Report: LIV Golf land World No. 34 and 'odds-on' 2023 Ryder Cup player
DP World Tour player Thomas Pieters has reportedly agreed to join the LIV Golf League ahead of their season opener in Mexico, according to a report.
DP World Tour player Thomas Pieters has agreed to join the LIV Golf League, according to a report.
Per James Corrigan of The Daily Telegraph, Pieters will be confirmed as the latest addition when the final teams are announced next Monday.
The 31-year-old Belgian has won seven times on the European-based DP World Tour and has been enjoying a resurgence in form.
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Pieters made a winning start to his 2022 season by ticking off the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Yas Links.
The Belgian then went on to post several top-10s over the course of the year. His best finish in the majors came when he placed T-27 at the U.S. Open.
Pieters was part of Darren Clarke's European Ryder Cup side that lost to 17-11 to the U.S. at Hazeltine. Despite defeat, Pieters was impressive.
He formed a strong partnership with a 27-year-old Rory McIlroy and set a new rookie record for points earned (four).
Pieters and McIlroy won all three of their matches, including a 4&2 win over Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler.
According to Corrigan's report, Pieters had given his assurances to DP World Tour officials that he wanted to be a part of Luke Donald's side.
Bookmakers had him odds-on to make the team. The report further states that Pieters had been "courted by LIV Golf officials for months".
We will not know if LIV players can still be eligible for the Ryder Cup this year until we know the outcome of the DP World Tour v LIV Golf hearing.
It is said that Pieters has accepted a seven-figure up-front fee to join. LIV Golf will begin their second campaign in Mexico.
They have recently been hit with the news that they won't be having OWGR points anytime soon, per this report.
Pieters was in the news just this week when he criticised the PGA Tour for not extending an invite to the Genesis Invitational.
Some jokingly told Pieters to join LIV and asked if he had upset the tournament host Tiger Woods.
In case you haven't heard, it's actually Woods that has been upsetting others.
But back to Pieters and he is currently the ninth-ranked European player in the world.
If his signature is confirmed, it would mean that he is the third 'new' player to join the tour led by Greg Norman.
Elsewhere, Sebastian Munoz and Mito Pereira have finally been confirmed as LIV players.
PGA Tour rookie Dean Burmester, from South Africa, has also 'agreed to join the league' and will team-up with Louis Ooshuizen's Stinger GC side.
What do you think about this news? Do you think LIV Golf will succeed in 2023? Will you watch? Tweet us and let us know your thoughts.
Ben joined the GolfMagic team in September 2021, initially as a content executive.
These days, he assumes the position of content manager.
