The offseason is officially upon us, and while LIV fans are still able to see some of their favourites on The DP World Tour, like Tyrrell Hatton winning at St. Andrew’s for a third time, or The Asian Tour which John Catlin has taken by storm, there remain several questions we want answered in anticipation of next season.
With potential merger discussions happening behind closed doors and only tidbits of information leaking through informal comments, we want to shift focus and examine big predictions for 2025 on subjects where we know change is imminent, if not outright expected. This includes what the field looks like for 2025, future tournaments and courses, extracurricular activities, and the growth of the team aspect of LIV.ย
Who Will be LIVโs Next Big Signing?
LIV will undoubtedly try to sign another big name, preferrable someone currently in the Top 10 of the OWGR.
Hideki Matsuyama likely remains Greg Normanโs top target as thereโs no surprise the league is looking to become more internationally focused rather than American-centric.
More specifically, itโs no secret that LIV desperately wants to expand into Japan which has untapped potential to be one of the most popular Asian countries for golf alongside South Korea.
Matsuyama remains the big fish for LIV, the question LIV hasnโt been able to answer in the correct manner is exactly what Matsuyama wants to make the jump.ย
Viktor Hovland is another name that has been repeatedly tied to joining LIV since the end of the 2023 PGA Tourโs season. While Hovland would likely not command his own team, his age and recent success in 2023 make him a prime target for LIV.
Hovland also sits in 8th place in the OWGR which would make him eligible for all four majors next year.
Until a new points regime is adopted or LIV tournaments are made eligible for points, Hovlandโs current placement in the OWGR is a crucial aspect to growing the LIV brand through successful showings at major championships.
No one can say with absolute certainty who LIVโs next big signing will be, but I have a name in mind who is not among the Top 25 of the OWGR, and who I believe should be LIVโs prime target.
The name is an ultra-rare mix of high-end potential, instant ability to win, and already commands a sizeable following.
Stay tuned for a future article on who that golfer is and why he or she should be LIVโs number one priority.ย
What Will the Rest of the 2025 Schedule Look Like?
Whatโs Already Been Announced
LIV has already announced the first four tournaments of the 2025 schedule, and the results are a mixed bag.
We know that LIV will have a tournament every year in Saudi Arabia, though the tournament will move to the KSAโs capital Riyadh for the first time. The season opener has been confirmed for February 6 โ 8.
Adelaide, the crown jewel of LIV venues, remains the most attended and viewed tournament two years running.
Cam Smithโs Ripper start the season as defending team champions, a status that will only increase the all-Aussie teamโs stardom and fan following.
The only surprise is the new date, February 14 โ 16, which takes place at the end of Australiaโs summer.
Hong Kong (March 7 โ 9) and Singapore (March 14 โ 16) were a bit of a surprise to be honest. We have to imagine both tournaments were well received by viewers which led to keeping both on the 2025 schedule.
It is important for LIV to keep a foothold on already established Asian venues, retaining those two tournaments might be seen a short-term loss, banking on increased crowds and viewership in the near future.ย
Returning Venues
The following tournaments featured in 2024 seem to be virtual locks for 2025: Nashville, UK, Andalucia, Chicago, Miami, and the Team Championship in Dallas.
The American tournaments seem to attract the crowds and viewers especially the regular season finale in Chicago which set new records in attendance in the US. JCB in the UK is rumoured to have a multiyear deal with LIV, and Andalucia is one of LIVโs best courses and a home-field advantage for LIV captains Sergio Garcia and Jon Rahm.
New Adventures
For 2025 I fully expect LIV to return to Mexico, but perhaps move away from Mayakoba.
The likely destinations would be a premium course near Mexico City or Riviera Maya where the NFLPA hosted their second annual NFLPA Classic in 2024.ย
On the Asian front, itโs time for LIV to host a tournament in Japan. I expect the delay in announcing a Japanese venue is directly connected to LIVโs ongoing attempts to sign Japanโs most popular golfer, Hideki Matsuyama.
A LIV Japan event would likely be announced concurrently with the former Masters winnerโs signing to create as much media buzz as possible.ย
Lastly, LIV should reestablish their tournament in Washington DC. LIV DC 2023 was a huge success and serves a golf-starved community that encompasses the District of Columbia, Virginia, and Maryland.
After abandoning the Washington DC area for several years, the PGA Tour finally awarded Maryland another tournament for 2025, The BMW Championship, to take place at the end of the PGA Tourโs season.
