Exclusive: Martin Kaymer signs highly-rated prospect for LIV Golf

It was in the aftermath of the final event of the season in Dallas that the name of LIV Golf’s next signing was first discussed.

Martin Kaymer, the captain of Cleeks GC, was on the hunt for a youthful replacement for Kalle Samooja, the Finnish golfer who had just been relegated from the breakaway league.

“With my manager and GM of the team, we sat down and had a look at some of the names that could work for us, not only playing wise but also personality wise,” Kaymer tells bunkered.co.uk.

“We looked mainly into professionals first. Some European guys on the European Tour. Some on the Challenge Tour. Some Europeans in American colleges and a few names popped up.”

Frederik Kjettrup, the 24-year-old Danish pro who was emerging as a prolific winner on the developmental PGA Tour Americas circuit, was one of the names that stood out from the pack.

bunkered.co.uk has learned that Kjettrup has now signed what is assumed to be a multi-year deal to join the breakaway league and will complete Kaymer’s Cleeks outfit for the 2025 season.

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“Frederik’s name popped up because he won three times on the PGA Americas tour and he had a very good amateur career,” Kaymer explains on a phone call. “He was top ten in the PGA Tour University rankings in his last year. Stuff like that all spoke for him in terms of performance.

“We didn’t know the person behind the golf player. We spoke a couple times on the phone and got to know each other and got some insight into where he would like to be in a few years. We got along really well. It felt right. Then we proposed his name to the league and we got very positive feedback.

“I talked to his manager and to him and here we go.”

Kjettrup, the world No.241, joins LIV with a winning pedigree in his fledgling career.

The Dane spent four seasons at Florida State University, where he was a three-time individual champion and a regular on European and International amateur teams.

He turned pro after earning his PGA Tour Americas membership by finishing eighth on the 2024 PGA Tour University Ranking, claiming his first professional win on his tour debut at The Beachlands Victoria Open.

A week later, Kjettrup won the ATP Classic, becoming the first pro since 2012 to win his first two starts on his member tour. On his major debut in June, he missed the US Open cut by one shot at Pinehurst after making it through gruelling Final Qualifying.

Another victory on the PGA Americas circuit followed in September and Kjettrup earned full exemption status on the Korn Ferry Tour for 2025, where he would have been primed to compete for one of the 20 cards available on the PGA Tour for the following season.

That, however, was when LIV came calling.

“Several things attracted us,” Kaymer says. “First of all, it’s very difficult becoming a professional and winning fairly early. I was lucky enough to win fairly quick in my career and I know how difficult it is to get that first win over the line. He backed it up with another win in just a few weeks. I thought that was an incredible achievement for someone who just finished school.

“But with Frederik, we had a good connection fairly quick. I believe next year it is vital we have a well functioning team in terms of team spirit. All four scores will count next year. You can’t relax and give up. I felt the attitude he had was serious. He had a great passion for the game.

“He’s still got the youth in him which is inspiring for our team. Richard [Bland] is turning 52. I’m turning 40 in a few days. Adrian [Meronk] is 30 and the young guy! It’s nice to have some freshness in the team.”

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After numerous phone conversations, Kaymer was also left impressed by the scale of Kjettrup’s ambition.

“He’s only 24,” the two-time major champion says. “Like most upcoming pros and for me when we were younger it was about playing the majors and being on the best stage in the world.”

The inevitable concern for young, driven players considering LIV in this increasingly uncertain landscape is that there are no guarantees they will be able to access these opportunities.

Despite hopes that exemption criteria will change, there is currently no direct route into the major championships for players who join the league.

For Kaymer, therefore, honesty was the best policy with the incoming Kjettrup.

“I told Frederik quite honestly and things that some people don’t like to hear, we don’t know yet if there’s going to be a pathway to the majors,” he admits. “This is up to you if you want to take that risk.

“What I’ve heard from the league is that it looks pretty good. Hopefully next year we have some kind of way of qualifying for majors. We cannot say for sure this will happen. But he was fine with that.

“The situation right now, some players play on the PGA Tour, some play on the LIV tour. For him, LIV was very attractive. He enjoys watching it, he sees a future in it and he wants to be part of it. He likes being part of a team.

“LIV made a lot of sense to him.”

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.