First Look: LIV Golf Andalucía at Real Club Valderrama
An early glance at LIV Golf Andalucía, the 10th tournament in the 2024 LIV Golf League.
ABOUT THE TOURNAMENT
When: July 12-14, 2024
Where: Real Club Valderrama, Sotogrande, Cádiz, Spain
Competition: Three rounds/54 holes of stroke play
Field: 54 players – 13 teams of four players each, and two wild cards
Purse: $25 million US ($20 million individual, $5 million team)
Winner’s Share: $4 million USD (individual), $3 million USD (team)
Local Tee Times: Shotgun Start for Rds. 1-2 at 1:15 p.m. local (7:15 a.m. ET); Rd. 3 at 1:05 p.m. local (7:05 a.m. ET)
KEY STORYLINES
LIV Golf returns to Spain and the iconic Real Club Valderrama for the second consecutive year
Legion XIII, captained by Spanish star Jon Rahm, won the previous LIV Golf tournament in Nashville for a third team victory of the season
England’s Tyrrell Hatton, a member of Legion XIII, looks to go back-to-back after winning his first individual LIV Golf title in Nashville
Rahm and Hatton rank second and third, respectively, behind Torque GC Captain Joaquin Niemann in the individual points standings
Bryson DeChambeau’s Crushers GC, the 2023 Team Champions, lead the team points standings through nine events
Torque are the defending Andalucía team champions while Talor Gooch, now with Smash GC, won the individual title at Valderrama last year while playing for RangeGoats GC
16 players in the LIV Golf Andalucía field will compete in next week’s Open Championship at Royal Troon, the final major of 2024
Cleeks GC’s Richard Bland makes his first start since winning his second consecutive senior major at the U.S. Senior Open
SPANISH HOMECOMING
Four Spanish-born LIV Golf players, including first-year member Jon Rahm, will have plenty of support this week as they compete in front of their home fans at LIV Golf Andalucía.
Rahm, the two-time major winner and captain of the expansion Legion XIII team, makes his first visit to Valderrama since joining LIV Golf in the offseason.
“It’s always special to go back to Valderrama,” said Rahm, born in Barrika in the Basque Country. “It’s a golf course with so much history – so much Spanish history – and I’m glad to be going back with the level of field and competition it deserves.”
Major winner Sergio Garcia, the captain of Fireballs GC, and his teammates David Puig and Eugenio Chacarra competed in Andalucía last year when LIV Golf made its first visit to their home country. Puig (T5) and Garcia (T10) finished inside the top 10.
Garcia, born in Borriol, Castellón, is an honorary member at Valderrama and calls it his favorite golf course in the world. “Valderrama has deserved this kind of event and this kind of field for a long, long time,” said Garcia, who has won three professional events at Valderrama.
ABOUT THE COURSE
REAL CLUB VALDERRAMA
Sotogrande, Cádiz, Spain
Par: 71
Yardage: 7,010
Ranked among the top courses in the world, Real Club Valderrama has hosted numerous professional events, including last year’s LIV Golf Andalucía, along with the 1997 Ryder Cup – the first time the event had been held in Continental Europe
Valderrama was originally designed by famed golf architect Robert Trent Jones in 1974. Jones was brought back to work on the course when Jaime Ortiz-Patiño bought the course in the mid-1980s
Valderrama is widely considered to be the “Augusta of Europe” for its championship pedigree and immaculate maintenance
The golf club is one of two in Europe to be awarded the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program Certification for its commitment to conserve and restore natural ecosystems
The course will have four par-4 holes under 400 yards; the longest par 3 is 225 yards, the longest par 4 is 490 yards and the longest par 5 is 564 yards
The 564-yard par-5 fourth, known as La Cascada, has a pond to the right of a two-tiered green
The memorable 536-yard par-5 17th provides a natural amphitheater for fans
Talor Gooch is the defending champion, winning last year at 12 under, one shot better than Bryson DeChambeau
Green types: Bermuda Tifway 419 on fairways and rough; T1 Creeping Bentgrass on greens
HARDEST HOLE: 12th
Par 3 | 212 yards
2023 scoring avg: 3.340
Birdies: 11. Pars: 81. Bogeys: 45. Others: 8.
EASIEST HOLE: 17th
Par 5 | 536 yards
2023 scoring avg: 4.715
Eagles: 5. Birdies: 57. Pars: 62. Bogeys: 15. Others: 5.
WEATHER
Forecast from weather.com
FRIDAY - RD. 1 | SATURDAY - RD. 2 | SUNDAY - RD. 3 | |
Temps | Hi: 93 Lo: 70 | Hi: 87 Lo: 69 | Hi: 84 Lo: 69 |
Outlook | Sunny | Sunny | Mostly Sunny |
Chance of precipitation | 2% | 2% | 12% |
Wind | W, 11 mph | WSW, 11 mph | WSW, 13 mph |
HOW TO WATCH
UNITED STATES: The CW Network airs the LIV Golf League in 100% of U.S. markets.
Friday – Live on The CW App, LIV Golf Plus and LIV Golf YouTube.
Saturday and Sunday – Live on The CW, LIV Golf Plus and LIV Golf YouTube.
GLOBAL: Broadcast in over 160 international territories Live and On-Demand, free of charge, via LIV Golf Plus. Available for download on iOS, Android, FireTV, and on LIVGolfPlus.com. Also airing on several international broadcast partners.
In person: Tickets available here
More info: Click here