JEDDAH: The Saudi-backed LIV Golf company on Wednesday revealed the 12 teams from the 48-player field competing in the LIV Golf Invitational Portland, the tour’s second event of the season taking place from June 30 to July 2 at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in Oregon.
The LIV Golf Invitational Series features teams of four where players compete as individuals and teams for both points and prize money. Captains and teams are finalized the week of each event, as each tournament may showcase a different field.
In the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational London at Centurion Club, Stinger GC, with captain Louis Oosthuizen and fellow South Africans Charl Schwartzel, Hennie du Plessis and Branden Grace, took first place with a total score of 20-under par. The four players will again compete together to defend the first-ever team title against a field that showcases a variety of new team captains and rosters, as well as major champions and rising stars making their debut.
Every team has a LIV Golf-appointed team captain who selects his squad. All members of the four-player teams, including the captain, compete in the three-day tournament. The player with the lowest 54-hole stroke play total is the individual winner. In the team competition, the best two stroke play scores in the first two rounds will count for each team. For the third and final round, the best three scores will count. The lowest overall team score after 54 holes is the team winner.
Below are the team profiles for the LIV Golf Invitational Portland:
STINGER GC: All four players were born in South Africa. Stinger GC won the inaugural team competition at the LIV Golf Invitational London. Stinger members also took the top three spots on the individual leaderboard (1-Charl Schwartzel, 2-Hennie du Plessis, 3-Branden Grace).
CRUSHERS GC: New LIV Golf member Bryson DeChambeau takes over as captain. DeChambeau replaces Peter Uihlein, who led the team to a runner-up finish in London. Uihlein, fourth individually in London, remains on the team. Newcomers include South Africans Shaun Norris (formerly of 4 Aces) and Justin Harding (formerly of Hy Flyers).
MAJESTICKS GC: Lee Westwood takes over for Ian Poulter as captain of the all-English team. Poulter remains on the team, as does Laurie Canter and Sam Horsfield. Majesticks GC finished third in London and Horsfield was the top Majesticks player, finishing fifth individually. Combined, the players have made more than 1,600 starts professionally.
TORQUE GC: This team has an entirely new lineup consisting of four players born in Japan. Hideto Tanihara (formerly of Iron Heads GC) takes over for Talor Gooch as captain. Other new players include Ryosuke Kinoshita (formerly of Punch GC), Jinichiro Kozuma (formerly of Smash GC) and Yuki Inamori (making his LIV Golf debut). Combined, they’ve made nearly 1,000 starts professionally.
4 ACES GC: Captain Dustin Johnson is the only carryover from London. His new team now includes three fellow Americans — Patrick Reed, Pat Perez and Talor Gooch. Reed and Perez are making their LIV Golf debuts and Gooch was formerly the Torque GC captain. Reed (2018) and Johnson (2020) have won two of the last five Masters. Combined, the four players have made more than 1,350 worldwide starts in professional events.
CLEEKS GC: Martin Kaymer remains captain and Ian Snyman is also a carryover from London. New team members include Scott Vincent (formerly of Smash GC) and Turk Pettit (formerly of Niblicks GC). Snyman and Vincent were among six players who qualified for the LIV Golf Invitational London through the International Series. The four teammates are from different countries — Germany (Kaymer), South Africa (Snyman), Vincent (Zimbabwe) and Pettit (US).
PUNCH GC: Wade Ormsby (captain), Matt Jones and Blake Windred are carryovers from London. Jediah Morgan (formerly of Fireballs GC) joins the now all-Australian team. Punch loses its top performer from London, Ryosuke Kinoshita (T-13th individually).
NIBLICKS GC: Captain Graeme McDowell is the only carryover from London. His new roster consists of Travis Smyth (formerly of Crushers GC), Hudson Swafford (formerly of Torque GC) and James Piot (formerly of Fireballs GC). McDowell was his team’s top performer in London, finishing T-10 individually.
SMASH GC: New LIV Golf member Brooks Koepka takes over as captain of a team with an entirely new roster of players. His younger brother Chase Koepka (formerly of Hy Flyers GC) joins the team, as does Richard Bland (formerly of Crushers GC) and Adrian Otaegui (formerly of Torque GC). Otaegui finished T-6 individually in London.
HY FLYERS GC: Captain Phil Mickelson gets three new members with Matthew Wolff making his LIV Golf debut. Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger (former of Niblicks GC) and Thailand’s Itthipat Buranatanyarat (formerly of Smash GC) join the two Americans. Mickelson and Wolff are former NCAA Division I men’s golf champions.
FIREBALLS GC: Sergio Garcia is the lone carryover. The Spaniard remains captain of a team that includes three players making their LIV Golf debuts and all four players are from Spanish-speaking countries. Abraham Ancer and Carlos Ortiz are from Mexico, and Eugenio Chacarra is from Spain. Chacarra, the number-two ranked amateur making his pro debut in Portland, considers Garcia a mentor. Ancer and Ortiz competed in the Tokyo Summer Olympics in 2021, while Garcia competed in the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.
IRON HEADS GC: Kevin Na (captain) and Sadom Kaewkanjana are carryovers from London. Newcomers include Sihwan Kim (formerly Smash GC captain) and Phachara Khongwatmai (formerly of Crushers GC). Na and Kim were born in Seoul, South Korea, and each moved to California at a young age. Khongwatmai and Kaewkanjana are from Thailand.
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