Lock Zone aspirations hang in the balance as LIV Golf begins individual season finale 

WESTFIELD, Ind. – With the last individual tournament left in the 2025 LIV Golf regular season set for this week’s LIV Golf Indianapolis, the battle for the Lock Zone, where the top 24 players secure their roster spots for 2026, has reached its climactic conclusion.

At The Club at Chatham Hills, a handful of players teeter on the edge of the Lock Zone, which guarantees a place in next season’s lineup. A slip to the Open Zone (25-48 in points) provides no guarantees for a 2026 roster spot.

LIV Golf data analysts currently project the point total needed to reach the Lock Zone at 58.5. Players receive 40 points for a win, trickling down to just 1 point for 21st through 24th. For those on the bubble, the line between security and vulnerability is razor-thin.

Last week in Chicago, two 4Aces GC players made significant moves towards securing a spot in the Lock Zone. Thomas Pieters earned11.50 points after shooting a final-round 67 after shooting 72-69 in rounds one and two. The T20 finish moved the former Ryder Cupper seven spots from 27th to 20th. Earning points this week in Indianapolis would all but secure Pieters’ spot in the Lock Zone.

Pieters’ teammate Harold Varner III made the biggest move of any player at LIV Golf Chicago. Varner III had the best putting week of his season (+2.33 per round) and finished T5, tied for his best 2025 finish. The big week improved his standing from 26th to 18th, making him extremely likely to stay inside the top 24.

HyFlyers GC’s Cameron Tringale finds himself just outside the Lock Zone, sitting at 27th with 49.19 points. “As always, I’m trying to move up the ladder and play good for my team,” Tringale said. “For me individually, to get up there would be huge. It’s just something I can do, trying to go as far as I can in my position. I can’t control the other guys or what happens, so I’m putting a lot of effort into focusing on the things I can control – my game, my attitude, all those things.”

This week, Tringale needs approximately 8 points to secure his 2026 future. His season has been consistent, with nine top-20 finishes, driven by a stellar short game. Ranking 7th in Strokes Gained: Putting (+0.53 strokes per round) and 2nd in scrambling, Tringale attributes his success to creativity. “Really being athletic in chipping,” he said. “I try to see the shot and hit the shot. I work on my technique, but when I get on the golf course, I’m really trying to be an artist and play the shot that looks and feels right, not necessarily the technical one. Just trying to paint out there.”

Cleeks Golf Club’s Richard Bland, the league’s eldest non-captain at 52 years of age, sits on the outside of the Lock Zone at 26th in the standings with 51.03 points. Bland has had a stellar resurgence late in his career and won back-to-back senior major championships in 2024. His decision to skip his U.S. Senior Open title defense this year to compete at LIV Golf Dallas, where he finished T18, affirms his commitment to securing a top 24 finish and earning a place on the LIV Golf roster in 2026.

“You know, I had a good week last week (T10 at LIV Golf Chicago), so it's given me every opportunity. So then I need a good week this week. Probably a top 10,” Bland said. “I just got to try and take last week into this week. If I can play well, hopefully that will take care of it. Obviously, I'd like to be secured so you don't have to worry about that.”

This season, Bland’s stellar iron play, where he ranks 7th in the league in Strokes Gained: Approach (+0.67 strokes per round), has helped him overcome his 49th-ranked driving distance, positioning him for a potential top-10 finish this week

Crushers GC’s Charles Howell III, on the Lock Zone bubble at 24th with 54.03 points, emphasized his desire to secure his place. “ You want to play your best every week,” he said. “I think one element of LIV may be underrated or understated is how competitive it is. You look at a leaderboard every week on LIV, and my gosh, look at not only the scores that guys are shooting but who they are and the names compared to other tours out there, our leaderboards have recognizable names from the top to the bottom, and really, really, really good players playing good on tough golf courses. Yeah, you always want to do the best you can. No matter where you are, you want to move up. Obviously this is the last week to do it, and it’s a big week to do it.”

Howell’s experience and consistency make him a contender to hold his position, but he’ll need a strong performance to fend off those just below. Teammate Anirban Lahiri, sitting one spot above Howell at 23rd with 54.33 points, faces similar pressure. Reflecting on his season, Lahiri said, “This is probably the worst I’ve found myself going into the last week and I take pride in how I play and how I hold myself up to my own standards, and I haven’t really lived up to those. So I have one more week to kind of just do what I need to do for myself first, and that’s going to translate into everything else, how the team does, where I finish in the top 24. I’m just trying to stay focused on what I need to do and let the results take care of itself.”

Jinichiro Kozuma has been a standout for Iron Heads GC in the 2025 LIV Golf season, emerging as the team’s most consistent performer despite missing the first five events. Sitting at 31st in the individual standings with 43.35 points, Kozuma’s strong play has kept him in the Open Zone, but he remains far from the Lock Zone’s safety. Kozuma had an outstanding stretch of the season where he finished in the top 10 in three of four LIV Golf starts, but he’s regressed over his past two events, finishing T50 at LIV Golf UK by JCB and T47 at LIV Golf Chicago.

There are also a number of players who’ve secured their place in the Lock Zone for the 2026 season. According to LIV Golf data analysts, the top 17 players in the standings have a 100% chance to stay there

RangeGoats GC Captain Bubba Watson has had a fantastic season with three LIV Golf top 10 finishes plus a T14 finish at the Masters. This marks the first time that Watson has finished the season inside the Lock Zone.

Tom McKibbin (Legion XIII) is the only LIV Golf rookie guaranteed a top 24 spot. The Northern Irishman’s season includes four top 10 finishes individually to go along with his Legion XIII team’s four team victories.

David Puig (Fireballs GC) will also finish inside the Lock Zone for the first time in his LIV Golf career. The 23-year-old has three top 10 finishes this season, including 4th place finishes at both Adelaide and Singapore.