12 November 2023 , 15:37
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LIV Golf have announced former U.S. Amateur champion Andy Ogletree as the newest player on their roster ahead of their second full campaign in 2024.
Ogletree's LIV place was confirmed on Sunday, after the American was crowned champion of the Asian Tour's International Series thanks to a tied-15th finish at the Hong Kong Open. Ogletree has taken up one of the four vacant spots on the Saudi-backed circuit, after Chase Koepka, Sihwan Kim, James Piot and Jediah Morgan were relegated last month.
The 25-year-old is no stranger to the LIV Golf setup, having competed in the breakaway league's first ever tournament at Centurion Club in St Albans in June 2022.
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It proved to be a week to forget for the U.S. Amateur winner, as he finished dead-last in the 48-man field and was subsequently cut from the roster for the rest of the season. Ogletree has bounced back impressively though, having turned his attentions to the International Series this year.
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Over the past 12 months the Georgia Tech graduate has won three times on the Asian Tour's 10-event series, with victories in Egypt, Qatar and England. His impressive form earned him a temporary call-up to LIV during the 2023 season, as he acted as injury reserve at a number of events.
Andy Ogletree played in one LIV Golf event in 2022 (Getty Images)Now though the American has cemented a permanent place on the roster for 2024, and it is a challenge he is looking forward to. "It’s awesome! I am so excited to win the Order of Merit," he said. 'It’s been a lot of hard work this year and a lot of great golf has gone into this.
"I just want to thank everyone that’s gotten me to this point: the Asian Tour for all that they’ve done, and my team back home for allowing me to play the way I’ve played this year. I couldn’t be more excited, and I can’t wait to play LIV next year."
The year with the LIV setup will no doubt prove to be a life-changing one for the 25-year-old, who will be playing for a £16.3 million purse at each event throughout the season. He has however vowed to also return to the tour in which earned him a spot on the mega-money roster.
Ogletree added: “I’ll definitely play a few events on The International Series along with all the LIV events that I’m going to play, so next year should be a great year and I just can’t wait to get started.” Earlier this week, the American admitted he had already been in contact with a group of LIV teams ahead of his return.
One man who has backed the rising star to impress on the Saudi-backed circuit second time around is fellow LIV star Graeme McDowell. Speaking exclusively to Mirror Sport, McDowell said: "He has had enough exposure to it [LIV Golf] this year and the couple of chances that he's had, he's taken it.
"I think he's going to do great next year. I spent a lot of time with him this week, probably got to know him probably more this week than I have. I like his attitude. He's a hard worker."