First Look: LIV Golf players at The Open

LIV GOLF PLAYERS IN THE FIELD

Fifteen LIV Golf players will compete this week at the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. Click here for Rd. 1-2 tee times.

Note: Sixteen LIV Golf players qualified for this week, but Southern Guards GC Captain Louis Oosthuizen withdrew on Monday due to a back injury.

Here’s the primary exemption for each player:

• JOSELE BALLESTER (Fireballs GC) – Final qualifying
• LAURIE CANTER (Majesticks Golf Club) – 2025 Race to Dubai Top 25
• BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU (Crushers GC) – 2024 U.S. Open win
• THOMAS DETRY (4Aces GC) – OWGR through July 5
• TYRRELL HATTON (Legion XIII) – Top 50 OWGR
• LUCAS HERBERT (Ripper GC) – Open Qualifying Series-New Zealand Open
• TOM McKIBBIN (Legion XIII) – Open Qualifying Series-Hong Kong Open
• JOAQUIN NIEMANN (Torque GC) – 2026 LIV Golf ranking
• LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN (Southern Guards GC) – 2010 Open champion (WD on Monday due to injury)
• VICTOR PEREZ (Cleeks Golf Club) – Open Qualifying Series-Scottish Open
• DAVID PUIG (Fireballs GC) – OWGR through July 5
• JON RAHM (Legion XIII) – Top 50 OWGR; recent major wins
• CAMERON SMITH (Ripper GC) – 2022 Open champion
• CALEB SURRATT (Legion XIII) – Final qualifying
• PETER UIHLEIN (RangeGoats GC) – Final qualifying
• SCOTT VINCENT (HyFlyers GC) – International Federation ranking

KEY STORYLINES

Current season-long points leader Jon Rahm and his closest pursuer, Bryson DeChambeau, lead the LIV Golf contingent at the Open

The list of 16 players who were in the field at the start of the week is the highest total of LIV Golf players in any major in 2026 (Louis Oosthuizen withdrew on Monday due to a back injury, bringing the total to 15 LIV Golf players who will compete this week)

Rahm is hoping to claim the third leg of a career grand slam, having previously won the U.S. Open in 2021 and Masters in 2023

Joaquin Niemann (No. 3 in points) earned the LIV Golf exemption for the Open as the highest-ranked player in points after LIV Golf Andalucia otherwise not exempt; he also earned a LIV Golf exemption for the U.S. Open in June and produced a career major-best T7 finish

Cameron Smith (2022) will seek his second Claret Jug

Rahm, DeChambeau, Smith and Tyrrell Hatton are the four LIV Golf players competing in all four majors this year

Hatton, winner of LIV Golf Andalucía, has two top 10s in his three major starts in 2026, including a career major-best T3 finish at the Masters

Josele Ballester, Caleb Surratt and Peter Uihlein earned their spots through final qualifying, with Surratt and Uihlein previously earning U.S. Open exemptions this year via final qualifying

Victor Perez joined previous Open Qualifying Series exempt players Lucas Herbert and Tom McKibbin with a strong finish at the Scottish Open

Winners of the last seven LIV Golf tournaments played this season are in the field – Rahm (Hong Kong and Mexico City), DeChambeau (Singapore and South Africa), Lucas Herbert (Virginia), Niemann (Korea) and Hatton (Andalucía)

The 15 LIV Golf players competing at The Open hail from nine different countries: Australia (2), Belgium (1), Chile (1), England (2), France (1), Northern Ireland (1), Spain (3), United States (3), and Zimbabwe (1)

OPEN NOTEBOOK

LEGION XIII MAKES HISTORY

All four members of Legion XIII - captain Jon Rahm and teammates Tyrrell Hatton, Tom McKibbin and Caleb Surratt – are in the Open field. It’s the first time that any LIV Golf team has seen its full starting lineup playing in the same major.

Legion XIII is the league’s first expansion team, formed prior to the 2024 season when Rahm joined the league as captain. Hatton and Surratt joined him as original team members, while McKibbin was added to the team in 2025 when he moved to LIV Golf.

In its first 2-plus years in existence, Legion XIII quickly became one of LIV Golf’s most successful teams, with 10 team victories in 35 regular-season starts while also claiming the 2025 LIV Golf Team Championship.

