Matthew Wolff, whose rapid ascension to prominence early in his PGA Tour career was just as striking as his struggles of the past few months, is the latest player to make a move from the LIV Golf Invitational Series. Matthew Wolff, a 2019 NCAA individual champion who won his only professional start in his fourth start, Matthew Wolff is one of three players announced Monday by the LIV Golf Invitational Series as joining a 48-player field at Pumpkin Ridge outside of Portland. According to multiple reports, two more PGA Tour winners are making their PGA Tour debuts next week, with Carlos Ortiz and Matthew Wolff joining the 48-man field.
This week, the LIV Golf Series event, the Breakaway Tour’s second-largest event in the United States, will host 20 players in the Top 100 in the world golf rankings, including Jupiter resident Dustin Johnson, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan, repeated the circuit’s position that there is no pathway back onto the tour for players who defy the rules and compete at the LIV Golf events. This may be the final PGA Tour starting dilution of Matthew Wolff, with Commissioner Jay Monahan suspending members indefinitely once they have a put at a LIV Golf Invitational Series event.
Oklahoma junior Eugenio Chacarra lost last month in a playoff for the 2019 NCAA individual title to Gordon Sargent of Vanderbilt. Eugenio Chacarra, the world amateur number two, has decided to leave Oklahoma State for LIV Golf and will have his LIV start at Pumpkin Ridge, according to ESPN and Golf Channel. The Saudi-funded LIV Golf Series added three more players to the lineup for the second event at Oregon. Matthew Wolff is the latest junior to sign a deal with the PGA Tour, joining the second-ranked amateur in the world, Eugenio Chacarra, also from Oklahoma State, who recently announced his intentions to play in Portland.
Matthew Wolff made an immediate impact at PGA Tour events after turning professional at 20 years of age, winning the 3M Open of Minnesota in just his third start. Wolff turned professional after playing for two years at Oklahoma State, where he won the 2019 NCAA individual title and the Phil Mickelson Award as the nation’s best freshmen in 2018. Wolff is part of a highly-touted 2019 PGA Tour Rookie Class, including Collin Morikawa, Victor Hovland, and Sung Jae Im.
Since its inception, the LIV event, which Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund funds, has caused havoc in the golf world. Human rights organisations have slammed the circuit, claiming that it is an attempt to improve the kingdom’s image through sport. The contentious series promises a record $25 million prize money for a 54-hole tournament with shotgun starts and no cut.
