The Starter no.3

LIV Golf's wild offseason player movement process

November 22, 2023

We’d rather be golfing. Anything happen in golf this week?? Let’s dive into a busy week of headlines shortly, but before that, quick shout out to everyone who has subscribed. None of us were very popular in high school so this is the closest we have ever felt to being prom kings. Very excited to introduce our referral program that will make it easier for you to share our newsletter and earn some cool gear in the process. Turkey hangovers expected across the board over here so no Sunday morning issue this week. Enjoy time with your family, show Phil Jackson level zen while your better half empties the bank account on Friday, and look forward to us sliding back into your email next Wednesday. - Team DMPL

Transfers and Free Agency and Promotions, Oh my!

USA Today Sports

Innovation or insanity? LIV Golf has toed that line since it’s launch in October 2021. Their recent announcement of an Offseason Player Movement process is par for the course as they look to continue to modernize the sport.

Zone Coverage

Prior to the start of the offseason player movement process, LIV channeled Bill Belichick and outlined a few zone schemes for organizing their final standings.

  • Lock Zone: Players finishing in the Top 24 secure an opportunity with the league next season.

  • Open Zone: Players finishing 25-44 whose contracts are expiring become free agents.

  • Drop Zone: Players finishing 45 and below are relegated out of the league and automatically qualify for the LIV Golf promotion tournament and the chance to earn their spot back next season.

    Editors note: As an undersized and un-athletic high school DB, I welcomed some drop zone back in the day…

What’s my Phase again?

  • Phase One: 

    • Top 24 players who are out of contract in 2023 have been offered a new contract by their current team.

    • Players that finished in the top 24 whose contracts are not expiring continue to play under their current terms.

  • Phase Two:

    • Players from the first phase who did not accept their new contracts and those who finished in spots 25-44 with expired contracts enter free agency.

  • Phase Three:

    • Once the players from phase two find their new homes, spots 45-48 will be filled by the winner of the International Series rankings and the top 3 finishers at the LIV Golf promotion tournament to be held December 8-10 at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club. 

    • The teams with open roster spots will participate in the inaugural LIV Golf Draft and determine where the four players from phase three call home during the 2024 season.

Speaking of the 2024 season….

Golfchannel.com reported that the 2024 season would see at least 7 of the 14 events played outside of the United States. The circuit will kick off its season on February 2 in Mexico and make its debut in Houston in June. LIV Golf will look to release the full schedule later today.

Earlier this week, LIV’s resident defending major champion, Brooks Koepka, had a little fun trolling his employer for the lack of clarity on destinations for the golf road show next season.

So many storylines following the offseason. Who will go #1 in the draft?? Will the Cleeks go into the luxury tax after re-signing Richard Bland to a max deal?? Will anyone tune in to the CW next year to find out?? 🫠 

Hello Old Friends

Patrick Smith/Getty Images

As the tours stateside take a break, golf across the pond keeps on rolling this week as the DP World Tour stages both the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship at Royal Queensland GC in Brisbane, Australia and the Joburg Open at Houghton GC in Johannesburg, South Africa.

In Brisbane, defending champion Cameron Smith (pictured) headlines a strong field featuring Adam Scott and young stars Min Woo Lee and Cameron Davis. While 24-year-old Dan Bradbury looks to defend his crown at the Joburg. His 2022 victory in South Africa is the only professional win on his resume.

Betting Favorite: 

Australian PGA; Cameron Smith (+450) Joburg Open; Dean Burmester (+1000)

More on the DP World Tour

Around the Game

Glyn Kirk/AFP via Getty Images

⛳️ End of an Era. 2008 Ryder Cup captain Paul Azinger unceremoniously departs his chair as the lead golf analyst for NBC. Reports indicate that Zinger’s unwillingness to take a pay cut led to the separation. Curt Bynum has gotten the call up to the lead analyst role for next week’s Hero World Challenge. No word yet on whether Marshawn Lynch will fill the full-time void.

⛳️ Deflating. TGL punts the start of their inaugural season to 2025 following the overnight power failure last week that caused significant damage to the future home of the league.

⛳️ What a Year. Lilia Vu caps off a remarkable season on the LPGA Tour by earning the Rolex Player of the Year Award.

⛳️ LET’s wait a minute. Ladies European Tour members unexpectedly postpone vote on whether to merge with the LPGA.