The team’s latest win came in LIV Golf’s most recent tournament in Andalucia, with Hatton also winning the individual title as the Legion XIII swept both trophies. It was Hatton’s second LIV Golf individual win, and it came in his first start since becoming a dad.

Rahm has been the league’s best player since joining the league, winning the season-long Individual Championship in each of his first two years. He’s won two tournaments this season and is the current points leader as he eyes a third consecutive title.

Surratt, who was 19 years old when he joined LIV Golf, is making the second major start of his career, having gone through final qualifying for both the U.S. Open and the Open this year. He is one of four worldwide golfers to do that this season; RangeGoats GC’s Peter Uihlein also achieved that feat.

TOP 10 STREAK

At least one LIV Golf player has finished in the top 10 in each of the previous 11 majors played coming into this week’s Open. That list includes five top-10 finishes in 2026 – Tyrrell Hatton’s T3 at the Masters and T7 at the U.S. Open; Jon Rahm’s T2 and Cameron Smith’s T7 at the PGA Championship; and Joaquin Niemann’s T7 at the U.S. Open.

Of the 15 majors played since the start of the 2023 season, 14 have included at least one LIV Golf player finishing inside the top 10. A total of 28 top 10s has been produced by 10 different LIV Golf players (active at the time) since 2023.

LIV GOLF UNITED KINGDOM

Following the Open Championship, the 2026 LIV Golf schedule will resume with its 10th event of the season, LIV Golf United Kingdom presented by JCB on July 23-26. The JCB Golf & Country Club, which is hosting a LIV Golf tournament for the third consecutive year, is a two-hour drive from Royal Birkdale.

ROYAL BIRKDALE HISTORY

Six LIV Golf players competing this week competed in the 2017 Open when it was last held at Royal Birkdale – Laurie Canter (T37), Jon Rahm (T44), Peter Uihlein (T44), Bryson DeChambeau (MC), Tyrrell Hatton (MC) and Cameron Smith (MC).

PLAYER NOTES

DeChambeau has two top-10 finishes in his last four Open starts, including a career-best T8 in 2022 at St Andrews. He finished T10 last year at Royal Portrush, battling back from an opening 78 to shoot 65-68-64; his rounds of 65 and 64 were among the best in the field during the week …

Rahm, making his 40th major start, has top-10 finishes in three of his last five Open starts. His T2 at the PGA Championship in May is his fourth top-10 major finish since joining LIV Golf …

Hatton has nine top-10 finishes in his 44 major starts; four of those top-10 finishes have come since joining LIV Golf prior to the 2024 season. Hatton’s win last month at LIV Golf Andalucia came in his first start since becoming a first-time father …

Niemann’s T7 at last month’s U.S. Open is the best result of his 28 career major starts, as he rallied after an opening 79 to shoot rounds of 64-72-66, tying for low round of the day in both the second and fourth rounds …

McKibbin earned his Open exemption by winning the Link Hong Kong Open in November, in which he shot 60-65-65-63 to win by seven strokes …

Detry’s best major result is a T4 at the 2024 PGA Championship – the best result by any Belgian golfer in a men’s major …

Ballester, Perez and Vincent are making their first major starts in 2026; Oosthuizen was set to make his 60th major start of his career but withdrew on Monday with a back injury …

When Oosthuizen won in 2010, he became the fourth different South African player to win the Open, joining Bobby Locke, Gary Player and Ernie Els. (Oosthuizen withdrew on Monday due to injury) …

When Smith won in 2022, he became the fifth different Australian player to win the Open, joining Peter Thomson, Kel Nagle, Greg Norman and Ian Baker-Finch …

Puig is making his third major start of 2026 and eighth of his career, all since joining LIV Golf. His T18 at the PGA Championship in May is his best career major result …

Canter’s best result in his 11 previous major starts is a T17 at the 2023 Open …

Vincent is the only player from Zimbabwe in the field and is among just the handful of Zimbabwean golfers to ever compete in a major …

In addition to the 16 active full-time players in the field, 10 other golfers at Royal Birkdale will have started at least one LIV Golf tournament in their careers, including 2026 reserve players Travis Smyth and Jeongwoo Ham