Observations from thrilling start to 2025 LIV Golf season

ADELAIDE, South Australia – A few observations following the first two tournaments of the 2025 LIV Golf League season

JON & JOACO SHOW ON REPEAT

Legion XIII Captain Jon Rahm and Torque GC Captain Joaquin Niemann, the top two players in 2024, seem to be picking up right where they left off last season.

Niemann again posted an early win with his victory in Adelaide; last year, he won the season’s first and third events.

Rahm has maintained his top-10 streak, with a T2 in Riyadh and a solo sixth in Adelaide. He’s never finished outside the top 10 in his 14 LIV Golf tournaments that he’s finished; the only thing that stopped him was a foot injury that forced him to WD in Houston last year.

The biggest surprise is that neither player sits atop the Individual standings after two events. That honor belongs to …

YO, ADRIAN

Cleeks GC’s Adrian Meronk followed his season-opening win under the lights in Riyadh with a respectable T12 in Adelaide, finishing with a sizzling 7-under 65 that included seven birdies and an eagle. Were it not for a couple of double bogeys in his second round, he would’ve been right in the mix on Sunday.

Meronk also leads the league in birdies made and is third in putting.

He admits that the transition to LIV Golf last season was a bit of a chaotic start, and he didn’t find his footing until midseason. But now he’s showing why he was the DP World Tour Player of the Year in 2023.

With the USGA and R&A announcing a pathway to the U.S. Open and The Open via the LIV Golf Individual standings, Meronk – as well as all the others not currently qualified for those two majors – have an additional huge incentive.

PUIG ALERT

Prior to this season, Fireballs GC’s David Puig has struggled to replicate the form at LIV Golf events that he’s shown in non-league starts. Consider his last 21 non-LIV Golf results since the middle of 2023: two wins, eight other top 5s and six other top 20s.

Early signs indicate the 23-year-old from Spain finally figured out the transition. He tied for sixth in Riyadh, then followed with a solo fourth in Adelaide, leaving him fourth in the points standings. The only other player with top-10 finishes in each event is Rahm.

The most impressive thing is his final-round results, as he shot a bogey-free 7-under 65 in the third round in Riyadh, then a 5-under 67 on Sunday in Adelaide. Afterward, his captain Sergio Garcia marveled, “David played amazing.”

NEWCOMERS ON THE PODIUM

Of the six new players entering this season, three have already made contributions that have helped their teams reach the podium.

In Riyadh, 22-year-old Tom McKibbin of Northern Ireland offered an immediate impact, shooting an opening-round 7-under 65 and eventually finishing T15 as Legion XIII won the team title.

New Zealand’s Ben Campbell also tied for 15th in Riyadh and was the second-best performer for Bubba Watson’s RangeGoats GC, which tied for second.

In Adelaide, 22-year-old Luis Masaveu was part of the winning Fireballs GC team, and his final-round 1-under 71 was a solid contribution for the six-stroke victory.

McKibbin, meanwhile, tied for seventh individually as Legion followed up its Riyadh win with a second-place effort in Adelaide.

In the Individual Championship standings, McKibbin is 13th, and Campbell 26th.

YOUNG AND STRONG

Of the top five players in driving distance average through two events, three are among the youngest players in the league.

• 22-year-old McKibbin, who ranks No. 2
• 23-year-old Puig, who ranks No. 3
• 20-year-old Legion XIII member Caleb Surratt, the league’s youngest player, ranks No. 5

Another youngster, 22-year-old Yubin Jang of Iron Heads GC, is tied for 11th.

ODDS & ENDS

RangeGoats GC Captain Bubba Watson has finished with points (top 24) in each of the first two events. Last year, he had just one points finish.

It was a tough Sunday for Sam Horsfield and his Majesticks GC after entering the final round with the lead, but his early play remains encouraging. He tied for 12th in Riyadh before his T7 finish in Adelaide.

Big names who surprisingly have no points through two events – Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson, Louis Oosthuizen, Patrick Reed and Talor Gooch.