⛳️ Heir Jordan. Jordan Speith assumes the role recently vacated by Rory McIlroy on the PGA Tour policy board. Speith, who previously sat on the board from 2019-21, will serve on the board for the remainder of McIlroy’s term, which runs through the end of 2024.

⛳️ She Long. Fun profile on the longest content creator on IG Gabi Powel and her path to the World Long Drive Championship.

Swinging for a Cause

Tracy Wilcox/PGA Tour

Since 1988, the PGA Tour Wives Association have been giving back to communities and supporting charities across the country where their professional golfing husbands compete. To date, the wives have contributed more than $5 million to the host communities of the PGA Tour.

This powerhouse group of women tact an additional $25,000 on to their fundraising total as their 11th annual RSM Wiffle Ball Classic was another homerun! Aided by some clutch hitting from Harry Higgs and Brendon Todd, the PGA Tour husbands edged out a 9-8 victory over the wives. The real winner of the evening was the Boys and Girls Club of Southeast Georgia as they were the beneficiary of the philanthropic support raised at the event.

On deck for the ladies is the 20th edition of their annual Tour Wives Golf Classic held in conjunction to the WM Phoenix Open in which the pros caddie for their spouses. Proceeds from this event support St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.

Growing the Game

Hey, Buddy! Happy Thanksgiving!

Seinfeld

So who am I? That is an excellent question. I am an avid golfer, who rarely plays but loves the game, and a regular gambler, who considers himself dangerously streaky. To put it plainly, I’ve held a 7 handicap for nearly a decade and haven’t played a single round without at least one wager attached to it…

Allow me to be your caddie and let’s win some money! - BY

Thanksgiving NFL “Prop” Luck Special

What more can I say than our guys had fight! The RSM Classic brought fireworks with a winning score of -29 from an unwavering Ludvig Aberg, who was the favorite entering the contest. Aberg’s back-to-back 61’s to finish the weekend left spectators’ jaws nestled nicely in the ryegrass. Aberg is living up to the hype and will continue to be on my radar moving forward. 

My picks Brian Harman and Patton Kizzire both finished at -11 which was just enough to crack the top 50. Falling short of expectations can be difficult, but here at DMPL we thrive within the storm and press on.

Happy Thanksgiving to all! We are so thankful for you being a part of our growing community. The PGA Tour is taking a week off and will resume on November 30th with The Hero World Challenge and the highly anticipated return of Tiger Woods. In the meantime, as we embark on a holiday filled with gratitude, we are thankful for all sports, especially the NFL. The standard three game slate is set for Thanksgiving Day, and I have selected my favorite player prop from each game to add a little extra gravy to your bank account heading into the holiday season. Parlay if you dare!

Packers @ Lions: Jared Goff U253.5 passing yards (-115)

Commanders @ Cowboys: Brandon Aubrey O1.5 Field Goals (-135)

49ers @ Seahawks: Christian McCaffrey O112.5 rushing + receiving yds (-115)

As always, please remember to gamble responsibly.

Worth the Follow: Nation Golf

Nation Golf is cool. Plain and simple. Inspired by their convictions that golf is worth dressing up for, each post from Nation Golf, led by Ryan Engle and Adam Hawk, evokes a feeling of nostalgia for the golden era of golf unmatched by any other brand on social media. We recommend you make a play on some swanky styles from Nation Golf and bring a touch of class to your holiday scramble.

 

ICYMI

🌳 Joost Luiten for my clubs. One of the silliest scenes you’ll ever see took place during the final round of the DP World Tour Championship.

🪄 Fitzmagic. U.S. Open Champion Matt Fitzpatrick joins the High Performance Podcast to discuss his meticulous approach to the game.

🐅 Living the dream. Barstool’s ForePlay Pod guys give sneak peak at their shoot with Eldrick.

🏠️ Crib with a course. Potentially, the ultimate Airbnb rental for your next golf trip.

👀 Forget Foosball. This table golf set up is the perfect gift for the Lambda Chi in your life.

Golf Scramble

Can you correctly unscramble these golf terms?

  1. SOSALTRBAO

  2. EEINRKEPS

  3. MBRUORNWRE

  4. GANBGRSAED

  5. MIGME

Name that Golfer

Three clues. Can you name this player?

  • 2x winner of the PGA Tour.

  • First player to win on the PGA Tour, the PGA Tour Canada, and the Korn Ferry Tour.

  • Par-3 course at Dundas Valley Golf and Country Club was renamed in his honor.

Issue no. 2 Answers

Golf Hole of the Day: Bethpage Black

Name that Golfer: Tom Kim

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