LIV Golf star wants to play ‘four PGA Tour events’

Joaquin Niemann knows he is in the minority.

The globetrotting Chilean understands that many of his colleagues on the LIV Golf League are more than happy with their 14-event schedule on the Saudi-backed breakaway.

He also suggests that golfers out on the PGA Tour are content with home comforts.

But ahead of his defence of the ISPS Handa Australian Open this week, Niemann has reiterated his desire to play as much as possible across both sides of the divide in elite men’s golf.

Last year, Niemann’s win Down Under at the co-sanctioned DP World Tour event earned him a special discretionary invite into the Masters.

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And while hamstrung by his LIV move regarding other playing opportunities, Niemann continues to make the most of what is available to him.

“To be honest, I don’t think there’s many people that would want to play all over the world,” the 26-year-old told Fox Sports Australia.

“They just want to play on LIV and that’s it, and there’s a few guys who probably just want to play on the PGA Tour and that’s it.

“For me, if I don’t play on the PGA Tour, I don’t think it would really hurt me a lot but I would like to play more.”

Of course, as things stand, Niemann is currently indefinitely banned from playing on the PGA Tour.

LIV golfers were suspended from the American circuit when jumping ship and the talent pool has remained split ever since.

“Ideally it would be awesome to play PGA Tour events,” Niemann said. “As captain of my team, Torque, I am playing LIV Golf and I would love to play those 14 events as well as a few events I love from the PGA Tour.

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“I love Riviera (host of the Genesis Championship), The Players and if I could pick three or four events from the PGA Tour and play those, and then a few others on the DP World Tour, I would love to.”

“Playing on LIV Golf and having the DP World Tour around – I played the Rolex series for the first time – was awesome, and if I can play those plus a few other events and the majors, I am happy.”

Niemann is firmly on the same page as his LIV rival Jon Rahm on this front.

Speaking on his return to the DP World Tour at the Open de Espana this autumn, Rahm also stressed his hopes for a prospective peace deal in golf would be free movement between the tours.

“Being a member of the European Tour, I never had to ask to go play anything and the PGA was basically the same,” Rahm told reporters in Spanish.

“You could do whatever you wanted as a player and enjoy this sport in other tournaments and tours in the world.

“What I have done and what many players have done, I don’t think much about that. I think there are many people who don’t understand very well what those in the world want.

“Few or almost none of the players would want to play a whole year on the PGA Tour again because it would be impossible to combine the two. But being able to have the option of playing certain tournaments is what I said.

“If we started (the LIV season) in February, in January I would have time to play Torrey Pines (Farmers Insurance Open) and the American Express… It would be cases like that to be able to come here without problems, and enjoy being a DP World Tour member as I am.”

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.