Does LIV Golf Harm Players in Major Championships

View From The Fairway by Derek Clements

So what on earth are we to make of the performance of LIV golfers in majors?

It is a question worth asking after Jon Rahm’s meltdown at the US PGA Championship after doing so much good work to reel in world number one Scottie Scheffler. To find the water at the par-three 17th hole was unforgivable. To repeat the offence at the final hole was even worse.

There is little doubt that since joining LIV, Rahm’s form has suffered.

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He has gone from the top of the world rankings to 74th in the world. It goes without saying that there is no way that reflects his real standing in the game but I always had concerns about the impact the move would have on the Spaniard, who is a highly competitive individual with proper fire in his belly.

Does he get enough competitive golf by competing in LIV’s 54-hole tournaments? The evidence suggests that he does not.

It is widely expected that he will be given a wild-card pick by European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald but it has to be said that there are many other European golfers with a better claim.

Since joining LIV, Rahm has played in five majors. He missed last year’s US Open through ill health and missed the cut at the 2024 US PGA Championship. As defending champion at The Masters in 2024 he finished the week in a tie for 45th place. Yes, he finished tied seventh at The Open last year but he was never in contention to win.

Would he have given Scheffler a tougher challenge at Quail Hollow if he were still a full-time member of the PGA Tour? We will never know the answer to that but one thing is for certain - winning a LIV tournament is far easier than claiming a PGA Tour title in a full-field event. And that is something Rahm hasn’t done since The Masters way back in 2023.

Scheffler has played in 21 majors as a professional. He has won three times, finished second twice, and third once. He has missed just one cut, at the 2022 US PGA. He has finished in the top 10 on an incredible 14 occasions.

There are those who will point to the successes of Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau as proof that joining LIV has not damaged their prospects at the highest level.

I would suggest that the evidence says something entirely different.

Where to start?

Tyrrell Hatton is as good as anybody. Yes, he has enjoyed success on the DP World Tour but when it comes to the majors he has developed an unfortunate habit of getting himself into contention, only to lose his cool and blow his chances. And it happened yet again during the second round at Quail Hollow. Having done a heap of good work he came to the 18th hole (his ninth of the day) and hit his drive into the creek. He then swore and spat at his club. As anybody would do - NOT! As he progressed down the hole his behaviour went from bad to worse. He lost the plot completely, ran up a seven and was never a factor again.

Quite frankly, his record in the majors is dire and has certainly shown no signs of improving since he joined LIV.

Phil Mickelson tells us that Joaquin Niemann is actually the best golfer on the planet. Oh yeah? A serial winner with LIV, his record in the majors is dreadful. He managed to finish eighth at Quail Hollow - and that is his best finish by a distance. There have been seven missed cuts and a previous best of tied 16th at The Masters in 2023. It is hardly earth-shattering, is it?

Since joining LIV, Dustin Johnson’s form and world ranking have fallen off a cliff. He won 24 times on the PGA Tour and claimed two majors, the most recent of which was The Masters in 2020. Since joining LIV and including The Masters in 2023, there have been 10 majors and DJ has missed the cut in five of them. At the end of 2020 he was the world’s top-ranked golfer. Now? 835th.

Mickelson was another who missed the cut at Quail Hollow, taking four shots to escape from a greenside bunker along the way. Patrick Reed and Martin Kaymer also spent the weekend twiddling their thumbs.

But if you are looking for a golfer who perhaps best sums up my argument then look no further than Australia’s Cameron Smith. When he won The Open at St Andrews in 2022 it was his third victory of the year. He also won the Tournament of Champions with rounds of 65, 64, 64 and 65 for a total of 258 - an incredible 34 under par. The man he defeated by a solitary shot was Rahm. He also won the Players Championship.

Not long after picking up the Claret Jug it was confirmed that he was joining LIV. He initially continued his excellent form, winning three times with LIV between September 2022 and August 2023. But he has missed the cut at his last three majors - the 2024 Open, and at both The Masters and US PGA and looks to be a shadow of the golfer he was three years ago. When he won The Open he was second in the world rankings. He is now 163rd.

It was interesting to hear Englishman Richard Bland say that his game had actually improved since joining LIV - but Bland is 52 years old and was probably ready for an easier schedule after years grinding it out on the DP World Tour.

DeChambeau is the only LIV golfer who can legitimately claim that his form at the highest level has actually improved - he missed the cut at the 2024 Open, but was tied sixth at The Masters the same year, finished second to Xander Schauffele in a thrilling US PGA, broke Rory McIlroy’s heart at the US Open, finished tied fifth at this year’s Masters (when he led during the final round) and was tied second at Quail Hollow.

I would argue that this is because the sparse LIV schedule gives DeChambeau more time to work on his game - and there is no golfer on the planet who hits more golf balls than the big-hitting American. I would seriously doubt that the likes of Johnson and Smith are doing the same thing. My conclusion is that LIV may be great for your bank balance but harms your major prospects.