04 February 2024 , 17:52
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Phil Mickelson's off-season phone calls appeared to have done the trick for LIV Golf, after the Saudi-backed series signed a group of stars for the new season.
The 2024 LIV campaign got underway in Mexico on Friday, and the Mayakoba setup played host to a number of debuts. The biggest being Masters champion Jon Rahm, who became LIV's record-breaking signing last December, penning a deal worth a reported £450million.
The signing of the Spanish star then saw his Ryder Cup partner and world No. 16 Tyrrell Hatton also come through the door, as the pair joined forces as part of the newly-formed Legion XIII.
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Elsewhere one of Europe's hottest stars in Adrian Meronk also opted to make the Saudi switch, alongside PGA Tour winner Lucas Herbert, and one of the world's most in-form amateurs in Caleb Surratt. After a slow start, it turned out to be a succesful off-season all in all for the breakaway league, after adding Rahm and co.
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And it no doubt vindicates the comments of Mickelson, who admitted he had received plenty of interest from PGA Tour and DP World Tour players last October. "The reality is, I've been fielding calls, as we all have, from players that are agents to PGA Tour players, to DP World Tour players that want to come over," he claimed.
"So the question is how many spots are available? There’s a lot more players that want to come than there are spots.” There is no doubt the addition of Mickelson's good friend Rahm was the most important addition, with the Spaniard the current Masters champion and world No. 3.
Jon Rahm is making his LIV Golf debut this week (Getty Images)Unsurprisingly the Spanish star has started his LIV career in form, as he sits just two shots behind leader Joaquin Niemann heading into Sunday's final round. Rahm initially sat four shots back, but a two-shot penalty thanks to an incorrect drop by Niemann - who shot an historic 59 in round one - has shortened the gap.
Rahm's Legion XIII team are also just one shot back in the team standings too, and the Spaniard has set his sights on win No. 1 heading into the final round. "It was a really good fun round of golf. I was happy to finish a little bit better," he said on Saturday.
"Those tee shots on 18 and 1 were fantastic. Too bad I couldn't capitalise, but with how hard it was playing, I'll take the somewhat easy pars. I'm really proud of my team. It was kind of a surprise towards the end when I saw a couple more birdies happening and the guys finishing strong and find ourselves in second place.
"I couldn't be prouder, and hopefully tomorrow we can keep it going, everything get a little bit better and have a good Sunday and give ourselves a chance to win."