LIV should take note that this area of the country will show up in force when offered the opportunity to do so.ย
What Will LIV Representation at The Ryder Cup Look Like?
Recent peace talks have opened the door for additional American and European LIV golfers to rejoin The Ryder Cup which takes places in New York September 25 โ 28 in New York.
Brooks Koepka was The United Statesโ lone representative from LIV in 2023, having recently won The PGA Championship that same year.
The early scuttlebutt is that 2024 US Open winner Bryson DeChambeau will be a shoo-in to represent The United States in 2025 and Brooks Koepka remains a strong option to return.
Both golfers are set to take on Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler in a 2v2 exhibition later this year, thus further strengthening interleague relations, if only a tad.ย
US Captain Keegan Bradley likely has one qualifying policy in mind at this point: win a major championship and youโre in.
That seems obvious to most fans, but Bradley should also consider how LIV golfers are doing on their own tour rather than just looking at the OWGR.
For example, Brooks Koepka was the only American LIV golfer to win twice last year; that doesnโt happen by accident.
A single win on any tour can be pure luck, but if you win twice in the same season, youโre legitimately one of the elite players for that year.ย
The same could be said for the European side, especially when talking about Jon Rahm. Rahm was LIVโs lone European golfer to win twice last year, ultimately culminating in winning the season-long individual championship.
Also like Kopeka, Rahm did participate in the last Ryder Cup, helping Europe beat The United States 16 ยฝ – 11 ยฝ.
One of Europeโs all-time greats in Sergio Garcia has recently made verbal commitments to do whatever it takes to rejoin Team Europe for New York.
While Garcia is unlikely to win a major championship in 2025, his body of work in LIV last season included a win in Andalucia and three runner-up finishes, culminating in an overall 3rd place finish for the 2024 individual standings.
Garciaโs current form and history with The Ryder Cup should make him a front-runner to rejoin Team Europe.
US Predictions: Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson
Europe Predictions: Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton, Sergio Garcia, Paul Casey
Following Legion XIIIโs Instant Success, Will There Be Another Expansion Team?
The simple answer is yes, with a more complicated โbut it dependsโ trailer.
In the past, LIVโs top players have been awarded their own teams as an incentive to join LIV. Originally, there was Dustin Johnsonโs 4 Aces, Phil Mickelson and the HyFlyers, and so on continuing into 2023.
LIV considers top players and future captains to usually be defined as former multiple major championship winners who also received the biggest money offers to make the jump to LIV.
Circling back to the question at hand, the answer depends on if thereโs another Jon Rahm-type signing before the start of the 2025 season.
It would be a certainty that golfers like Scheffler, Schauffele, McIlroy, and Matsuyama would be awarded their own expansion team.ย
These are golfers who command a huge following both on the course and in television viewership numbers.
McIlroy and Matsuyama have unique nationwide followings, something LIV is always keen to pick up on as the league seeks international expansion on a yearly basis.ย
Is This Really the Last We See of Bubba Watson and Branden Grace?
How do you kick a team captain, who owns a significant portion of a popular team, out of LIV? Thatโs the biggest question facing LIV when talking about two-time Masters winner Bubba Watson, captain of the RangeGoats.
Watson and LIV will need to conduct offseason meetings to discuss if the former is ready to retire from his playing career and take on a full-time managerial position, or jump into broadcasting as a part-time gig.
While Watson is a popular personality who works to provide plenty of online content for his RangeGoats including fan giveaways and RangeGoats fan events like the one in Chicago, the results on the course since joining LIV have been disappointing.
This is pure speculation, but since LIV did a 180 on their own policy that captains could not be relegated out of the league so suddenly and so close to the end of the 2024 season, I see the possibility of LIV reversing the policy without warning.
I would expect to see Bubba Watson playing in RangeGoatsโ pink and black next season.
Then thereโs Branden Grace who had been one of the fieldโs best since the inaugural season, finishing 2nd overall in 2022 and 9th overall in 2023.
While Grace has the past success in LIV that Watson lacks, he does not enjoy status as a team captain and likely does not have the same protection clauses in his contract that team captains would normally enjoy.ย
Grace, who is currently ranked 26th in The International Series, will need to compete in the remaining tournaments and earn a chance to rejoin LIV through the LIV Promotions Event.
February canโt come soon enough, but until then keep an eye on The International Series and LIV Promotions Event later this year to see who earns their way into the league.
Should there be a shocking (or predicted) signing we will keep you informed of the details and the subsequent effects on LIV.
Also expect the remainder of the 2025 schedule to trickle out as we get closer to the end of the year.
