The 2022 US Open winner Matt Fitzpatrick turned down “crazy sums” of money from LIV Golf
The LIV Golf tour is in it’s first year and is already making headlines by taking some big names from the PGA Tour, but they won’t get the U.S. Open winner.
The newest winner of the U.S. Open, Matt Fitzpatrick, has been launched into the spotlight after not only his first major win, but his first win ever. Sponsors will be knocking out the door, but so will many more including the PGA Tours pop up rival the LIV Golf Tour.
LIV luring some big names from PGA
The Sheffield, England native had to fend off Will Zalatoris and world number one Scottie Scheffler in the final round from The Country Club on Sunday afternoon. It came down to the last hole, and his second shot out of the bunker was pure as he landed it within 15 feet of the hole. He would two putt and watch Zalatoris’ nearly identical putt roll under the hill to secure his first ever PGA win.
The LIV Golf tour is a newly created competition set up by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia. While it was met with a heavy hand of negativity and doubt, LIV Golf is now a real thing with real events and real players. CEO of the tour Greg Norman and the board of directors organized the first ever event on June 9th of this year at the Centurion Club just outside of England.
DJ dig less work and more cash
It has been throwing big money at the game’s top players, and for many the idea of less golf and more money is too tempting to resist. There are now a number of blockbuster names that have joined forces with LIV. Phil Mickelson is the biggest headliner, but Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Kopeka and Dustin Johnson have swapped as well.
When asked about why he joined the new project, Johnson replied, “That’s the whole reason why I started playing on LIV, to play less golf, not more.”
The Fitzpaticks are focused on PGA legacy
Say what you want about the LIV, but their offer was presented to Fitzpatrick months ago. They aren’t just going after who ever has the most wins on the PGA or whoever might draw the most attention or viewers. The US Open champ rejected the offer from the Saudi golf league earlier this year, and it seems like he is intent on making a name for himself on the top tour in the world.
The 27 year old is coming off of his first PGA Tour win and seems intent on making a name for himself on the tour. He pointed to none other than Tiger Woods as a reference to why he’s staying. “Tiger made a great point at the PGA the other day in his press conference. He’s there to create legacies and to win tournaments and to win majors, and that’s kind of - that’s definitely where I am,” said Fitzpatrick.
Fitzpatrick wasn’t the only one in his family that the LIV Golf tour tried to lure with their mega bucks. His brother Alex, who just turned pro earlier this month, and was offered “more money than I could comprehend” by LIV. He said his brother played a part in his choice to reject the bid, “Matt helped me make the decision along with my parents and his incredible victory emphasised to me that I made the right decision,” said Alex. “It is about the dream, not the money, although the money is very nice.”