OPENING ROUND MATCHUPS ANNOUNCED FOR 2022 LIV GOLF TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP
Eight Teams to Face Off Friday in Elimination Match Play at Trump National Doral Golf Club
Singles Matches Feature Phil Mickelson vs. Cameron Smith, Brooks Koepka vs. Harold Varner III, Joaquin Niemann vs. Martin Kaymer and Ian Poulter vs. Kevin Na
Eight Teams to Face Off Friday in Elimination Match Play at Trump National Doral Golf Club
Singles Matches Feature Phil Mickelson vs. Cameron Smith, Brooks Koepka vs. Harold Varner III, Joaquin Niemann vs. Martin Kaymer and Ian Poulter vs. Kevin Na
Miami, FL (October 26, 2022): LIV Golf today revealed the matchups for Friday’s quarterfinal round of the 2022 LIV Golf Team Championship, teeing-off October 28-30 at Trump National Doral Golf Club in Miami. Team opponents were announced at a captains’ press conference to kick-off this week’s three-day, knock-out tournament taking place at the iconic Blue Monster course, site of LIV Golf’s eighth and final event of the year.
For each head-to-head team matchup, three matches will take place: two singles matches and one alternate-shot (foursomes) match. All 32 players will compete simultaneously in a shotgun start and matches will be played until a winner is determined. Each match winner receives one point, and the first team to earn two points will advance to Saturday’s semifinals.
The first round of LIV Golf’s historic season-ending event will showcase some of the biggest names in golf squaring off. Six-time major winner Phil Mickelson will take on reigning Open Champion Cameron Smith as one of the day’s featured singles matches, which will also pit top Chilean pro Joaquin Niemann versus former world No. 1 Martin Kaymer. Ryder Cup legend Ian Poulter, serving as captain this week for Majesticks GC, will face Iron Heads GC captain Kevin Na. And four-time major winner Brooks Koepkawill play against Harold Varner III of Niblicks GC, led by non-playing captain Bubba Watson.
For each head-to-head team matchup, three matches will take place: two singles matches and one alternate-shot (foursomes) match. All 32 players will compete simultaneously in a shotgun start and matches will be played until a winner is determined. Each match winner receives one point, and the first team to earn two points will advance to Saturday’s semifinals.
The first round of LIV Golf’s historic season-ending event will showcase some of the biggest names in golf squaring off. Six-time major winner Phil Mickelson will take on reigning Open Champion Cameron Smith as one of the day’s featured singles matches, which will also pit top Chilean pro Joaquin Niemann versus former world No. 1 Martin Kaymer. Ryder Cup legend Ian Poulter, serving as captain this week for Majesticks GC, will face Iron Heads GC captain Kevin Na. And four-time major winner Brooks Koepkawill play against Harold Varner III of Niblicks GC, led by non-playing captain Bubba Watson.
As the highest-ranked team playing on Friday, Koepka’s fifth-seeded Smash GC was given the first selection for its opponent. Peter Uihlein, who finished third overall in the LIV Golf Individual Standings, will face James Piot of the 12th-ranked Niblicks in their second singles match. In the groups’ alternate-shot matchup, Smash GC’s Jason Kokrak and Chase Koepka will face Turk Pettit and Hudson Swafford in the day’s only all-American foursomes match.
The sixth-seeded Majesticks GC, the most experienced squad in the field with more than 2,000 starts amongst them, elected to take on the ninth-seed Iron Heads GC. Former world No. 1 Lee Westwood will square off against American Sihwan Kim, while Thai stars Sadom Kaewkanjana and Phachara Khongwatmai will pair up against 2016 Open Champion Henrik Stenson and English pro Sam Horsfield.
Seventh-seed Torque GC welcomes back to its lineup Spaniard Adrian Otaegui, winner of the recent Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters at Valderrama, where he shot a tournament-record 19 under par. Otaegui will pair up with Zimbabwe’s top pro Scott Vincent to take on two veterans with Cleeks GC: former U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell and England’s Richard Bland. Australia’s Jediah Morgan was selected for Torque GC’s second singles match, in which he’ll play Englishman Laurie Canter.
Big-hitting Matthew Wolff takes on Marc Leishman in the second singles match between Hy Flyers GC and Punch GC, while Bernd Wiesberger and Cameron Tringale will team up against Australians Matt Jones and Wade Ormsby in the foursomes.
