A number of household pros are rumoured to potentially ditch the prestigious PGA Tour in a big-money move to Saudi-backed rivals LIV Golf in 2025
The LIV Golf season comes to an end at the Team Championship in Dallas this week, and it is believed that the outfit will have a busy off-season in attracting more household names from the PGA Tour. Speaking at the season finale in Miami 12 months ago, Mickelson said that he had spoken with a number of stars from the PGA and the DP World Tours who were keen to make the switch to the newer promotion.
In the aftermath, the likes of Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton and Adrian Meronk signed deals with LIV, and golf fans could see more of the same this winter. Here, Mirror Golf breaks down all of the big names who have been linked with a move to LIV Golf ahead of the 2025 season…
Hideki Matsuyama
CEO of LIV Golf Investments, Greg Norman, has previously made his stance on signing Hideki Matsuyama incredibly clear. The Japanese pro, who is currently seventh in the Official World Golf Rankings, was confirmed as targeted by LIV Golf in February this year.
Speaking to Golf Digest, Norman admitted: “I’ll give you another example. We’ve been trying to get Hideki Matsuyama. I don’t mind admitting that. When Hideki won in L.A., what’s the first thing I did? I said, ‘Congratulations, Hideki. I’m proud of you, mate.”
Adam Scott
Golf Magic have reported that Australian Adam Scott could be targeted by LIV this winter due to him being “an established international player who is also a major champion” however, it may be tricky to tempt him to team up with the newer set-up. That’s because he’s a member of the PGA Tour’s policy board alongside Tiger Woods.
Viktor Hovland
Norwegian sensation Viktor Hovland has been on LIV Golf’s radar for many moons now, and he almost made the move to the tour earlier this year. However, he ultimately had cold feet citing how he may have regretted the move so early in his career.
He told Golf Monthly: “At the end of the day, the question is ‘What’s going to make me a better player?’ And hey, in 20 years, if I’m on the back end of my career, playing LIV Golf wouldn’t be too bad. It might have been a pretty cool opportunity but, right now, it’s something I think I’d probably look back [on] and regret.”
Rickie Fowler
Rickie Fowler has also been on Norman’s radar over the years, linked with a LIV move on a number of occasions. It is reported that he received a mega-money offer to make the switch, but he ultimately snubbed it to remain on the PGA Tour. Speaking on Netflix’s Full Swing, he admitted: “[Joining LIV] wasn’t the best choice for me.
Wyndham Clark
Wyndham Clark was backed to follow Rahm to LIV Golf in the 2024 offseason. While he ultimately decided to stick with the familiar PGA Tour, the 30-year-old Denver, Colorado native has admitted that he met with representatives of LIV previously. He said: “I definitely met with LIV and went through those discussions. I wanted to see what they could bring to the table.”
While Clark only has three PGA Tour wins to his name thus far, he pipped golfing legend Rory McIlroy to the US Open last year. It will be interesting to see if LIV come a-knocking this winter to acquire his services.
Tony Finau
It is reported that Tony Finau also came incredibly close to signing with LIV Golf this year. He ultimately decided to snub a move in favour of his tenth year with the PGA Tour, but with a four-month layoff for LIV chiefs to scout new members, his head could be turned for 2025
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