Course fit for LIV Golf stars at Bethpage Black

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. – Bethpage Black, the crown jewel of Bethpage State Park, is one of the most difficult venues in Ryder Cup history. The 7,398-yard par 70 was designed by A.W. Tillinghast in 1936 and has established a reputation for punishing the best players in the world.

The course hosted the 2002 U.S. Open where Tiger Woods was the only player to finish under par. It also hosted the 2009 U.S. Open, won by Lucas Glover at 4 under and the 2019 PGA Championship, where Brooks Koepka fired a record-setting 63 en route to victory, which was the lowest score ever recorded in a major championship round at Bethpage Black.

What typically makes Bethpage Black so demanding are its narrow fairways, thick rough, elevated greens, and brutal bunkering. However, this week, the United States team have set the course up a bit differently. The rough has been cut down so misses off the tee will not be incredibly penal, giving some of their big hitters the advantage. In 2023, the European team concluded that the United States were better at hitting wedges and short irons into greens, whereas the Europeans had an advantage with mid to long irons. By cutting down the rough, the Americans are giving their team the opportunity to bomb it as far as possible with driver and give themselves a wedge into the greens. The greens will play fast, which should favor the United States team as greens in Europe are typically slower.

Three LIV Golf players will be teeing it up at Bethpage Black. Bryson DeChambeau is the lone LIV Golf representative for the United States team while the Legion XIII duo of Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton are both on the European team roster. Here’s how their games fit the course that greets players with its famous “Warning” sign (although the sign has been taken down for this week).

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU

DeChambeau has only played at Bethpage Black once as a professional, missing the cut in the 2019 PGA Championship. Since then, DeChambeau has won two U.S. Open championships and has ascended to one of the best players in the world.

This season, the Crushers GC captain ranked 1st on LIV Golf in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee. While hitting fairways will help, length will be a much more important factor due to the course setup. DeChambeau should be able to unleash his driver and although wedges aren’t his strong suit, potential teammates such as Justin Thomas, Ben Griffin and Cameron Young thrive on short approach shots and will make a dangerous duo with DeChambeau in foursomes.

Additionally, the players who tee off on the odd holes will have the longer approach shots into the green in foursomes, whereas the players who tee off on even holes will likely have a wedge shot for their approach. DeChambeau is a strong long irons player and ranked 16th in Strokes Gained: Long Approach on LIV Golf in 2025.

The fast greens should also suit DeChambeau, who’s has had tremendous success in the Northeast. He’s won 2018 The Northern Trust at Ridgewood Country Club in New Jersey, the 2018 Dell Technologies Championship at TPC Boston and the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot in New York.

JON RAHM

Like DeChambeau, Rahm has only played at Bethpage Black once as a professional and missed the cut. That shouldn’t be a cause for concern, as Rahm has since elevated his game and is a perfect fit for Bethpage Black on paper. Rahm ranked 2nd behind only DeChambeau in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee this season and has gained strokes off the tee in 29 consecutive starts worldwide.

Rahm should be a beneficiary of the United States team setting up the course to create short approach shots into greens. The Legion XIII captain ranked 6th in LIV Golf in Strokes Gained: Approach on short approach shots (less than 150 yards).

Rahm has had some success in the Northeast as well. He has three top-10 finishes at TPC Boston, two 3rd place finishes at the Northern Trust at Liberty National (2019 and 2021), a T4 finish at TPC Boston and a T12 finish at the 2022 U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline, MA.

TYRRELL HATTON

Hatton hasn’t had a great deal of success in the Northeast, but saw the course at the 2019 PGA Championship, finishing 48th. The Englishman’s recent U.S. Open success should prove to be a positive sign for his ability to play a long and difficult setup. However, the potential easier setup this week could go against Hatton, who thrives when having to grind out difficult par saves.

Hatton has improved his finish in the U.S. Open in four consecutive seasons and should be confident on the big stage in his current form. He had his best major performance this season, finishing T4 at Oakmont. With the greens in the U.S. majors typically rolling fast, that should suit Hatton well for Bethpage Black this week. On LIV Golf, he ranked 4th in Strokes Gained: Short Approach and 13th in Strokes Gained: Putting, which will be two important factors this week.

Hatton’s match play experience and his camaraderie with Rahm - with both players excelling on short approach shots all year - should make him one of the most reliable players for the European side this week.