(Image by: livgolf_league)
What helps make LIV Golf unique is the team element that it provides. Whilst much of the spotlight often falls on the individual events, throughout each of the 13 tournaments that help comprise the LIV season, there is a team bonus for the team that performs the best with up to $4 million on offer at each tournament.
The real meaning of those team rankings now take full effect as it is the turn of the teams to take centre stage and for those that have performed well, they have a golden chance of getting their hands on the $14 million first place prize that is up for grabs this weekend.
Set to take place across Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the past two Team Championships have been held at Trump Doral down in Miami, however this year will see a new course host the event with the LIV bandwagon rolling down to Texas and the Maridoe Golf Club.
With team pride on the line, there is plenty to play for. With a new format exclusive to this year’s event, here is our guide of everything you need to know.
The course
A change of scene greets the best players on the LIV Tour as for the first time, LIV will head into Texas. A state that prides itself on doing everything bigger, the Maridoe Golf Club is a fitting location for the team finale and should provide a stern test.
Set around a giant lake, water and trees will play a key part in proceedings this week and there are plenty of holes that can reward brave play, but if a player errs offline theirs and their team's hopes may end up meeting a watery end.
Measuring over 7,500 yards, Maridoe is one of the longest courses on the current LIV rotation and it could end up being a bombers paradise this week.
(Image by: crushers_gc)
What is the format?
Unlike traditional team matchplay events which we have become accustomed to seeing at popular team events such as the Presidents, Solheim and Ryder Cups, the format for the LIV Team Championship comprises a mixture of matchplay and stroke play formats. With each day taking on a different format, there is plenty to get your head round.
The three days of action will look like the below and are made up of a quarterfinal, semifinal and overall final.
Quarter-Finals
- Teams seeded 1-3 will receive a bye
- Teams seeded 4-13 will compete in head-to-head match-play competitions
- Highest-ranked teams select their opponents
- All 40 players among those 10 teams will compete in a shotgun start
- For each head-to-head team matchup, three matches will take place: two singles matches and one alternate-shot (foursomes) match
- Matches will be played until a winner is determined; there will be no ties. Each match winner receives one point
- The five teams earning two points will advance to Saturday’s semifinals
Semi-Finals
- Teams seeded 1-3 will join the winning five teams from Friday for another day of head-to-head team match play
- Highest-ranked teams select their opponents via draft
- All 32 players among those eight teams will compete in a shotgun start
- Teams compete in the same format as Friday: two singles matches and one alternate-shot (foursomes) match, with each match winner receiving one point
- Matches will be played until a winner is determined; there will be no ties
- The four teams earning two points will compete for the Team Championship title in Sunday’s finals
Team Championship Final
- All 52 players among the 13 teams will compete in a shotgun start with one round of stroke play
- All four individual scores count towards the team’s score
- The four semifinal winners will compete for 1st through 4th place
- The four teams defeated in the semifinals compete for 5th through 8th place
- The five teams defeated in the quarterfinals compete for 9th through 13th place
- Prizes are awarded to teams based on their finishing position
- The lowest team score on Sunday among the four teams that advanced to the finals is crowned the 2024 LIV Golf League Team Champions
(Image by: legionxiiigc)
Who are the favourites?
Two teams are currently tied at the top of the betting, Crushers GC and Legion XIII.
Heading into the team finale, it is the Crushers who are hoping to defend the title they won last year, led by the inspirational figure of Bryson DeChambeau, the US Open winner is backed up by the steady and experienced hands of Paul Casey, Anirban Lahiri and Charles Howell III.
Although nobody from the Crushers has been able to take home an individual title, the trio of DeChambeau, Casey and Lahiri have been a consistent force near the top of the leaderboards all season and have helped their team finish on top of the pile for the second successive season.
There will be frustrations that nobody has been able to capture individual glory, but they will be hoping to get over that disappointment with a bold showing this weekend.
Jon Rahm is looking to create history this weekend by becoming the first man to capture individual and team titles. The captain of the newly formed Legion XIII team, Rahm’s performances are a real reason as to why his team have finished at the top of the team table. However, it hasn’t been just the exploits of Rahm that have helped put Legion XIII on the map. He has been ably supported by his Ryder Cup teammate Tyrell Hatton and the two of them have helped form one of the most deadliest duos that has been seen on the LIV Tour.
Kieran Vincent and American youngster Caleb Surratt help fill out the third and fourth places of the team and they will need to certainly do their part if Legion XIII are to complete a memorable first season.Completing the top three in the betting is Ripper GC and the Australian based franchise which is led by Cam Smith will also be hoping for a successful end to the season. Similarly to the four players that make up the Crushers, nobody from Ripper GC has been able to get their hands on an individual prize and they will also hope to finish off their season with a flourish with victory this weekend.
A keen golfer and huge fan of the game, Jack has been covering golf for the last five years. Bringing you all the latest coverage and news from the PGA, LIV, LPGA and DP World Tours, never before has golf been so popular and Jack can’t wait to bring all the excitement to his readers.
Jack Hartman
