Fantasy Preview and Picks for LIV Golf Virginia

The 2025 LIV Golf season resumes after a near five-week break from the last event in South Korea. The long break has provided the field with plenty of rest heading into the second half of the season, but with just six tournaments left before the Team Championship in Michigan, time is running out for players looking to avoid the Drop Zone in the Individual Season Standings.

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Let’s start off at the top, which looks to be a three-horse race as the second half of the season kicks off. Torque GC captain Joaquin Niemann continues to sit at the top of the table with 125.66 points thanks to his victories in Adelaide, Singapore and Mexico City. Right on Niemann’s heels are Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm, who are separated by less than a point through seven LIV Golf tournaments. Rahm preserved his streak of top-10 finishes at LIV Golf tournaments he finished in, but DeChambeau appears to have the momentum behind him thanks to his recent string of performances, including a victory at LIV Golf Korea.

The trio of captains at the top of the LIV Golf standings also happened to be the three best performers at the PGA Championship, with DeChambeau finishing tied for second followed by Rahm and Niemann, both of whom finished with a share of eighth. They are the clear frontrunners for the 2025 Individual Championship, but anyone can vault into contention with a victory over the final six tournaments of the season, including Fireballs GC captain Sergio Garcia (fourth), Ripper GC’s Lucas Herbert (fifth) and Stinger GC’s Dean Burmester (eighth).

Players who finish the season in the top-3 of the individual standings each receive a sizable bonus, but that’s not all that’s at stake for the rest of the field. The top-24 players guarantee themselves a spot in 2026 by finishing in the Lock Zone, while the next 24 who finish in the Open Zone are subject to potential release or trade. However, it’s the dreaded Drop Zone that players will attempt to avoid, as those who finish 49th or worse are relegated and must earn their spot back in the league. It doesn’t take much to avoid the Drop Zone; in 2024, former 4Aces player and current LIV Golf correspondent Pat Perez finished 48th in the standings with 7.76 points. A solo 11th finish earns you eight points, so a top-12 finish could allow the likes of Branden Grace, Mito Pereira or Lee Westwood to avoid relegation from the LIV Golf league.

The field’s attention will turn to the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia, this weekend. It’s the second of six tournaments in the United States, and the first time that the Old Dominion state will host a LIV Golf tournament. The late Robert Trent Jones (RTJ) designed or remodelled over 400 courses worldwide but called his course in Virginia “my masterpiece.” Indeed, it has hosted four Presidents Cup tournaments (1994, 1996, 2000, 2005), with HyFlyers GC captain Phil Mickelson representing Team U.S. in each event.

The signature par-3 11th hole features a sloping green that is fiercely protected by Lake Manassas to the left. Water doesn’t play much of a factor for the rest of the course (outside perhaps the par-5 14th), but the strategic layout of each hole will require players to think ahead with their shots. You can read more about the course and LIV Golf Virginia here.

With the second half of the 2025 LIV Golf season ahead, here are my picks for your fantasy teams for Virginia.

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INDIVIDUALS

GROUP 1

Bryson DeChambeau - Captain, Crushers GC

DeChambeau has arguably been the best LIV Golf performer in the league over the past two months. He had some disappointing finishes in April (including The Masters, where he finished T5), but the Crushers GC captain bounced back with a victory in Korea and a T2 finish a week later at the PGA Championship. DeChambeau has all the tools to succeed at RTJ this weekend; he leads the league in both driving distance and scrambling opportunities and is in the top-10 in all other statistical categories.

Jon Rahm - Captain, Legion XIII

Rahm’s 2025 season has mirrored the first half of the 2024 campaign; consistent performances, top-10 finishes, but no victories under his belt. Rahm had podium finishes in four of the last five tournaments last year (including victories in the United Kingdom and Chicago) but has only one in 2025 (solo second in Riyadh in February). Rahm leads the league in birdies made and ranks in the top-10 in GIR, scrambling opportunities and GIR.

