The long-awaited transfer window for the LIV Golf League, which is divided into three stages, has finally been revealed.
In October, the rival league’s second season came to an end, with Bryson DeChambeau’s Crushers taking home the team title and Talor Gooch emerging as the individual winner.
The concept of the transfer window is not new. Although other issues took precedence, LIV actually intended to implement a transfer window during its “beta-test” 2022 season.
Now the details have been ironed out.
A player’s standing in the league is determined by their final positions in each of the three categories that comprise the individual standings:
Players who place in the top 24 are guaranteed a spot in the league for the following season.
Open zone: Players with contracts expiring that finish between 25 and 44 become free agents.
Drop zone: Players who place 45th or lower are demoted from the league and are immediately eligible for LIV Golf promotions, giving them the opportunity to regain their position the following year.
Phase one:
Top 24 contract extensions offered
An invitation to compete in the 2024 LIV Golf League is assured for players who concluded the regular season in the top 24 Lock Zone of the Individual Standings. Phase one is currently in progress. Teams that currently have players in the top 24 whose contracts expire at the end of 2023 are required to offer them a minimum one-year contract extension.
Peter Uihlein (12th, 4Aces GC), Anirban Lahiri (13th, Crushers GC), Carlos Ortiz (15th, Fireballs GC), Richard Bland (20th, Cleeks GC), and Scott Vincent (22nd, Iron Heads GC) are the five players who can receive an extension.
If a player in this group decides not to accept the offer from his current team, he will become a free agent and may be signed by another team with an open roster spot.
Phase two:
Free agency
The second phase is when free agency begins. Players who placed 25th through 44th (open zone) and whose contracts expire at the end of 2023 are also free agents, in addition to any of the top 24 players who choose to become unrestricted free agents.
These players have the option of negotiating a contract with a different team that has a roster spot open, or they can be re-signed by their former team. Pat Perez (28th, 4Aces GC), David Puig (31st, Torque GC), Matt Jones (37th, Ripper GC), Bernd Wiesberger (41st, Cleeks GC), and Graeme McDowell (42nd, Cleeks GC) are players who finished in the Open Zone but are no longer under contract.
Teams are not obligated to re-sign their free agents from the open zone and can instead create an open roster spot. Teams with open spots have the option to:
Sign a top 24 player who opted to enter free agency
Sign any player in the open zone whose contract has expired
If both teams agree, they may sign or trade for a player who is under contract with a different team (Note: A team may not recruit a player under contract with another team unless it has received permission from that player’s team to do so)
Sign a *third-party player who did not regularly play for any of the 2023 LIV Golf teams.
Phase three
LIV Golf promotions
The world’s top amateur and professional golfers have an exciting opportunity to participate in the LIV Golf League in 2024 thanks to LIV Golf Promotions. The historic Abu Dhabi Golf Club in the United Arab Emirates will host the first tournament on December 8–10, featuring four rounds of golf spread over three days, including a 36-hole final round on the final day.
The top three finishers will receive a spot on one of LIV Golf’s teams for the upcoming season as well as exemption into all 14 LIV Golf League events in 2024. LIV Golf promotions will offer a total prize money of $1.5 million
Highlighting the global aspect of the LIV Golf League, leading players from all over the world will be eligible to participate.
Furthermore, players who finished in the drop zone (45th and below in the 2023 LIV Golf League standings) and those who finished in the open zone but did not have a team contract for 2024 can regain their playing rights for that year.
The deadline for players to register is November 20.
Trades and draft
Throughout the offseason, teams may trade players from their current rosters, providing the trade is approved by both teams.
A mid-season trading window will occur in 2024 (exact dates to be announced) to facilitate opportunities for teams to bolster their rosters once the season has started. During this window, teams and players will have the freedom to discuss trades and, if a player is in the final year of his contract, extensions to their current agreements.
Following LIV Golf promotions, the league will host the LIV Golf draft through which the winner of The International Series Rankings and the top three finishers in LIV Golf promotions will be drafted onto the remaining teams that have an open spot on their roster.
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