The LIV Golf Invitational Series awarded points to teams based on their finish at each tournament, with values ranging from 32 points (first place) to 0 (9th-12th). Following the seventh and final regular season event, team standings determined seeds 1-12 for the Team Championship. Top-seeded 4 Aces GC (152 points – Captain Dustin Johnson), second seed Crushers GC (96 points – Captain Bryson DeChambeau), third seed Fireballs GC (93 points – Captain Sergio Garcia) and fourth seed Stinger GC (72 points – Captain Louis Oosthuizen) earned a bye and automatically advance to Saturday’s semifinals.
Following Friday’s results, team captains for the top four seeds and captains for the four quarterfinal match winners will convene, with the higher-seeded teams selecting their opponents for Saturday’s semifinal round. On Sunday, the 16 players from the four semifinal winners will compete in a shotgun-start round of stroke play. Players will compete in twosomes, team captains will play together, and all scores will count towards a team’s cumulative score. At the end of Sunday’s round, the team with the lowest score is the LIV Golf Invitational Series Team Champion.
Tickets are available at LIVGolf.com, where grounds passes are just $49 and are all-inclusive of the fan activities on site, including daily live music. Three-day grounds passes are also available for $115 which will offer up-close access to all of the action, from each day’s shotgun start to live entertainment to Sunday’s trophy ceremony and post-round celebration. Single-day and three-day hospitality packages for the popular Club 54 and Gallery Club experiences are also available.
The sixth-seeded Majesticks GC, the most experienced squad in the field with more than 2,000 starts amongst them, elected to take on the ninth-seed Iron Heads GC. Former world No. 1 Lee Westwood will square off against American Sihwan Kim, while Thai stars Sadom Kaewkanjana and Phachara Khongwatmai will pair up against 2016 Open Champion Henrik Stenson and English pro Sam Horsfield.
Seventh-seed Torque GC welcomes back to its lineup Spaniard Adrian Otaegui, winner of the recent Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters at Valderrama, where he shot a tournament-record 19 under par. Otaegui will pair up with Zimbabwe’s top pro Scott Vincent to take on two veterans with Cleeks GC: former U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell and England’s Richard Bland. Australia’s Jediah Morgan was selected for Torque GC’s second singles match, in which he’ll play Englishman Laurie Canter.
Big-hitting Matthew Wolff takes on Marc Leishman in the second singles match between Hy Flyers GC and Punch GC, while Bernd Wiesberger and Cameron Tringale will team up against Australians Matt Jones and Wade Ormsby in the foursomes.
The LIV Golf Invitational Series awarded points to teams based on their finish at each tournament, with values ranging from 32 points (first place) to 0 (9th-12th). Following the seventh and final regular season event, team standings determined seeds 1-12 for the Team Championship. Top-seeded 4 Aces GC (152 points – Captain Dustin Johnson), second seed Crushers GC (96 points – Captain Bryson DeChambeau), third seed Fireballs GC (93 points – Captain Sergio Garcia) and fourth seed Stinger GC (72 points – Captain Louis Oosthuizen) earned a bye and automatically advance to Saturday’s semifinals.
Following Friday’s results, team captains for the top four seeds and captains for the four quarterfinal match winners will convene, with the higher-seeded teams selecting their opponents for Saturday’s semifinal round. On Sunday, the 16 players from the four semifinal winners will compete in a shotgun-start round of stroke play. Players will compete in twosomes, team captains will play together, and all scores will count towards a team’s cumulative score. At the end of Sunday’s round, the team with the lowest score is the LIV Golf Invitational Series Team Champion.
Tickets are available at LIVGolf.com, where grounds passes are just $49 and are all-inclusive of the fan activities on site, including daily live music. Three-day grounds passes are also available for $115 which will offer up-close access to all of the action, from each day’s shotgun start to live entertainment to Sunday’s trophy ceremony and post-round celebration. Single-day and three-day hospitality packages for the popular Club 54 and Gallery Club experiences are also available.
Team Championship Format
Friday, October 28 – Quarterfinals
Teams seeded 1-4 will receive a bye
Teams seeded 5-12 will compete in head-to-head match-play competitions
Highest-ranked teams select their opponents
All 32 players amongst those eight teams will compete simultaneously in a shotgun start
For each head-to-head team match-up, 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
Teams earning two points will advance to Saturday’s Semifinals
Saturday, October 29 – Semifinals
Teams seeded 1-4 will join the winning four teams from Friday for another day of head-to-head team match play
Highest-ranked teams select their opponents
All 32 players amongst those eight teams will compete simultaneously 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 advance to the Team Championship
Sunday, October 30 – Team Championship
The four winning teams will compete in a shotgun-start round of stroke play
All 16 players will compete in twosomes, with Team Captains playing together
All four scores count towards the team’s score
At the end of Sunday’s round, the squad with the lowest team score is the LIV Golf Invitational Series Team Champion
