Exclusive: Majesticks GC Team Principal talks to GolfMagic about all things LIV Golf

Some of the key takeaways:

• Success of The Majesticks Arms pub at LIV Golf UK and future plans
• Overall Majesticks form has been "disappointing" but the team is ready to finish the season strong
• "Hugely satisfied" in building the team, establishing partners and growth of 'Little Sticks'
• Greg Norman is "absolutely" the right man to take LIV Golf forwards as the CEO
• LIV Golf fields will be "even stronger" next season
• Majesticks GC to remain unchanged in 2025

Has LIV Golf lived up to your expectations as the second season draws to a close?

I think it is fair to say it has exceeded my expectations across the board. If you look at key metrics like attendance, viewership, social audience, level of golf course, strength of field etc, there have been significant improvements across the board in what is a relatively short period of time.

How would you assess the performance of Majesticks GC in 2024? 

Overall, it has been disappointing. Tied 10th in the OOM is not where we want to be but there have been signs of improvements vs last year and we came extremely close to winning two events in 2024 in Hong Kong (lost by four) and Chicago (lost by three). We have an opportunity to finish on a high this week and take these improvements into 2025.

Are Majesticks GC confident of surprising a few people at the Team Championship? 

Coming off the back of a strong showing in Chicago last week, I would certainly say there is confidence we can surprise a few people this week. As we know, anything can happen in 18 holes of matchplay and if we win two matches we will have a chance to fight for the Team Championship on the final day.

Related: Ian Poulter sums up what he misses most on PGA Tour, DP World Tour in six words

What's given you most pride so far as Team Principal of Majesticks?

I am proud of everything we have done so far at Majesticks GC, building our team, growing our audience, establishing some great partners etc. The one thing I would probably call out would be our Community Impact program ‘Little Sticks’. In less than two years we have built a curriculum, piloted the program, completed independent research studies, enhanced the wellbeing of 300+ young people and are preparing to roll the program out into the PE curriculum of circa 200 schools in the UK which we forecast will impact circa 40,000 kids per year. Simply put, this wouldn’t have been possible without the inception and support of LIV Golf. When LIV was launched all players were heavily criticised for joining the league purely for financial gain and while clearly commercial elements were a big part of the consideration, the opportunity to grow the game through programs like 'Little Sticks', playing a global schedule, introducing something new to the game in regular team golf were also a huge part. To now be able to demonstrate what we have done across all these elements and the benefits it is bringing is hugely satisfying. 

What does the future hold for Majesticks GC on LIV Golf?

We will continue to be focussed on delivering on our mission ‘to be a winning team and thriving community, making the difference on and off the course’.

What's been your favourite LIV Golf event so far and why? 

It is a close tie between LIV Adelaide and LIV UK. LIV Adelaide really set a benchmark for what a LIV event can be in terms of attendance, atmosphere, team buy in etc and I am proud to say our ‘home’ event at LIV UK ranked second to only Adelaide in attendance and customer feedback. Having a home event gives us the opportunity to go a bit bigger and think outside of the box when it comes to activations and fan experiences and the Majesticks GC Tee Party and The Majesticks Arms pub were great examples of that this year. Of course, not all the ideas work but I think it is safe to say those did and there will be chances to take them to more events next year.

So was The Majesticks Arms pub your idea?!

No, I can’t take credit for that idea. It was our head of digital and content Angus Gill and the LIV events team, so they deserve all the credit for bringing The Majesticks Arms to life. 

Watch: Poulter makes no-look putt in front of The Majesticks Arms pub at LIV Golf UK!

Do you believe Greg Norman is the right man to take LIV Golf forwards as the CEO? 

Absolutely. Greg’s determination has been unwavering to champion the product, the players and taking the game to a global audience and that is exactly what is happening. He has been great to work with, his work ethic is incredible and I have been pleasantly surprised at how available he is to us as GM’s for guidance and support. Like any successful business you need a good team and Greg is assembling one of the best in the business in the likes of Lawrence Burian, Katie O’Reilly, Adam Harter.

Will Majesticks GC remain unchanged for 2025, or could we see new additions to the team?

Yes, we will remain unchanged in 2025 and are very happy with our lineup. 

Do you expect to see any more big-name PGA Tour players move to LIV Golf in 2025?

I am honestly not sure what or who to expect but I would be confident to say that the field will be even stronger in 2025.

What are your thoughts on the PGA Tour, DP World Tour and PIF attempting to form a commercial entity to unify the game?

Ultimately, I think bringing all the major tours in golf under one umbrella and letting players have the choice to play where they want to across tours, leagues, as they have done historically would be a good thing. Seeing the best players play together more often in different and engaging formats has to be good for the game, the players, the fans and the entire golf eco-system.

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