9 LIV Players in Danger of Being Relegated

With only three events remaining in the 2024 LIV Golf League individual season, several prominent players are at risk of losing their cards in the 54-hole league. The next event, LIV Golf UK by JCB, followed by LIV Golf Greenbrier, will wrap up the regular season in mid-August. The final opportunity to secure a place comes at the Individual Championship round at Bolingbrook Golf Club in Chicago.

Players who lose their LIV status can attempt to regain it through the LIV Golf Promotions event in winter. Alternatively, they might turn to the Asian Tour, thanks to a mutual agreement between the two tours. In the individual competition, players earn points by finishing in the top-24 and can also gain points in the team event if their team finishes eighth or higher.

The introduction of two wildcard spots and Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII has increased the number of players who can be relegated from four to possibly eight. Anthony Kim and Hudson Swafford currently occupy the bottom two spots and have not recorded any points from seven and 10 starts, respectively. However, their wildcard status may exempt them from relegation, as both are believed to have signed only one-year deals.

James Piot, Chase Koepka, Sihwan Kim, and Jediah Morgan left the circuit in 2023, while Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer, despite finishing in the Drop Zone, were exempt due to their captaincy roles. This season, players like Harold Varner III, Pat Perez, and Branden Grace must perform well to avoid relegation.

Four players in particular danger are Kieran Vincent, Branden Grace, Kalle Samooja, and Scott Vincent. These golfers are part of a team but do not hold captaincy roles and must finish in the top half to have any hope of moving up the standings.

Bubba Watson, captain of the RangeGoats, will be back in 2025 if he chooses, despite his low position (50th). Laurie Canter, who has pursued opportunities with the DP World Tour and relinquished his LIV Golf status, is likely to be relegated but has since won his first European Tour victory at the European Open.

The last three players at risk are Varner III, Perez, and Jinichiro Kozuma. Varner III is currently the lowest-ranked of the trio but still safe, with a 3.6-point gap over Scott Vincent.

Here are the standings for the bottom players ahead of LIV Golf UK by JCB:

| Position | Name | Points |
|———-|——|——–|
| 46th | Jinichiro Kozuma | 8.40 |
| 47th | Pat Perez | 7.76 |
| 48th | Harold Varner III | 7 |
| — | — | — |
| Drop Zone | Drop Zone | Drop Zone |
| 49th | Laurie Canter | 4.30 |
| 50th | Bubba Watson** | 3.66 |
| 51st | Scott Vincent | 3.40 |
| 52nd | Kalle Samooja | 3.40 |
| 53rd | Branden Grace | 3.22 |
| 54th | Kieran Vincent | 2.47 |
| 55th | Hudson Swafford* | 0 |
| 56th | Anthony Kim* | 0 |

(*) Wildcard exemption status likely
(**) Team captain exemption status

As the season progresses, these players will need strong finishes to secure their spots in the LIV Golf League for another year.