LIV Golf Nashville 2024 Preview, Picks & Analysis

It is another big week for LIV Golf. With chatter growing ever louder about some sort of a peace deal designed to finally end the rift that has ripped our sport apart, the breakaway tour arrives in Nashville for the first time.

The Grove’s course, designed by LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman, will welcome many of golf’s biggest stars, including 2023 Masters champion Jon Rahm as well as five-time major winner Brooks Koepka and the one and only Bryson DeChambeau, the new US Open champion. 

Incredibly, it has been nearly 80 years since golf of this stature was last played in Nashville.

It should come as a surprise to nobody that Joaquin Niemann has been the star of the show for LIV this year. He won the Australian Open at the end of last year and started 2024 with two victories on LIV.

He received invitations to play in The Masters and US PGA but failed to make it to the US Open. He missed out on qualifying in Jupiter, Florida. He finished a shot out of a playoff at The Bear’s Club, where PGA Tour veterans Matt Kuchar and Daniel Berger were among the group that played their way in. It was the first US Open Niemann has missed since 2019 and the first major he has missed in four years. And he will still be smarting.

Another notable absentee at Pinehurst was Carlos Ortiz. He won LIV Golf Houston the week before the US Open and pocketed $4 million. Ortiz tried to play his way in through the Dallas qualifier but fell short. "I’ve been playing great. It’s a shame I doubled the last hole to miss the qualifier - it hurt a lot," he said. "But I think with time, we’re going to get back into the majors because I know that I’m one of the best players in the world right now, and I deserve to be there. But the way things are happening right now, it’s kind of hard."

You will recall that Talor Gooch won three LIV titles in 2023 and was quick to say that majors played without members of his tour were not proper majors. Hmmm. He made his comments ahead of The Masters, a tournament to which he did not receive an invite. He did get into the field for the US PGA at Valhalla but hardly set the world alight, finishing in a tie for 60th place. Surprisingly for a golfer with such a high opinion of his own ability, Gooch did not even attempt to get to Pinehurst.

The Course:

The Grove is a stunning tree-lined course. Designed by Greg Norman, it is a par 72 measuring 7,438 yards. As you would expect from a Norman design, it features plenty of water and sand but it rewards straight driving. There will be some very low scoring.

Form Guide:

Joaquin Niemann is a genuinely world-class golfer who already has two wins to his name in 2024 and is one of the most consistent players on LIV. He will be there or thereabouts. And Bryson DeChambeau will still be on cloud nine after his Pinehurst heroics.

To Win:

Joaquin Niemann. Class act

Each Way:

Carlos Ortiz. Not short on self-belief

Each Way:

Bryson DeChambeau. Light the blue touch paper…

Five to Follow:

Joaquin Niemann. Wonderful short game

Carlos Ortiz. In form

Bryson DeChambeau. Golf’s great entertainer

Sergio Garcia. Showing some good signs

Talor Gooch. Has a point to prove