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Twelve LIV Golf players competed in the Masters Tournament this year, the smallest LIV contingent since the controversial rival league launched in 2022, and just seven have made the cut to continue playing Saturday.
Bryson DeChambeau (in 2nd at the end of Friday), Tyrrell Hatton (T5), Patrick Reed (T12), Bubba Watson (T22), Charl Schwartzel (T40), Jon Rahm (T40), and Joaquin Niemann (T40) all advanced to the weekend.
Dustin Johnson, Sergio Garcia, Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith, and Phil Mickelson each finished outside the cut line, which ended up at two-over-par.
Last year eight of the 13 LIV players made the cut, which was down from 2023, when 12 of 18 league members advanced to the weekend.
The number of LIV players at the Masters has been dwindling since the tour does not receive Official World Golf Rankings points, therefore making it difficult for its members to qualify for an automatic invite to the first major championship of the year.
On Wednesday, Augusta National Golf Club chairman Fred Ridley said the Masters would not be adding any new qualification criteria in order to accommodate LIV, like the U.S. Open and Open Championship (also known as the British Open) have. LIV member Joaquin Niemann, who made the cut, did receive a special Masters invite for the second consecutive year.
Men’s professional golf appears set to remain divided for the near future, as negotiations between the PGA Tour and the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, which funds LIV Golf, drag on without a resolution in sight.
“As far as I can tell and you guys can tell, it’s not happening anytime soon,” Jon Rahm, the 2023 Masters winner and last year’s individual LIV champion, said Tuesday when asked about a potential reunion with the PGA Tour.
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