One of the accusations made of some of those who made the jump to LIV Golf in 2022 was that they were simply going for one last payday at the back end of their careers.
It was hard to ignore the fact that very few marquee players initially made the jump to LIV Golf while they were at the peak of their powers. It seemed that the best days were very much in the past for the likes of Phil Mickelson, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter.
Some have silenced their critics. Sergio García finished third in the individual standings in 2024, while he won in Hong Kong this past week. And it seems entirely possible that Garcia will make the European Ryder Cup team later this year.
Meanwhile, some young players have thrived on LIV. Joaquin Niemann has arguably been the player who has benefitted most from the jump from the PGA Tour.
LIV Golf star’s decline labelled ‘sad’ after Hong Kong horror show
But others have certainly regressed.
Dustin Johnson was arguably LIV’s biggest signing back in 2022, with the 40-year-old a former world number one with two major titles under his belt.
It initially proved to be a successful spell for Johnson, as he won the individual title in the first season, as well as helping the 4Aces to the team crown.
He has actually won individual events in 2022, 2023 and 2024. However, he finished last in Hong Kong this past week, having been seven over par for the first two rounds. Johnson – who did shot a six under par final round – is yet to pick up a single point in the 2025 season.
And speaking on The Smylie Show, Smylie Kaufman admitted that he has been so disappointed to see Johnson’s decline since he left the PGA Tour.
“Dude, that kind of makes you sad, doesn’t it? He just doesn’t care anymore,” he said.
“Gosh, man, I’m such a DJ fan too, right. He hasn’t said anything through all this.”
He went on to add: “I would be all in on LIV at some point saying, ‘you know what DJ, your playing career’s not cutting it out, let’s get you in the broadcast’. Can you imagine listening to DJ on the broadcast, ‘oh yeah, that was a pretty good shot’, for four hours, can you imagine?”
How Dustin Johnson has performed in the majors since joining LIV Golf
Between 2016 and 2020, Johnson won twice, finished second on three occasions, and also finished third in the majors.
But he has had two top 10s in the game’s four biggest events since moving to LIV. In fact, he has had just one top 30 finish across the last eight majors, while he has missed three cuts in his last five.
It feels too strong to say that he does not care, but it was inevitable that some players would see their form decline after moving to LIV. Their 54-hole events with a shotgun start taking place around the world were never going to help everyone in the majors.
Johnson definitely appears to be one of those whose stock has fallen dramatically in recent years.
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