‘Major’ alert as big-time golf heads for India with the DeChambeau Express

LIV Golf has designs on India. Though an official announcement is expected later this week, it is on the cards that the league’s 2025 season which begins with LIV Golf Riyadh on February 6 will be preceded by an International Series India event at DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurgaon from January 30 to February 2.

The likely event was on everyone’s lips at the Hero Women’s Indian Open that ended on Sunday, from DLF members to the grounds and greens staff but mostly in nudges and winks, but the excitement level around the International Series tournament is already rising.

Adding a hook to that is the news – broken by Dubai-based golf journalist Joy Chakravarty in Tuesday’s Hindustan Times – that US Open winner Bryson DeChambeau will play on Indian soil for the first time in his professional career.

If that does come about, it will be the first time a current major champion is seen in action in India. Anirban Lahiri, a member of DeChambeau’s Crushers GC team in the LIV Golf League, has been working at setting up the event, and was quoted in the paper as saying, “I think we are almost there. There are just a few minor things on which we have to dot the I’s and cross the T’s.

“But yes, I think it will be massive for Indian golf fans if Bryson is there. Single-handedly, with what he does on the golf course and outside it through his social media channels and his interaction with fans, he has brought millions of new fans to our sport. I think we can all agree he is the most popular golfer in the world right now.”

DeChambeau also told Chakravarty at the LIV Golf Team Championship in Dallas last month,  “I am aware that Baan (Lahiri) is going to be involved and we have had a few talks about it.

“It will be a very important week for him. I will support him fully, and if everything works out, I am extremely excited about the opportunity to play in India. I have never been there, but it’s a country that has fascinated me. I have always loved being a global player and I greatly enjoy playing in as many countries as possible.”

The Crushers were one of four teams to have announced an unchanged squad for the 2025 season, and Lahiri has been part of the unit since joining LIV Golf in 2022. The HT report said all four members – DeChambeau, Lahiri, Paul Casey and Charles Howell III – were expected to play the India event which will be presented by the DLF group.

The International Series is a 10-tournament elevated addition to the Asian Tour’s schedule and offers between one and two million dollars as the prize fund. If the news is confirmed, it will become the first one on the 2025 Asian Tour schedule.

Meanwhile, LIV Golf also unveiled details of its second Promotions event that will be played at Riyadh Golf Club from December 12 to 14 offering one slot into the league for 2025 and an additional 10 cards for the Internationals Series.

Jon Rahm emerged individual champion of LIV Golf’s 2024 season at Chicago while Cameron Smith’s all-Australian Rippers GC won top honours at the season-ending team championship in Dallas and with the subsequent relegations taking place, new pathways will be open for elite players from across the globe to earn their place in the league and International Series for 2025, a LIV Golf statement said.
 
The $1.5 million Promotions tournament in Riyadh will be played over four stroke-play rounds in three days, including 36 holes on the final day where the top finisher will earn a spot in the LIV Golf League next season. The top 10 finishers, including ties, will earn full exemption into all 2025 events on the International Series schedule.

“Those who have competed in the LIV Golf League consistently share similar feedback: the energy, camaraderie, and global competition have created a once-in-a-lifetime experience for players to pursue their dreams at the highest level,” said LIV Golf commissioner and chief executive Greg Norman. 

“LIV Golf Promotions delivers another pathway for up-and-coming players and top competitors across the globe to experience a life-changing season with LIV, and we’re eager to see who steps up this year in Riyadh,” the Australian golf legend added.

The winnowing process at the Promotions event will be a demanding one. Only those finishing in the top 20 (and ties) of the first round on December 12 in Riyadh move into the second round. Scores will thereafter be reset, and the qualifiers will be joined by a category of players who automatically qualified for day two of competition. 

The top 20 players after round two will advance to the final day of competition, with scores reset once more for a full-day, 36-hole shootout. At Saturday’s conclusion, the winner will earn $200,000 and a lucrative spot in the LIV Golf League for 2025.

The event will add to the full-season player field for the 2025 LIV Golf League, with the top qualifier from Riyadh Golf Club and the winner of the 2024 International Series rankings guaranteed to compete in the League with the opportunity to be signed by a team. 

American John Catlin, who played as a reserve in six LIV Golf events this past season, leads the International Series standings, having recorded one win in Macau, and two runner-up finishes.
 
“John’s success in a number of LIV Golf events as a reserve this season is proof of the quality of play that we see each week,” said International Series head Rahul Singh. “As we crown a 2024 International Series champion later this fall and look to the highly anticipated LIV Golf Promotions, one deserving player will have the chance to punch their life-changing ticket to the LIV Golf League.”

Besides eligible players from around the world, relegated players, and those without a team commitment for 2025 who finished in the Open Zone (25th to 48th) in the 2024 LIV Golf League standings also have the opportunity to regain their playing rights for 2025, the statement said.

However, only the top finisher in LIV Golf Promotions is guaranteed a spot in the League for 2025 – allowing teams greater flexibility during free agency to enhance their rosters this offseason.