Thirteen LIV players teed it up at Augusta last week for The Masters, eight made the cut, and 3 finished in the Top 10. Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Smith both finished at 2 under (T6) while Tyrell Hatton came in at even par (T9).
The big story at the 2024 Masters was the weather, where extremely high winds wreaked havoc with scoring as only eight players finished under par (as compared with twenty-five players under par in 23’). After storming out of the gate with an opening round 65, Bryson followed up with three mediocre rounds of 73-75-73—mainly because the continual buffeting by the wind eventually turned his putter into a block of ice.
Cam Smith was steady throughout, recording rounds of 71-72-72-71, anchored by the short stick. While not the pure magic seen at his 2022 Open Championship victory, his putter and short game held up well in all that wind—securing him another major T10.
LIV Power Ranking Update
Players are rated and ranked on the basis of events played, average finish, wins, runner up, Top-5 and Top-10 finishes–as well as performance at the major championships (LIV Player Rankings).
While fifty-five players have participated in one or more tournaments this season, we’ve included only the top fifty. While most would expect Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith or Dustin Johnson to be occupying the top spot, instead you will see a 25-year-old Joaquin Niemann standing atop the mountain. There are two LIV events coming up before the PGA Championship in mid-May, however–Adelaide at La Grange Golf Club in Australia (April 26-28) and Singapore at Sentosa Golf Club (May 3-5), so there’s opportunity for someone to make a big move.
Top 5
No. 1 Joaquin Niemann: 72.0 Rating
Niemann has won two of the five LIV events played in 2024 (Mayakoba and Jeddah), and also recorded a T4 in Hong Kong and a T9 in Miami with an average finish among the Top 10 (9.0–second only to Jon Rahm.)
While he didn’t have his best at Augusta, Joaquin still finished in the Top 25 at +4 (tied with Rory McIlroy and Patrick Cantley.) He’ll have his work cut out for him to hold off Jon Rahm for the top spot in the LIV rankings all year, but keep a close eye on Joaquin at the PGA next month—he can hit it with anybody.
No. 2 Jon Rahm: 67.4 Rating
Although Rahm has not yet won a LIV event, he finished among the Top 10 every time he teed it up (3, 4, 5 and 2-8’s). His average finish of 5.6 is also the League’s best by a wide margin, so it’s just a matter of time before the door bursts open. While the much-anticipated showdown with Scottie Scheffler at Augusta didn’t materialize, you can be sure that the 23’ Masters champ will make his presence felt at Valhalla for the PGA Championship.
No. 3 Bryson DeChambeau: 62.8 Rating
Bryson moved steadily up the board last year after his strong showing at the 23’ PGA Championship (T4), and finished the year at No. 10 with 5 LIV Top-10’s. In 5 events this year, DeChambeau has recorded a T4 (Jeddah) and 3 Top-10’s (Las Vegas, Hong Kong and Miami). With his T6 at The Masters, Bryson is chomping at the heals of Niemann and Rahm—it would be a big surprise if he were not among the leaders again on Sunday at the PGA.
No. 4 Dean Burmester: 58.8 Rating
Who? Not a household name to American golf fans, South African Dean Burmester played his entire career on the Sunshine and European Golf Tours accumulating 14 wins before joining LIV for the 23’ season (where he picked up 3 Top-10’s). With a win in Miami at Trump National Doral, a T3 at Mayakoba and T8 in Hong Kong, Dean is making himself known in a big way. His average finish of 13.2 places him 7th through the first five events, ahead of Dustin Johnson (15.6), Cam Smith (16.5), and Brooks Koepka (20.4).
No. 5 Tyrell Hatton: 56.0 Rating
Hatton recorded a Top-10 in his first LIV event at Mayakoba, but dropped steadily in his next 3 starts until a T4 in Miami propelled him upward to his strong showing at the Masters (T9). He’s a superlative ball-striker and there’s something piratical about Tyrell–look for him to hoist his Jolly Roger among the leaders at the PGA in a couple weeks (unless his temper sends him off the plank).
Notables
Cameron Smith (No. 10/52.5 Rating)
After finishing #1 in the 2023 LIV Power rankings, Cam was wallowing in the middle of the pack until a runner-up in Hong Kong and a T6 at The Masters shot him up to the 10th position.
Perhaps the first major of the year got his blood flowing.
Brooks Koepka (No. 19/42.6 Rating)
Outside of a T5 in the first LIV event of the year at Mayakoba, Brooks has been sleep-walking through the 2024 season—and his performance at Augusta (+9/T45) did nothing to indicate he was ready to emerge from his slumber.
As everybody knows, Brooks puts the bulk of his focus and energy into the majors, particularly the PGA Championship and U.S. Open. Hopefully The Masters will serve as a blaring wake-up call and he’ll arrive at Valhalla tuned up and ready to defend his title.
Phil (No. 43/37.2 Rating
At 53 years old, Phil can still play–there’s no doubt about it. Last year he did nothing in the LIV events leading up to The Masters, and magically recorded a runner up finish. Once again in 24’ he’s done virtually nothing in the LIV tournaments, yet makes the cut at Augusta by a comfortable margin —and finishes ahead of both Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka.
What’s up with that? Perhaps Phil should put his foot on the gas in the upcoming LIV events at Adelaide and Singapore to sharpen his game and then see if he can add another PGA Championship to his major trophy case. The 2024 Masters was the one hundred and first major championship cut he’s made in his career, one behind Gary Player (who is second only to Jack).
Masters Summary
| Bryson DeChambeau | T6 |
| Cameron Smith | T6 |
| Tyrell Hatton | T9 |
| Patrick Reed | T12 |
| Joaquin Nieman | T22 |
| Phil Mickelson | T43 |
| Jon Rahm | T45 |
| Brooks Koepka | T45 |
| Dustin Johnson | MC |
| Sergio Garcia | MC |
| Bubba Watson | MC |
| Charl Schwartzel | MC |
| Adrian Meronk | MC |
2024 Upcoming LIV Schedule
Adelaide The Grange Golf Club, Australia (April 26-28)
Singapore Sentosa Golf Club (May 3-5)
Houston Golf Club of Houston (June 7-9)
Nashville The Grove (June 21-23)
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