Honorable mentions: Joaquin Niemann (Captain, Torque GC - coming off his first top-10 finish at a major tournament and ranks in the top-5 in birdies made, driving distance and GIR), Cameron Smith (Captain, Ripper GC - missed the cut at the PGA Championship, but the 31-year-old Aussie has three consecutive top-10 finishes at LIV Golf tournaments and has a knack for getting himself out of tough situations when it matters)

GROUP 2

Lucas Herbert - Ripper GC

Herbert has had a tremendous first half of the 2025 season, with his T31 at LIV Golf Adelaide being his only blemish. He’s finished in the top-15 in five of seven LIV Golf tournaments this season, including a T2 finish in Mexico City when he tied the course record with a bogey-free, 10-under 61 in the final round. Herbert has some momentum heading into Virginia after his five-shot victory at International Series Japan three weeks ago, which catapulted him to the top of the Asian Tour Order of Merit standings. Herbert ranks in the top-10 in putts per hole, birdies made and driving distance this season.

Paul Casey - Crushers GC

Casey sits 26th in the LIV Golf individual standings, but it’s been a relatively quiet first half of the season for the 47-year-old Englishman (especially in comparison to his performance in 2024). Even so, Casey’s accuracy off the tee and around the greens should be on full display in Virginia this weekend, and he would put himself in contention for his first LIV Golf trophy were he to sharpen his putting game.

Honorable mentions: Patrick Reed (4Aces GC - MC at the PGA Championship but has otherwise had a strong past two months, including a T4 at LIV Golf Korea and solo third at The Masters), Talor Gooch (Smash GC - The 2023 Individual Champion has finally found his form with three consecutive top-15 finishes, including solo third in Korea), Phil Mickelson (Captain, HyFlyers GC - has plenty of experience with the course as a member of Team U.S. for the Presidents Cup).

GROUP 3

Louis Oosthuizen - Captain, Stinger GC

It’s been an overall disappointing season for the South African, especially given his performance in 2024 (sixth in the individual season standings). However, he is coming off a solo 12th at LIV Golf Korea and ranks in the top-20 in driving accuracy, GIR and scrambling opportunities this season.

Richard Bland - Cleeks GC

Bland is coming off a T7 finish at LIV Golf Korea, but he also made the cut at the PGA Championship and finished with a share of 37th. The two-time Senior major champion ranks seventh in scrambling opportunities, 11th in putts per hole and 15th in driving accuracy through seven LIV Golf tournaments this season.

Honorable mentions: Harold Varner III (4Aces GC - coming off his worst finish in Korea but still leads the league in GIR and ranks in the top-10 in driving accuracy), Thomas Pieters (4Aces GC - finished T4 in Korea for his best finish of the season, ranks ninth and 10th in GIR and scrambling opportunities, respectively)

GROUP 4

Andy Ogletree - HyFlyers GC

Ogletree is coming off a T17 finish in Korea, which earned him his first points of the season. He’s middle-of-the-pack or worse across most statistical categories but finished in the top-20 in driving accuracy and putts per hole in Korea.

Chieh-Po Lee - Wild Card

Lee came close to earning points in Korea but finished just outside the top-24. He’s T5 in driving accuracy and ranks in the middle of the field in GIR and driving distance.

Honorable mention: Ian Poulter (Co-captain, Majesticks GC - finished T13 in Korea (his best result of the season) and ranks in the top-20 in driving accuracy and scrambling opportunities).

TEAMS

Legion XIII (Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton, Caleb Surratt, Tom McKibbin)

The newest team to the league has finished in the top-5 across all seven tournaments this season, including victories in Riyadh and Mexico City. Rahm and Hatton will always keep Legion XIII in contention, but Surratt and McKibbin have proven more than capable in picking up the score in critical moments. Legion XIII lead the league in driving distance and birdies made and are top-3 in scrambling opportunities, GIR and putts per hole.

Crushers GC (Bryson DeChambeau, Anirban Lahiri, Paul Casey, Charles Howell III)

The Crushers are coming off their first win of the season in Korea, thanks to the efforts of DeChambeau and Howell, the latter of whom used a nine-under 63 in the final round to finish solo second. Their latest victory catapulted them up to third in the team standings behind Legion XIII and Fireballs GC, and they have the collective tools to earn a second straight tournament win. Crushers GC are top-3 in driving accuracy, birdies made, scrambling opportunities and GIR.

Honorable mention: Smash GC (coming off their first podium finish in Korea, and with Gooch picking his game up, the Koepka-led foursome are in position to surge up the team standings over the second half of the season).