Liv Golf Jeddah preview: Field, tee times, predictions, and how to watch

Anthony Kim returns to professional golf after more than a decade away at this week's LIV Golf Jeddah

LIV Golf visits Saudi Arabia with some fascinating storylines this week, including Brooks Koepka and Anthony Kim…

Golf’s breakaway tour returns to what is effectively its home this week for LIV Golf Jeddah in Saudi Arabia from 1-3 March. It’s the third of 14 tournaments making up the 2024 LIV Golf schedule, and the first of two in two weeks, with LIV Golf Hong Kong to follow next week.

Brooks Koepka is looking to make history by becoming the first golfer to win the same LIV event three years in a row, having triumphed via a playoff in 2022 and 2023. The 33-year-old finished T5 and T12 in the first two LIV events of this season.

But perhaps the biggest story this week is the return to professional golf of Anthony Kim, who will be making his first professional start since 2012. Kim, a former world top-10 golfer, will fill the wildcard spot used by Laurie Canter in the first two events of the season.

The three-time PGA Tour winner took a break to recover from injury over a decade ago but never came back. He also never announced retirement or explained his whereabouts, leading to endless speculation over the years, with Kim being described as “golf’s yeti”.

It will be fascinating to see how Kim, now 38, fares on his return to competitive golf. Will this be a one-off appearance or the beginning of a return to regular action? And, if it’s the latter, will he become a permanent fixture on LIV Golf?

Kim has previously finished third in the Masters and has two top-10 finishes at The Open, though he’s got a lot of work to do to gain entry to any of the majors again.

What is the format of LIV Golf Jeddah?

Like all standard events in the LIV Golf schedule, LIV Jeddah will be played over 54 holes across three days, with a shotgun start each day and no cut. For more information, check out our LIV Golf: Everything You Need to Know page.

The field will be made up of 54 players, which includes the 13 four-man teams or ‘franchises’, plus two wildcard players. Hudson Swafford has signed to take a wildcard spot for the entire 2024 season, while Anthony Kim will take the final spot as a solo player.

The team-assigned players compete in two competitions simultaneously – an individual event and a team event. Every stroke counts in the individual event, whereas in the team event, only the combined scores of the team’s top three players count for rounds 1 & 2, with all four scores counting in the final round of each event.

Where is LIV Golf Jeddah being played?

LIV Golf Jeddah takes place at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club, located in King Abdullah Economic City, around 100 km north of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. It has hosted tournaments on the DP World Tour, Asian Tour, and the Ladies European Tour, as well as hosting LIV Golf Jeddah.

Royal Greens opened in 2017 and is a par 72 playing to a maximum length of just over 7,000 yards. It was designed by European Golf Design and is managed by Troon Golf, the world’s largest operator of competition-grade courses.

Who will win LIV Golf Jeddah?

Brooks Koepka is the obvious pick. The American clearly suits this event, having won it in 2022 and 2023. He’s also in decent form, having finished T5 and T12 in the first two events of the season.

Dustin Johnson should be in contention. His victory at LIV Golf Las Vegas puts him top of the individual standings, following on from his fifth-place finish in the season opener at LIV Golf Mayakoba.

Jon Rahm will be keen to break his LIV duck sooner rather than later following his mega-money switch at the end of 2023. The Spaniard has finished T3 and 8th in his first two LIV Golf events, and will want to hit top form as he prepares to defend his Green Jacket at this year’s Masters in April.

Paul Casey could be a decent outside pick. The Englishman has finished T11 and T5 in the first two events of the season, and the course this week plays shorter than most, meaning his middle-of-the-road driving distance may be less of an issue.

How much does the LIV Golf Jeddah winner receive?

Like all regular season events, LIV Golf Jeddah has a $25 million purse, with $20 million assigned for the individual competition and $5 million for the team competition.

The individual winner in Saudi Arabia is set to receive $4 million, ranging down to $50,000 for those finishing at the wrong end of the leaderboard.

Only the top three teams will receive prize money in each event. The winners will earn their team $3 million, with $1.5 million and $500k earned by the second and third-placed teams respectively.

Read our full guide to ‘How much every LIV player has been paid’.

LIV Golf Jeddah tee times

LIV Golf Jeddah starts at 11.15am local time | 8.15am UK time | 3.15am EST.

How to watch LIV Golf Jeddah

Fans in over 180 global territories can watch coverage of LIV Golf free of charge via the LIV Golf Plus app. LIV Golf Plus is available for download on iOS, Android, FireTV, and on LIVGolfPlus.com. Search for: “LIV Golf Plus”.

UK viewers can watch the action for free on the LIV Golf YouTube channel.

US viewers can catch all the action on the CW App & LIV Golf+ App.

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About the author

Rob McGarr – Contributing Editor

Rob has been a writer and editor for over 15 years, covering all manner of subjects for leading magazines and websites.

He has previously been Features Editor of Today’s Golfer magazine and Digital Editor of todays-golfer.com, and held roles at FHM, Men’s Running, Golf World, and MAN Magazine.

You can follow him on YouTube where – depending on what day of the week it is – he’ll either be trying his best to get his handicap down to scratch or shoving his clubs in a cupboard, never to be seen again.

Rob is a member at Royal North Devon, England’s oldest golf club, where he plays off a three-handicap.