The 2025 LIV Golf season is finally underway, and some new faces are set to tee it up at Riyadh Golf Club in Saudi Arabia’s capital.
With night golf set to take centre stage, several LIV Golf players are taking to the course for the first time since the Team Championship concluded in Dallas. Some, including Brooks Koepka, Tyrrell Hatton, and Jon Rahm, have featured on the DP World Tour during the off-season.
The LIV Golf newbies this week included Legion XIII’s Tom McKibbin and the Iron Heads’ Yubin Jang, a 22-year-old who won three times on the Korean Tour. LIV failed to land a marquee PGA Tour player despite Tony Finau being heavily linked.
There were also some departures from the league during the off-season, with the highest-profile, arguably three-time PGA Tour winner, Pat Perez.
What Pat Perez said about his LIV Golf exit
Perez finished one place above the drop zone last year but was replaced by Thomas Pieters on the 4Aces ahead of the 2025 season.
After no team opted to sign the 48-year-old, Perez’s LIV exit was confirmed. He will now take up a commentary position in 2025.
Interestingly, in an interview with Sports Illustrated, Perez revealed he’s unaware of who decided to axe him from the 4Aces’ roster.
“I don’t know who didn’t want me to play; let’s put it this way, I don’t think it was DJ,” Perez said.
“I think DJ loved having me on the team. But obviously, they’re trying to go with younger players. I knew my time was going to come to an end at some point. I didn’t think it would be this year. It is what it is. I wasn’t totally shocked.
“Not that there are any excuses. But I had the worst 18 months of my life, and I didn’t play very well. And for whatever reason, they didn’t sign me. There are no hard feelings. It’s obviously business. If I would have played like I thought I could, I’d have been in the top 24 and it wouldn’t have been an issue.”
What Dustin Johnson said about Pat Perez’s LIV Golf exit
Dustin Johnson has not publically disclosed why Perez was not offered a new deal with the 4Aces. Instead, the former Masters champ has only shared his thoughts on the signing of Pieters.
“Happy to have Thomas on the team. He’s a great addition and a great player and makes the team stronger. Really excited for next season,” Johnson said.
Patrick Reed, who is also part of the 4Aces roster, spoke of his admiration for Perez during the team’s championship win at Doral back in 2022.
“My boy PP, to be able to go out and play like he did and do it as a place that I know he doesn’t like, that on paper he shouldn’t like … those are the kind of things that this league brings to us that I think is very important,” Reed said.
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