More than a dozen PGA Tour players, including two-time major championDustin Johnson, are included in the field for the first LIV Golf Invitational Series event, which will be played next month outside of London.
LIV Golf released a list of 42 players. It also includes some of the best players on the PGA Tour.
The list of players released on Tuesday did not include Phil Mickelson. 48 players will compete in 12 teams of four players in LIV Golf's events. The final six spots will be filled by players invited by CEO Greg Norman and Asian Tour players.
The players who requested a release from the PGA Tour to compete in the first LIV Golf event were among the ones who won last year's PGA Championship. Lefty hasn't played on the tour since he missed the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open.
Norman, the two-time Open winner and former No. 1 player, and Talor Go are among the other players who will defy the PGA Tour by playing in the LIV Golf Invitational Series. Chase, the brother of Brooks, is among the participants.
The field also includes former Michigan State star James Piot, who won the U.S. Amateur.
The biggest surprise in the field was Johnson, who has 24 PGA Tour victories, including wins at the 2016 U.S. Open and 2020 Masters. Johnson issued a statement shortly after the controversy about the Saudi Arabian monarchy and the PGA Tour began, in which he said he was committed to the tour.
It is time to put the speculation to rest. I am committed to the tour and grateful for the opportunity to play.
His agent made a statement on Tuesday.
He decided it was in his and his family's best interest to pursue it. Dustin has never had an issue with the PGA Tour and is grateful for all it has given him, but in the end, felt this was too compelling to pass up.
Norman said in a statement that free agency has finally come to golf.
This is an opportunity to start a movement that will change the course of history by bringing new and open competition to the sport we all love. The desire shown by the players to participate in LIV Golf demonstrates their emphatic belief in our model and confidence in what we are building for the future, he said.
The initial LIV field is not as strong as Norman and his team had thought. Several top players on the tour pledged their loyalty to the tour.
England's Matt Fitzpatrick said Tuesday that he came away from the U.S. PGA with no interest in how much he made. I had a chance and I didn't take it, that kind of said a lot to myself, that I'm not bothered about anything out here.
For now, the sort of LIV Golf doesn't interest me because I want to win tournaments and have records. If the main tour becomes the main tour in five years, you might rethink your options. I'm out here to make sure I'm giving myself the best chance of winning tournaments, winning majors and going about my career like that.
On May 10, the PGA Tour denied conflicting event releases for its players to compete in the London event, which coincides with the Canadian Open in Ontario that week. Jay Monahan, the commissioner of the PGA Tour, has told players that they will face discipline, including potential suspensions and/or lifetime bans, if they compete in the breakaway tour.
The PGA Tour said in a memo to its players that Tour members are not authorized to participate in the Saudi Golf League. The decision is in the best interest of the PGA Tour and its players, as a membership organization.
The PGA Tour denied releases to its players, and Norman called it anti-golfer, anti-fan, and anti-competitive.
Norman believes that professional golfers should be allowed to play wherever they want. He said his legal team was prepared to challenge the PGA Tour in court.
Norman said that the PGA Tour seems intent on denying professional golfers their right to play golf, unless it's exclusively in a PGA Tour tournament. We will continue to give players options that promote the great game of golf.
Five tournaments will be played in the United States. There will be seven regular-season events and a team championship match play finale at Trump Doral in Miami. Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in Portland, Oregon is the location of the second LIV event.
There will be a maximum of 48 players on 12 four-man teams at each event, and rosters will be determined.
The total prize money for the eight events will be $255 million, and the seven regular-season tournaments will have total purses of $25 million, which would be the richest in professional golf, with $20 million in individual prizes and $5 million for the top three teams. The $30 million bonus will be shared by the top three individuals after the seven regular-season events.
$50 million in prizes will be provided by the season-ending team match-play championship.
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