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Spain this week. England next week. Then for at least 13 LIV Golf League regulars – and possibly more, depending on the outcome of next week’s Final Qualifying events – it’ll be the final major of the season, the Open Championship starting July 20.
The first full calendar meshing LIV Golf’s schedule with golf’s four majors is nearing its conclusion. By any measure, it’s been a very productive stretch for those League players competing in the sport’s biggest events.
Of the 51 entries involving LIV golfers in the first three majors, the results have included: one win (Brooks Koepka’s PGA Championship title), eight top 10s, 13 top 25s and a 65% success rate in making the cut. Those eight top 10s have involved six different players.
Koepka, whose PGA victory in May was his fifth career major title, said Wednesday during a press conference at LIV Golf Andalucía with fellow multiple major winners Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson that the balancing act of LIV events and majors has been a success in 2023.
“It’s been fantastic,” the Smash GC captain said. “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.”
Koepka started things by taking the 54-hole lead at the Masters in April before finishing tied for second with Mickelson, who shot a closing 7-under 65. Patrick Reed tied for fourth after his final-round 68.
Koepka then took command on the weekend at Oak Hill, shooting a 66 in the third round to take the lead and a 67 in the final round to close out the two-stroke victory. Bryson DeChambeau tied for fourth while Cameron Smith tied for ninth.
Smith then produced the best result of any LIV golfer two weeks ago at the US Open, finishing solo fourth while Johnson tied for 10th.
Johnson said that while the number of tournaments he’s playing has remained about the same as the previous seven or eight years, he’s enjoyed the off-weeks between events. From the first of April until the start of the Open, LIV will have played seven tournaments with seven off-weeks. In addition, thanks to the 54-hole format, LIV players receive seven extra days of prep work while on-site at their events.
“The schedule has been pretty good,” the 4Aces GC captain said. “We’ve had some breaks. There have been some stretches where we’ve played a lot, but we’ve also had some nice breaks, too.
“I was excited to come over here. We had a week off after the US Open, and then coming over here, we’ve got a couple of weeks, then get a nice break, and then obviously get ready for the Open Championship. I think our schedule has been really nice.”
Mickelson, the most decorated LIV Golf member with 57 career wins including six majors, turned 53 on Friday of the US Open. His best result this season is his runner-up finish at Augusta National.
“It’s been a pretty full schedule to me relative to what I was expecting it to be at 53,” the World Golf Hall of Famer said. “Playing 19 events this year with the four majors and the 14 LIV events and playing in Saudi Arabia earlier this year, so it’s been a lot of golf, but it’s been fun because there have been enough breaks in between to where I get excited to get back out there.
“We were talking with our teammates about how much we were looking forward to getting out here and playing and playing practice rounds together and competing again, so there’s enough of a time off in between where we get excited to get out here.”
Mickelson, Johnson and Koepka are among 13 LIV golfers who have already secured spots at next month’s Open at Royal Liverpool. In addition, 17 other League regulars, along with four of this year’s reserve players, will compete among the four qualifying events next week prior to LIV Golf London at Centurion Club.
With Smith leading the charge as defending Open champion, the final major promises to be as intriguing from the LIV Golf perspective as any of the previous three. A tournament such as this week at Valderrama should only help. Fireballs GC captain Sergio Garcia, a three-time winner at Valderrama and now a club member, calls his favourite course “major championship worthy.”
After the Open, four regular season League tournaments remain followed by the season-ending Team Championship, with a couple of lengthy stretches of off-weeks on the calendar as well.
“This is really a fun month for us to be over here in Europe,” said Mickelson, captain of HyFlyers GC. “We’ve got two incredible LIV events here this week at Valderrama and next week in London before a little break to prepare for the British Open. I’m expecting a lot of players that aren’t in the British to qualify, and then there are a lot of players here that will be competing.
“This will be an exciting month for the LIV players as we really make a push to the second half of our season, and it’s been a lot of fun.”
