The LIV Golf Invitational Series is halfway through its inaugural season after wrapping up its fourth event this past weekend near Boston, Massachusetts. With the conclusion of the event, won by two-time major champion Dustin Johnson, we bring you three storylines that came out of the Series’ fourth event as they reach the midway point in its first year.
New Addition Cam Smith Enjoys Himself
There were a handful of new golfers teeing it up this week on the LIV Tour, none bigger than the 2022 Open Champion Cam Smith. The Aussie appeared to enjoy his debut and jump from the PGA Tour, appeared to enjoy the laid-back atmosphere and relaxed golfing conditions you can’t find on the PGA Tour.
Smith was all smiles heading into the shotgun start on Friday and he was a fan favorite at the New England track. The No. 2 ranked player in the world wrapped up his LIV debut with a 14-under, T4 finish.
Smith’s comments echo what many are beginning to believe in the world of golf. LIV isn’t going to be going away anytime soon and its threat to the PGA and DP World Tour continues to grow.
LIV Continues to Break the Trend
Greg Norman and the LIV have wanted to break many of the golf trends they felt hindered the growth of the sport. From shotgun starts to no-cut events, the Series has already created chaos on the PGA Tour as the flagship tour quickly adapted its schedule and events more inline with LIV.
A new wrinkle for this week was the golfer’s ability to wear shorts during competition if they chose to. This was a continued attempt at the LIV to be as anti-PGA as possible, as Tour pros aren’t allowed to show legs during competition.
Phil Mickelson noted that the option to wear shorts was a “long time coming” for golf. However, many of the players participating in last week’s event continued to wear the traditional pants for the duration of the tournament.
Dustin Johnson Grabs Victory in Wild Finish
The biggest storyline of the weekend was Dustin Johnson’s epic eagle putt in a three-man playoff on the 18th green to capture his first LIV title. Johnson became the first American to win a LIV event and has now wracked up over $10 million dollars in just four events.
Johnson, who was the highest ranking golfer to make the jump to the series when it opened up in London earlier this year, fired a 15-under over three days to defeat Anirban Lahiri and Joaquin Niemann in extra holes. The victory was the first for Johnson in 19 months.
D.J. ‘s victory also helped his team, the 4 Aces, capture the team title and divide $5 million between the four players. Johnson, along with Talor Gooch, Pat Perez, and Patrick Reed, finished with a three-day team total of 32 under par. The tally was two shots clear of the second-place team, the Crushers GC, captained by Bryson DeChambeau.
