Home favorite Bland hopes to extend success at Int'l Series England
LIV Golf League star Richard Bland has promised to bring his "best game" to International Series England in a bid to continue an incredible late-career run of form that has already brought two senior major titles this season.
The Englishman is one of the marquee names playing Foxhills Club & Resort in Surrey from Aug. 8-11, in the fourth of 10 elevated Asian Tour events that offer a direct pathway onto the LIV Golf League for players from all over the world.
The 51-year-old has already shown incredible form this season, roaring to a three-shot victory at the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship which took place at Michigan’s Harbor Shores in May, his first ever senior major.
He followed that up in July with a playoff win over Japan’s Hiroyuki Fujita to claim the U.S. Senior Open at Newport Country Club in Rhode Island.
That form will come as no surprise to anyone who remembers the incredible moment at The Belfry in 2021 when Bland held his nerve to secure an emotional playoff victory at the Betfred British Masters for his first ever DP World Tour victory at the age of 48.
Since then, Bland has thrived on the LIV Golf League. A member of Cleeks GC, Bland is sitting comfortably among some of the more high profile superstars in the top 24 after some excellent displays this season – including top-10 finishes in Hong Kong and Nashville.
Is Bland simply getting better with age?
“I guess I have got better," he said. "LIV has made me better. To play against Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson and those guys every time I play, I have to bring my best game if I want to compete, because those guys are the best in the world.
“I have no other way to go about it when going up against the best in the world, I have to bring my best game. And that just elevates you. Just being in that frame of mind, is so important and fortunately it is working out.”
Bland will be up against a strong field in Surrey, including several LIV Golf stars. Majesticks GC players Ian Poulter and Sam Horsfield will be there, as will Anirban Lahiri (Crushers GC), who lost out to Sergio Garcia in a thrilling playoff at LIV Golf Andalucía last time out; Northern Ireland’s former U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell (Smash GC); the big-hitting American Harold Varner III (4Aces GC); South African Branden Grace (Stinger GC) and Belgian Thomas Pieters (RangeGoats GC).
There will also be strong representation from the Asian Tour, led by recent International Series Morocco champion Ben Campbell and runner-up John Catlin, who leads the overall rankings and has already won two events of his own this season. Catlin will once again deputize for Crushers GC's injured Charles Howell III at LIV Golf UK this weekend (July 26-28).
India’s Rayhan Thomas will also join the field in Surrey, after an impressive T8 finish in his first Asian Tour professional start in Morocco.
While Bland hopes for a home advantage on the tree-lined Longcross Course at Foxhills Club & Resort, just 10 minutes from his home, he doesn’t believe it will be a contributing factor.
“Yes, it is perfect for me this year. It is not often you can play a golf tournament and go home to sleep in your own bed," Bland said. "I hope there will be lots of home support, it is always nice to be able to play at home and have English crowds follow and support.
“Will it give me an advantage? I don’t think so. I last played the course a long time ago, going back to my amateur days. It is a beautiful, picturesque tree-lined course but the guys in the field are all great players and anyone who plays that event can win it, so I will have to bring my best game to be in the mix come Sunday.”
Bland believes the younger LIV Golf League stars who choose to participate in the Asian Tour-sanctioned events are gaining invaluable global experience.
Legion XIII star Caleb Surratt, the youngest player on the LIV Golf League aged just 20, got his first taste of the series in Morocco, finishing in a tie for third alongside Eugenio Chacarra of Fireballs GC, just behind Campbell and Catlin.
“These events on the Asian Tour are run very well, they always have been but they are even more so now as the tours evolve and create better experiences for the players, from course set-up to everything else that goes into putting on an elite-level tournament," Bland said.
“These young guys have so much potential and the more they can play around the world, the more grasses and different climates they can experience, it all adds to making complete golfers. They are going to be world-class players, I’m glad I don’t have to compete with them for too much longer!”
International Series England takes place at Foxhills Club & Resort from Aug. 8-11. For tickets and information, please visit www.internationalseries.com