Star-studded line-up for LIV Golf's India debut
Reigning Major winner Bryson DeChambeau , who had top-six finishes in three of the four Majors in 2024, including a win at the US Open, heads a stellar lineup in the tournament.
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GURUGRAM: As many as 15 LIV Golf League stars and nine winners from the Asian Tour's 2024 season will be teeing it up at the USD 2 million International Series India beginning here on January 30.
Reigning Major winner Bryson DeChambeau , who had top-six finishes in three of the four Majors in 2024, including a win at the US Open, heads a stellar lineup in the tournament.
Six of the top 20 from last year's LIV Golf League will be in the field as India becomes the latest country to host the International Series.
DeChambeau (8) is joined by Crushers GC team-mates Paul Casey (11) and Anirban Lahiri (16) while Mexico's Carlos Ortiz of Torque GC (13) will line up alongside his skipper Joaquin Niemann (2), and compatriot Abraham Ancer (12) of Fireballs GC.
Other confirmations include Mito Pereira and Sebastian Munoz , which make it a clean sweep of Torque GC players, while Harold Varner III of 4Aces GC brings his mercurial talent to the iconic Gary Player-designed course at the award-winning DLF Golf and Country Club.
The International Series 2023 Rankings champion Andy Ogletree, a three-time winner, is also in the field along with RangeGoats GC player Peter Uihlein , a two-time champion on The International Series last season and runner-up in the rankings race behind Niemann.
Eight of the 10 Indian professionals confirmed have won on the Asian Tour. They are Bhullar (11), Lahiri (7), Jeev Milkha Singh (6), SSP Chawrasia (6), Sharma (2), Rashid Khan (2), Rahil Gangjee (2) and Ajeetesh Sandhu (1). The other confirmed Indians are Yuvraj Sandhu and Karandeep Kochhar. Shiv Kapur, a four-time winner on the Asian Tour, is the first reserve.
Interestingly, Lahiri (T-5 at the 2015 PGA), Sharma (T-8 at the 2023 Open) and Jeev Milkha (T-9 at the 2008 PGA) are the only Indians to have finished in the Top-10 in a Major.
A promising addition to the field is teenage amateur Kartik Singh, who was third at the 2024 Junior Players Championship. The 15-year-old Kartik, the highest-ranked Indian amateur, has also played the Junior Presidents Cup and was a member of the strong Asia-Pacific team which beat the European team to win the prestigious Bonallack Trophy in the UAE earlier this month.
International Series India marks the debut of the LIV Golf-backed series on the subcontinent.