Preview: Three teams set for Finals showdown at LIV Golf Michigan Team Championship

PLYMOUTH, Mich. – The LIV Golf Michigan Team Championship at The Cardinal at Saint John’s will reach its climax on Sunday with Legion XIII, Crushers GC, and Stinger GC battling for the Team Championship in a high-stakes stroke-play finale.

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After two days of intense match-play battles, the tournament will now switch to stroke play with all four scores counting towards the cumulative team score. The 12 players from the three teams will tee off in threesomes from the first hole, setting the stage for a dramatic finish on the 18th.

LEGION XIII

Legion XIII, led by their captain and LIV Golf Individual Champion Jon Rahm, entered the week as the favorite and that will remain the case heading into the final day. This season, Rahm ranked second in the league in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee (+1.55 per round), fourth in Strokes Gained: Approach (+0.69 per round), and first in greens in regulation (74.5%). His ability to bomb drives and recover from misses makes him a perfect fit for The Cardinal’s demanding layout.

Rahm’s running mate, Tyrrell Hatton, is arguably the best No. 2 player in the league. The Englishman has had a strong season and demonstrated at the U.S. Open (T4) that he can play his best golf in the most important events. Hatton’s approach play has been elite this season. He’s gained +0.71 strokes per round, which is 3rd in the league. Hatton also ranks 3rd in Greens in Regulation hitting 70.8% for the season.

Tom McKibbin and Caleb Surratt will be the X-factors for Legion XIII’s championship aspirations. The duo of young guns thrived together in match play but will now need to deliver in stroke play to assist Rahm and Hatton. After Saturday’s semifinal round, McKibbin assessed the challenge of now playing stroke play after he’s only hit half of the shots through the first two rounds of match play.

“It's no different tomorrow than any other week really," McKibbin said. "It's stroke play. I think the weird thing will be you sort of just played half -- for me personally, only sort of played half the course, hitting every other shot.

"So I think maybe not being as familiar with some of the tee shots or not hitting as many will be a little strange. Hopefully, I can go out tomorrow and have a nice day.”

CRUSHERS GC

Crushers GC, the 2023 LIV Golf team champions, are arguably the deepest team in the league with all four of their players finishing in the top 25 in the Individual standings this season. Crushers GC Captain Bryson DeChambeau finished third in the Individual standings, and won in Korea in addition to his five top 10 finishes. DeChambeau led the league in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee (+1.55 per round) and in Scrambling (67%).

Paul Casey, who led the league in Strokes Gained: Approach (+0.79 per round), is a perfect fit for the Cardinal at St. John’s. He ranked fifth for the season in fairway percentage (66.1%), which is crucial with the thick and penal rough. Charles Howell III and Anirban Lahiri are fairway finders as well and all four Crushers GC players were with the team that won the championship in 2023. The format certainly suits the team that is balanced, which gives the Crushers an advantage going into the final round.

STINGER GC

Stinger GC is the dark horse after upsetting Ripper GC and Torque GC in match play. The all-South African team will be incredibly dangerous on Sunday and enter the final round with a great deal of momentum. Stinger GC Captain Louis Oosthuizen is oozing with confidence and believes the team is playing well enough to win the Team Championship.

“I think we all play to be in this situation, to have a shot at it tomorrow," Oosthuizen said. "We've had a rough season really and not playing really well but made a big turn in Chicago. Then going into this week, we felt really comfortable. It will be for us going into tomorrow, it's going to be go big or go home. We're going to try our best to upset everyone and see if we can get it done.”

Oosthuizen has excelled this season off the tee, ranking 4th in the league by hitting 66.3% of fairways, a critical advantage on The Cardinal at St. John’s tight layout. His short game has also been sharp, gaining +0.25 strokes per round around the greens, placing him 10th in the league.

Dean Burmester was arguably the best player in the first two rounds this week. Still riding some form from his win at LIV Golf Chicago two weeks ago, the 36-year-old has made 13 birdies in his 34 holes played this week.

“From the start, I said Dean's a great player," Oosthuizen said. "He's got the length. He's got the short game, and he's just got a good head on him when he goes out on the golf course and plays.”

Burmester leads the league with an average driving distance of 349.6 yards.

Charl Schwartzel has been the best putter in the league this season, gaining +0.68 strokes per round. He’s a former Masters champion and is the type of player who can raise his game when the stakes are high. Branden Grace has struggled over the first few days of the tournament but entered the week with two top-5 finishes in his past three starts. If Grace can turn it back on for the final round, Stinger GC will be extremely dangerous.