This week’s competitions are from both the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, with the latter offering a far larger prize fund. Players competing in Adelaide will be vying for £20 million.
This week’s purse at the PGA Tour’s Zurich Classic in New Orleans is nearly three times smaller than that of the prize at LIV Golf Adelaide.
A mainstay of the PGA Tour in recent years, the Zurich Classic offers a different format from the regular weekly offerings on the circuit based in the United States. Competitors in the tournament work in teams of two to complete two different formats.
At TPC Louisiana, rounds one and three are played in a fourball format, with each duo playing their own ball before the score of each pair on each hole is determined by better ball.
The format for rounds two and four is foursomes, in which players from each pair take turns playing with a single ball. Many famous names have joined forces to compete in New Orleans, chief among them being Rory McIlroy and his Olympic partner Shane Lowry.
In other pairings, the tournament favorites Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele are paired together because they have won the Zurich before. The team from the United States that won the Ryder Cup in 2022 went on to finish in the top five in their title defense a year later.
A number of brothers are represented in the field as well. Danish twins Nicolai and Ramsus Hojgaard are paired with 2022 U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick, who is accompanied by his younger brother Alex. Competitors stand to win a total of £7.1 million in prizes.
When the winners secure the title on Sunday night, they will each receive a little over £1 million in compensation. The Zurich Classic, a fixture on the PGA Tour schedule, lost out on one of the lucrative £16 million purses because it was not granted the Signature Event status by the American circuit.
The PGA Tour increased its prize money in reaction to the competition from their LIV Golf rivals, who are playing this week. This week, for LIV Adelaide, the breakaway circuit makes its much-awaited return to the Grange. The Australian event created quite a stir when it debuted in 2023.
A massive £20 million is up for grabs for competitors in Adelaide. £16 million will be distributed throughout the individual portion of the competition, and the top three teams after 54 holes will split the remaining £4 million. The winner of a LIV event will, as usual, receive a cool £3.2 million in compensation for their labors over the course of three days.
Greg Norman, the CEO of LIV and a native of Australia, is one man who is excited about the coming week. He undoubtedly wants to build on the momentum that the Adelaide event generated in 2023. Norman said on Wednesday, discussing the significance of bringing LIV to his native nation: “That was one of my initiatives when I was asked to come on board as CEO.”
“I knew the value of Australia, what Australia can represent to the game of golf and what Australia lacked, and the Premier hit the nail on the head. Basically the fans spoke in droves last year. They continue to speak this year.”
Leave a Reply