The winning team – 4 Aces – Talor Gooch, Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed and Pat Perez
The controversial LIV GOLF Tour ended its first year with its US$ 50mn Team Championship at the famous Trump National Doral GC in Miami, Florida.
Four teams made it through to the final, which switched to a stroke-play format in which all four players’ scores counted. The final was won by Dustin Johnson’s 4 Aces, with former Masters champion Patrick Reed, Talor Gooch and Pat Perez. The four players split US$ 16mn between them.
Final podium of 2022! #LIVGolf #LIVGolfMiami pic.twitter.com/U6O5W45G4K
— LIV Golf (@LIVGolfInv) October 30, 2022
LIV GOLF has become the biggest story in all of sport in 2022, with the talk being mostly about the unheard sums of money players are earning. The season reportedly cost PIF, the Saudi Public Investment Fund $784Mn and Dustin Johnson himself has earned just over US$ 35 mn for the year, not counting the guarantee figure he was promised, to sign up with LIV. In contrast , Tiger earned just over US$20 mn in his most lucrative season, including a US$10mn Fedex Cup winning bonus.
By the end of 2023, the total expense for LIV GOLF is expected to hit the US$2 Bn mark as LIV has announced a 14 event LIV Golf League on the lines of Formula 1.
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Anirban Lahiri, who’s team Crushers, played at Doral was captained by Bryson DeChambeau and includes Paul Casey and Charles Howell III, but were eliminated in the semifinals. Lahiri and Howell III lost to the South African duo of Charles Schwartzel and Hennie du Plessis of team Stinger while DeChambeau lost his match against Louis Oosthuizen on the 23rd hole.
The Final was full of excitement and came down to the last hole with Dustin Johnson and British Open champion Cameron Smith just a stroke apart. When Johnson safely made par, his team won by a single stroke. Johnson, Reed and Gooch all shot two-under 70s and Pat Perez had a one-under 71. The 4 Aces winning team’s seven-under aggregate was one stroke lower than Punch GC despite their captain Cameron Smith shooting the best round of the day with a seven-under 65. He was backed up by a two-under from Matt Jones but Wade Ormsby shot a one-over 73 and Marc Leishmanstumbled with a two-over 74.
How the Finals money was divided :
WIN: $16 Million ($4,000,000 per player)
2nd: $8 Million ($2,000,000 per player)
3rd: $6 Million ($1,500,000 per player)
4th: $4 Million ($1,000,000 per player)
While the quarterfinals and semifinals were matchplay battles, the two teams in the final played stroke play with all four players’ scores counting toward the team total.
Credits:-
Photo – GolfWeek USA Today