LIV Golf returns for ninth leg to its start point, the Centurion Club

With the race for the proverbial pot of gold entering its final phase, LIV Golf returns to where it all began a year and a half ago, with the Centurion Club at Saint Albans near London set to host the ninth leg of the full 2023 season.

Eight events of the scheduled 14 have been completed and still the race for individual and team honours remains wide open though with their third win of the season, Torque GC are finally closing in on table-toppers, the 4Aces.

With wins at Orlando, Washington and last week at Valderrama in Spain, the Joaquin Neimann-led side have closed to within seven points of Dustin Johnson’s team 129 to 136. The Aces owe a great deal of their points tally to form man Talor Gooch who has won thrice in all, including at Andalucia last week.

Also, for the second time in the LIV Golf League season, teammates will be clubbed together in the opening round of a tournament, other than the captains, who will make up the threesomes off the first four tees.

As an exception though, Majesticks GC, who are co-led by Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood of England, will tee off with teammate Laurie Canter as an all-England group starting on hole 18. The third Majesticks co-captain, Henrik Stenson of Sweden will start on the opening hole with Ripper GC’s Cameron Smith and Stinger GC leader Louis Oosthuizen.

This follows the format first used at Adelaide, though for the second and final rounds, groupings will be made on the basis of standings on the leaderboard.

The three Englishmen in the Majesticks’ ranks can expect plenty of home support as will the other home players, including Paul Casey of the Crushers who starts on hole 13 with teammates Anirban Lahiri and American Charles Howell III, and Richard Bland of the Cleeks who tees off on hole 16 alongside Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger and Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland.

Tee 2 will see HyFlyers GC’s Phil Mickelson, Johnson and Brooks Koepka of Smash GC starting together, tee 3 will have Fireballs GC’s Sergio Garcia, Torque GC’s Joaquin Niemann and Cleeks GC’s Martin Kaymer clubbed together and the fourth hole will have Bryson DeChambeau of the Crushers, RangeGoats GC’s Bubba Watson and Iron Heads GC’s Kevin Na teeing off.

In the individual standings, Talor Gooch of the RangeGoats leads with 136 points with Brooks Koepka (109), and Cam Smith (90) following. After a disappointing run at Valderrama where he started in storming fashion, Lahiri is down in 21st place still in good shape to make the season-ending cut.