One of the most recognised members of the Saudi-backed breakaway league, two-time U.S. Open winner DeChambeau heads the Crushers GC team with LIV. And while he has enjoyed individual success under the banner, he wants fans to invest more in the team aspect of LIV instead of solely focusing on individuals.
Speaking about his hopes for the future last month, the 31-year-old who has three LIV titles to his name said: “The game of golf is ready for change. We continue to hope to see golf move in this team direction.
“Obviously the game will always be an individual sport. We’ll always play for individual titles. But why not have a team aspect as well to it?
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“Why can’t we have more fun together? Why can’t we build something special? Why can’t we influence and inspire the next generation of golfers as a team?
“We want people to have that fandom like you have with the Lakers, like you have with the Yankees and stuff. It’s going to take time. We all know that.
“And the people that are looking at us going, ‘What is this, why is it even a thing?’ Well, the Yankees had to start somewhere, the Lakers had to start somewhere, and we’re just at the inception. This is only three years in now.”
As it stands, LIV golf has both singles and teams leaderboards for each event. However, the team leaderboard is just an accumulation of individual performances at the end of an event – with the lowest scoring player and lowest scoring combined team winning.
That’s barring the LIV Golf Team Championship, of course, which is held as a four-round match play knockout tournament in which teams face off. And McIlroy believes that a change to the format to incorporate teams actually going head-to-head consistently rather than once a year could change the game in terms of how people view LIV Golf.
Speaking about the current set-up, the 36-year-old said: “Look, I always felt like LIV’s best chance was to try to replicate their team championship for the teams to go head-to-head together instead of they all just go out and play and they add their scores up at the end of the day.
“I don’t think that gets people going. But I think when the teams go head-to-head like they do in their team championship in wherever, Dallas or whenever it was last year, I think that has a possibility of working. Instead of that maybe being once a year and then these stroke play events, could you reduce the stroke play events and do more of that a few times a year.
“I think that is a way — because especially if these guys are going to come back and play, I don’t want to say real, they play real golf but more like championship individual golf, then is there more of an opportunity for these teams to go more head-to-head because I think that makes for a more compelling product, at least in my eyes. I’m just one person.”
It comes as McIlroy and DeChambeau will meet once more on the course this year at the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush later this month. No strangers to the trials and tribulations of a major championship, the PGA Tour pro and the LIV Golf star were pitted off with one another for the final round of the Masters back in April.
During that round at Augusta National, McIlroy refused to speak to his opponent until he had putted his final ball on the famed 18th hole. McIlroy ultimately went on to win his first Masters title and clinch the Career Grand Slam during that tournament, following a tense play-off with Justin Rose.
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