The Club at Chatham Hills will be first LIV Golf event on a Pete Dye course

WESTFIELD, Ind. – This week, LIV Golf hosts its Individual Championship at The Club at Chatham Hills – the first time the League will play on a Pete Dye-designed course. The Club at Chatham Hills is a special one, as it’s the final masterpiece designed by the legendary architect. The par-71, 7,143-yard layout will test players with its punishing bunkers, fast Bentgrass greens, and strategic water hazards.

Legion XIII Captain Jon Rahm and Torque GC Captain Joaquin Niemann, who will clash this week to see which player will end the season as Inidivudal Champion, have both played plenty of rounds on Pete Dye tracks throughout their careers.

Rahm has played 56 rounds on Pete Dye courses and ranks 17th in the world (minimum 12 rounds) in Strokes Gained: Total on those courses, averaging +1.14 strokes per round. Some notable Pete Dye finishes for Rahm include two wins at the American Express (PGA West Stadium Course), a win at the Zurich Classic (TPC Louisiana), which was a team event alongside Ryan Palmer, and a T8 at the 2021 PGA Championship (Kiawah Island).

Niemann has played 35 rounds on Pete Dye Courses and ranks 27th (minimum 12 rounds) in Strokes Gained: Total on those courses, averaging +1.12 strokes per round. Some notable Pete Dye finishes for Niemann include a T5 finish at the 2020 RBC Heritage (Harbour Town Golf Links), a T5 at the 2019 Travelers Championship (TPC River Highlands) and a T22 at the 2022 Players Championship (TPC Sawgrass).

Crushers GC’s Paul Casey has an outstanding track record on Pete Dye-designed courses, ranking fourth in the world in Strokes Gained: Total Per Round (+1.56) at Dye tracks. The Englishman has a runner-up finish at TPC River Highlands (2015 Travelers), a 3rd place at TPC Sawgrass (2022 Players), T4 at Kiawah Island (2021 PGA Championship), and a T8 at the PGA West Stadium Course (2021 American Express).

“I'm a big fan of Pete Dye,” Casey said. “It's sad he's no longer with us, but for me, he's been my favorite modern architect.”

Reflecting on his early exposure, Casey noted, “I think my first exposure to him was back at Arizona State when he had designed the Karsten golf course there in Tempe, Arizona, which unfortunately no longer exists, and that's a part of the game I like to study. I read. I love the books. I was a big Harry Colt fan, and I think Harry Colt would have loved Pete Dye’s designs.

“I love the tricks (Dye) plays. He's big on his optical illusions. You'll see a lot of them this week. Bunkers that look like they're close together but not, they're staggered. There's a lot of room out there. He loves to kind of create a tension on a tee shot. He scares you on a tee shot and then you get down there and actually things open up. He hides stuff. There's a couple of water features out there you don't see off the tee. It's really clever stuff.”

The Club at Chatham Hills will provide its own challenges of a Pete Dye course, although length will not be one of them.

“All the way through his career, he's designed incredible golf courses, and this one is fascinating," Casey said. "Yes, it's around the houses, a bit more maybe country club, but it's no less of a golf course. You're going to see a great test this week, and maybe it's not the longest golf course you're going to see on paper, but I love it.”

While The Club at Chatham Hills has its own unique features, there are similarities to other Pete Dye layouts.

“You can throw in the River Highlands and places like that," Casey said. "I tend not to compare it to other golf courses other than you can see the traits, other than this is a lot more rustic. This is more organic in style. The water out there is, as I say, not flanked by the railway sleepers as I would call them with the sharp edges on the fairways that we typically see in places like Florida where he's been prominent. This will catch guys out. It's kind of unassuming, and the rough this week is gnarly. If you know his architecture and you can figure it out, I think you can be rewarded.”

Casey concluded: “I think my record speaks for itself, and so I'm looking to play well at this place.”

Casey has had a strong season and is 11th in the individual standings. Last week, the 48-year-old finished T5 at LIV Golf Chicago, where he gained 3.24 strokes on approach.

Abraham Ancer, who’s another Pete Dye specialist, also sets up well for The Club at Chatham Hills. Ancer has had some fantastic results at Pete Dye tracks throughout his career with strong finishes at the 2021 PGA Championship (T8, Kiawah Island), Harbour Town (2nd at 2020 RBC Heritage), PGA West Stadium Course (2nd at 2020 American Express), 4th at TPC River Highlands (2021 Travelers ), and TPC Sawgrass (T12 at the 2019 Players).

“I think most of the designs that Pete Dye does, I mean, you have to be very accurate off the tee,” said Ancer, who last week in Chicago led the field in Strokes Gained: Approach. “And not necessarily you have to be the longest, but you have to be in the fairway. And it’s a lot of target golf. I feel like too, coming into the greens, you have to be accurate. You can’t be in the wrong spot. So that’s just kind of the way I like to play golf.”

As LIV Golf’s Individual Championship unfolds at The Club at Chatham Hills, the stage is set for a final test of skill on Pete Dye’s final architectural gem.

LIV Golf Players: Strokes Gained Total (per round) on Pete Dye Courses