This Week in Golf: A Whopping $50m jackpot up for grabs at LIV Golf Team Championship in Dallas

The event promises a thrilling conclusion to the season as teams clash in a unique knockout format, making every match crucial in the battle for golf’s biggest payday as The Challenge Tour is in Italy

By Nick Tarratt Khaleej Times Guest Golf Writer

Published: Tue 17 Sep 2024, 6:57 PM

We can start at no other place than Dallas, Texas this week with LIV Golf’s Team Championship to be held from Friday promising to provide a thrilling conclusion to the 2024 season.

With a mind-boggling $50 million prize fund at stake, the competition will be fierce over the three-day event.

The format is a unique blend of knockout match play and stroke play, where teams go head-to-head across the course, adding excitement and unpredictability to every match. As players battle it out, each hole could shift the momentum, creating a dramatic atmosphere until the very last putt on Sunday night.

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In the LIV Golf Team Championship, the top three teams from the season-long LIV Golf Team Rankings — Crushers GC, Legion XIII, and Ripper GC — have earned byes for Friday's opening round, giving them a direct path to Saturday's action. The remaining teams, seeded 4 through 13, will battle head-to-head in match play on Friday.

All 40 players on the 10 teams playing on Friday will tee off in a shotgun start. There will be three matches – two singles matches and an alternate shot format.

Each match winner receives one point and the five teams that earn two points make it to Saturday’s semi-finals.

The semi-finals are the same format – all 32 players will compete – and the four teams that earn two points will compete for the Team Championship on Sunday.

The finals on Sunday include all 13 teams, each playing 18 holes of stroke play. The winning team comes from the top four teams and the rest of the team positions are determined according to their final day ranking.

The winning team will take home $14 million, with payouts for the remaining teams as follows: Second: $8 million, Third: $6 million, Fourth: $4 million, Fifth: $3.25 million, Sixth: $3 million, Seventh: $2.75 million, Eighth: $2.5 million, Ninth: $2 million, Tenth: $1.65 million, Eleventh: $1.3 million, Twelfth: $950,000, and Thirteenth: $600,000.

It has been another successful season for LIV Golf – well done to all – the momentum of fan support certainly seems to be growing.

As a golf fan, I just hope this week’s Team Championship does not get too complicated to follow.

Golf fans like me require a simple format – that can easily be followed remotely. If you attend a LIV Golf event, as I know, it is exciting and there is a real buzz throughout the property. It is argued by many, that despite the excellent TV broadcast coverage – it is difficult to dip in and out of the coverage.

We wish all teams the best – especially Dubai-based players Anirban Lahiri (Crushers GC) and Adrian Meronk (Cleeks GC).

The PGA Tour takes a week off ready for the Presidents Cup next week in Canada.

The Challenge Tour is in Italy – with Dubai players Garrick Porteous (Eng) and Joshua Grenville-Wood (UAE) looking to move up the Road to Mallorca Rankings from 36th and 66th respectively, with only four more events before the Rolex Challenge Tour Grand Final in Spain after which the top 20 players in the season-long rankings from the field of 45 players will achieve their DP World Tour Cards for 2025.

Schedule

LIV GOLF

Friday 20th – Sunday 22nd September, 2024

LIV Golf Dallas – Team Championship

Venue: Maridoe Golf Club, Dallas, Texas

Purse: $50 million

DP World Tour

Thursday 19th – Sunday 22nd September, 2024

BMW PGA Championship

Venue: Wentworth Club, London, England

Purse: $9 million

Challenge Tour