by Over the past couple of years, many lies have been told in the professional golf world. Fortunately, numbers don’t lie – at least, not when they’re accurate. Feel free to fact-check me.
Now that both the PGA Tour and LIV Golf seasons have nearly concluded, here are a few numbers I’ve dug up or come across that add some context to the current professional golf landscape:
36: The average age of the golfers who competed in LIV’s season-long individual championship in Chicago this past weekend. Among them, 18 players were 40 or older, and 13 players were 30 or younger. Champions Tour lite?
When LIV Golf launched, it was widely perceived as a league that appealed mostly to players beyond their primes, eager to cash out on a fortuitous windfall at the tail end of their careers. If that were true, the average age in the league would reflect an age that’s past prime athleticism. It does.
31: The average age of the PGA Tour golfers who competed in the 2024 Tour Net Championship. Professional golf has become increasingly competitive, speedier, and younger. Typically, the best golf is being played by those aged 27-34. At 35, Rory McIlroy is currently the oldest golfer in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking.
For comparison, Aaron Rodgers, at 40, is the oldest player in the NFL, where the average age of a starter is 27. Obviously, the physical demands of playing American football far exceed those of professional golf, but it shouldn’t be a surprise to see youth take over professional golf in the era of speed and optimization. Age is not everything; Sergio Garcia and Adam Scott are still playing high-level golf at age 44, for example.
But when you step back and survey the professional golf landscape and where the best golf is being played, it isn’t a particularly close race right now between the PGA Tour and LIV. The average age of each tour reflects that, as do results in major championships.
Jon Rahm had an excellent LIV Golf season, but what does that even mean? (LIV Golf)
33: The number of men’s professional golfers who recorded at least one top 10 in a major championship in 2024.
4: The number of LIV Golfers who recorded at least one top 10 in a major championship in 2024. I know what you’re thinking, I know what you’re thinking. “Joseph, this is a numbers problem. LIV golfers have been blackballed from entering majors, so of course not many of them finished in the top 10.”
24: The number of golfers who competed at LIV Chicago and played in at least one major championship in 2024. While it is true that without access to Official World Golf Ranking points in LIV events, LIV golfers have a difficult time qualifying for majors, it is false to say they have no opportunities. Nearly half the league competed in a major in 2024. Qualification into the U.S. Open and Open Championship is still available as a last resort. Matt Kuchar got through via open qualification. Daniel Berger got through. LIV’s Dean Burmester got through.
The reality is that, outside of Bryson DeChambeau, LIV golfers performed poorly at major championships in 2024. Looking ahead to 2025, LIV currently does not have many golfers you’d expect to make much noise in major championships. Rahm, DeChambeau, Koepka, Smith, and…? We’ll see if they bolster their talent pool during the upcoming offseason.
89,000: The viewership figure on CW for the final round of the LIV individual championship in Chicago. I’d be remiss not to mention that according to many accounts on X, the linear TV number neglects the millions of LIV fans who are watching the action on the LIV Golf app. Right.
69,000: The viewership figure on Golf Channel for the final round of the PGA Tour’s Procore Championship. Big viewership numbers shouldn’t be expected for a PGA Tour fall series broadcast on Golf Channel, but it is a low figure nonetheless.
0: The number of LIV Golfers who should or will pay back a dollar that they’ve earned playing on LIV Golf. Per a Bloomberg report, “Jon Rahm’s reported $300 million LIV contract” is a sticking point in the negotiations between the PGA Tour and the PIF, with some PGA Tour players wanting Rahm and others to pay back some of the money they’ve earned on LIV. Joel Beall posted that per his sources, the true sticking point in the negotiation is not paying back money earned on LIV, but instead how to reintegrate LIV players back onto the PGA Tour and the future of the LIV Golf league.
Hopefully, brighter days lie ahead for professional golf. And hopefully the lack of urgency around the PGA Tour-PIF merger will shift before too many golf fans drift away permanently.
This piece originally appeared in the Fried Egg Golf newsletter. Subscribe for free and receive golf news and insight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
