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LIV Golf and the PGA Tour went head-to-head this past weekend as the Saudi-backed tour kicked off its 2024 season in Mexico while the Pebble Beach Pro-Am represented the second signature event of the year for the latter.
And both tours did their very best to steal the headlines in what proved to be a manic weekend of professional golf.
Joaquin Niemann shot a historic round of 59 on the first round of LIV Golf Mayakoba on Friday and that was swiftly followed by a round of 60 from Wyndham Clark at Pebble Beach the following day.
Ironically, the PGA Tour event was cut short after just 54 holes due to adverse weather conditions.
LIV Golf’s event ended in darkness with Niemann beating Sergio Garcia on the fourth playoff hole.
GB News takes a look at five main talking points that arose from both tours over the weekend.
LIV Golf and the PGA Tour went toe-to-toe this weekend
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LIV’s music hit and miss
Tune into live coverage of LIV Golf and the first main difference fans will notice is the loud music boomed around the course while players are teeing off.
For some, the music is seen as a fun addition to try and liven up the sport. But for most, it forced them to watch the event on mute who felt it cheapened the tournament.
LIV Golf’s appeal is helped by the lack of a TV deal, meaning they can air the whole event without any adverts on their YouTube stream.
But the constant and uninterrupted cacophony proved a turn off for most tuning into LIV for the first time.
PGA Tour’s 54-hole nightmare
LIV’s ardent supporters couldn’t help but chuckle at one of the PGA Tour’s signature events for the year being reduced to a 54-hole event featuring no cut.
The PGA Tour announced last year that eight of their 2024 “designated” events – including Pebble Beach – will feature no cut in part as a reaction to LIV’s format.
But what the PGA desperately would have wanted to avoid is having one of those events dropped to just 54 holes – making it almost identical to the product on offer from LIV.
It’s a rarity for the PGA – it hasn’t happened since 2016 – but it’s almost poetic that it happened on the same weekend as LIV’s season-opening event.
LIV’s team format
A final leaderboard featuring the likes of Garcia, Niemann, Rahm, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Tyrrell Hatton, Cameron Smith and Louis Oosthuizen all inside the top-10 couldn’t have been a better advert for what LIV had to offer.
But the team format is still a tricky product to get behind when golf is such an individualistic sport.
When checking LIV’s website for the live leaderboard, you’re forced to click off the ‘team leaderboard’ for see the one that really matters to golf fans.
Rahm finished third in the individual event but won the team event with Hatton and Caleb Surratt.
A strange concept to still get behind.
LIV’s team format is still confusing to follow
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Niemann not in majors
The majors are for the world’s best golfers and Niemann is arguably one of the most in-form players right now – but he’s currently not set to play in The Masters.
There’s an argument to be had that Niemann knew what was at stake when he signed up for the breakaway league.
And the ‘I told you so’ brigade will feel slightly vindicated if Niemann does in fact end up missing out on playing at Augusta this year.
But golf ultimately misses out if the world’s best players aren’t competing at all four majors. That has to change.
Wyndham Clark was declared the winner after 54 holes
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PGA Tour players in-fighting
The £2.4billion investment into the PGA Tour last week led to some interesting “discussions” between the players – namely Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth.
The American golfer bluntly stated “we don’t need them now” when asked about the need to strike an agreement with LIV Golf backers, the Public Investment Fund.
McIlroy felt obliged to step in and speak out against Spieth’s remarks, insisting it was better to keep your enemies close.
But the in-house disagreement among two of the best golfers on the PGA only highlights the mess that they’ve found themselves in with LIV going nowhere.
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