LIV Golf: Anthony Kim, PGA Tour talks, and 5 storylines for rest of 2024 season

Surely, LIV hopes Kim can attract eyeballs. The state of his game will determine that. For some reason, his LIV debut is coming in the Middle East,∙instead of say, Miami, where the league will stop in early April.

4. Can the Shark land another big fish?

CEO Greg Norman revealed that LIV is pursuing 2024 Genesis Invitational winner Hideki Matsuyama — one of the brightest stars in Japan, a behemoth emerging golf market.

The Masters champ reportedly turned down hundreds of millions in 2022. In general, now that the unification of global golf is, theoretically, in the pipeline, you wonder if PIF’s globe-trotting, deep-pocketed enterprise can lure any more marquee talent, a la Rahm.

3. Major qualifying 

As the majors nears, the anti-Official World Golf Ranking chirping from the LIV peanut gallery feels like it’s getting louder.

Seconds after Niemann sank his putt to win $4 million at El Camaleón, he lamented the fact that LIV players face an uphill battle for major qualifying, as the league — predicated on small field, 54-hole no-cut events — remains unrecognized by OWGR.

“But I’m not in the majors,” he said on the 18th green. “I want to win majors, but I gotta get in first.”

Niemann, to his credit, clawed his way into the Masters. He entered — and won — non-LIV worldwide events (including the prestigious Australian Open), earning the attention of Augusta National. When the tournament announced Niemann’s special invite, his results on LIV went unmentioned.

On the flip side, Gooch, who pocketed $36 million on LIV in 2023 and is currently ranked 449th, is probably the best player not represented in the 2024 Augusta field. On account of his absence, Gooch believes this year’s edition warrants an “asterisk”. DeChambeau appears lost in the same PIF-dappled alternate universe.

LIV players, one would think, won’t stop voicing their displeasure until changes are enacted. Each of the four majors is run by a different entity, while the OWGR itself is an independent body — not an official metric of performance (it has experienced turnover in its leadership).

We’ll see if a solution is reached; perhaps a revamped rankings system exclusively for majors that accounts for LIV, or each major field reserves a few spots for LIV. Until then, Augusta’s justification for including Niemann appears intended to send a message: You took the easy way out, now grind your way back in.

2. Fan interest

As long as the tours are segregated, LIV detractors will continue to giddily post the meager viewership data across the CW, YouTube, and the LIV+ app (and now, Caffeine). In 2023, LIV stopped releasing ratings, though estimates had late-season events drawing fewer than 200,000 people. Phil, Brooks, Bubba, DJ, Bryson, LOUD NOISES, teams, logos, no-cuts — nothing has moved the needle.

Mayakoba was primed to draw a relatively robust audience. The PGA Tour’s AT&T Pebble Beach was rained out. It was Pro Bowl week in the NFL. Niemann, an exciting talent, was fending off Sergio and Rahm in the darkness. And yet, while LIV enjoyed its highest number ever, it paled in comparison to competitors in the live sports space. (By the way, the LIV broadcast is good! You can watch and track every shot, conversations between players and caddies are audible, there are no commercials, and Arlo White is a treasure).

In the immediate future, LIV will hope a combination of general fine-tuning, time, and star power (including Kim) will drive engagement.

Then again, any dent in the PGA Tour’s product, ratings, and relevance is a win for LIV.

1. About that framework agreement?

LIV’s disruption has undeniably diluted the PGA Tour. The absence of Rahm, etc. has been palpable at Signature Events, especially Riviera. Every tour winner in 2024 has been at least a 40-1 pre-tournament longshot. There will always be countless compelling stories for the junkies, but unheralded leaderboards are a tough sell to the casuals.

PIF, the PGA Tour, and the DP World Tour missed their Dec. 31 deadline to finalize the framework agreement they announced in June. Talks appeared to have stalled since the SSG investment. Department of Justice investigations are ongoing. McIlroy is preaching patience. Golfweek reported that a deal is more likely in 2025 … at the earliest.

So, this is where we’re at with LIV. At some point, it’ll be nice to be able to focus solely on the golf. That’s something everybody can agree on.