PLENTY OF LIV GOLFERS FEELING OPTIMISTIC GOING INTO PIF SAUDI INTERNATIONAL

Koepka won the individual title and his Smash GC took the team trophy at LIV Golf Jeddah, the regular-season finale during the 2022 inaugural season. It was a much-needed result for the four-time major winner, whose recent injury issues caused him to wonder about his competitive future.

“It was massive, I thought,” Koepka said. “The last few years haven't gone as planned.”

Varner enters this week as the defending PIF Saudi International champ thanks to a dramatic 92-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole to avoid a playoff with Bubba Watson. 

“I don't think I've walked on this side of this golf course without anyone telling me about it,” Varner said of his putt. “I don't think I've forgotten about it either. I have great memories.”

PIF SAUDI INTERNATIONAL: Rd. 1 tee times
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Koepka and Varner are among a bevy of LIV Golf members playing in the Asian Tour’s season-opening signature event. Of the 48 players who competed at the Miami Team Championship, 46 are in the field this week. In addition, more than a dozen others who made at least one LIV Golf start are in the 126-man field. Also returning to action is Watson, a non-playing captain last year while rehabbing from knee surgery.

Despite being denied a playoff by Varner’s 72nd-hole heroics, Watson is quite fond of Royal Greens, especially its holes adjacent to the Red Sea.

“It's unbelievable,” Watson said. “The water just off of No. 16, I just want to go swim in it. It's the blue – I can't even explain the blue color to it. It's just amazing.”

For many golfers in the field, this will not be the last visit to Royal Greens in 2023. LIV Golf released its full schedule earlier this week, and the season-ending Jeddah Team Championship will be played at Royal Greens on Nov. 3-5.

Six of the groups teeing off Thursday will be comprised entirely of LIV golfers, including a trio of captains – Cameron Smith, Bryson DeChambeau and reigning LIV Golf Individual Champion Dustin Johnson – in the same threesome.

Johnson is a two-time winner of the Saudi International. Given his track record in February at Royal Greens – the winds are more pronounced, the temperatures slightly cooler than the fall months – he’ll likely carry the biggest target.

“I feel like if you can beat him this week, you're doing all right,” Koepka said.

Johnson's 4 Aces GC teammate, Patrick Reed, will also be a player to watch. He comes off a solo second-place finish at the Dubai Desert Classic. The other LIV golfers who finished in the top 10 last week – Ian Poulter (T6), Henrik Stenson (T8) and Richard Bland (T8) – are also in the field.

Smith is making his second PIF Saudi International start, having tied for fourth a year ago. He comes off a spectacular 2022 campaign in which he won five times, including the Open Championship at St Andrews. He also won in his second LIV Golf start in Chicago. He knows repeating all that success will be challenging.

“Yeah, I think probably 2022 would be a really tough one to back up,” Smith said. “For sure just keeping the same processes going, really digging deep, working hard on my game at home, I think, is really what I need to do. It's really easy when you're playing good golf to be quite complacent."

World Golf Hall of Famer Phil Mickelson, captain of HyFlyers GC, tied for third in his first Saudi International start in 2020. After an off-season that included a significant weight loss, the 52-year-old is ready to begin his 31st year as a pro golfer – and ready to bounce back from a disappointing 2022 campaign.

“I have to look at last year as an anomaly and just let it go,” Mickelson said. “I wasn't ready to play at the start, I wasn't ready to play during, and this offseason I'm ready to play. I've been playing really well at home, and I'm ready to bring my game back out here and compete. I'm optimistic to see a whole different outlook, a whole different game, a whole different competitiveness.”

Dramatically slimmer, Mickelson would not reveal his actual weight but did say he was back to his college number. He’ll be paired with Koepka and Abraham Ancer on Thursday.

“I have a whole different energy, whole different excitement,” said the six-time major winner. “I've been rejuvenated. Best shape I've been in in a long time. I'm back to my college weight. It allows me to recover faster after I play. I'm changing some of the ways I practice to be more efficient. Rather than quantity, it's much more quality-driven, and I'm seeing a difference when I go out and play in the way I am kind of pulling the shots off on the golf course.

“I'm very optimistic about playing at a level that I expect to play at.”