 1st - 32 points
- 2nd - 24 points
- 3rd - 16 points
- 4th - 12 points
- 5th - 8 points
- 6th - 4 points
- 7th - 2 points
- 8th - 1 point
- 9th - 12th - no points
