“I don’t know that the reaction is going to be (towards LIV players),” Woods said. That includes five former Masters champions who he will run into at this year’s Champions Dinner. On his return to playing golf at this week’s Genesis Invitational in California, Tiger Woods said the mood among players remained tense towards LIV players. Jones remains involved in legal action against the PGA Tour, which banned him and all LIV members from playing events after they joined the breakaway group. Smith took over as captain of his all-Australian team, renaming it Ripper GC from Punch GC and installing great mate Marc Leishman and Australian Open winner Matt Jones as his teammates. In five LIV events in 2022, Morgan won more than $1m without finishing inside the top 25 in any of them. “My opinion is simple – I just want to take every opportunity I can to compete at this stage in my career and I’m grateful for the opportunity to compete regularly over the next four months in LIV.” “The opinions on the Saudi league are very mixed depending on which stage of your career you’re in,” Morgan said. The 23-year-old won the Australian PGA in 2022, in just his fourth event as a professional, which earnt him a DP World Tour card.īut Morgan, a Queenslander like Smith, made it clear when he played in the opening LIV event he was concerned about taking every opportunity available despite the backlash against the Saudi-backed operation. Morgan replaces veteran Wade Ormsby at Smith’s Ripper GC after choosing LIV over the DP World Tour, having played in the first LIV event in London in 2022.

The past two Australian PGA champs are now full-time LIV Golf members, with Jed Morgan joining the all-Australian team captained by Cameron Smith.

Flashbacks by Morgan Smith