Reports suggest Tyrrell Hatton is set to team up with fellow Ryder Cup star Jon Rahm and join the LIV Golf League ahead of the new season, which begins in Mexico on Friday; the 2024 campaign will feature 13 teams, one more than last season
Tuesday 30 January 2024 17:21, UK
Ryder Cup star Tyrrell Hatton is set to become the latest high-profile player to join the LIV Golf League and is expected to be part of Jon Rahm's team for the new season.
If the switch is confirmed, the Englishman will be LIV's first big-name capture since Rahm, the reigning Masters champion who signed what was understood to be a deal worth up to £450m at the start of December.
Hatton started the year with back-to-back top-15 finishes on the PGA Tour before claiming a share of 31st at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, with the three-time Ryder Cup player currently scheduled to appear at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in California this week.
The world No 16 is now set to withdraw from the PGA Tour Signature Event ahead of his impending switch to the LIV Golf League and Rahm's team, with the Telegraph reporting that Hatton's move is set to be confirmed in time to feature in the season opener in Mexico on Friday.
Hatton is a six-time winner on the DP World Tour and has also previously won on the PGA Tour at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, with the Englishman part of Europe's last three Ryder Cup teams and already secure of a place in all four majors for the year ahead.
The move would come amid the ongoing talks between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) on the 'framework agreement' aimed at striking a peace deal in golf, with the discussions having been extended beyond an initial end-of-December deadline.
Sky Sports' News Jamie Weir: "I'm not hugely surprised if I'm being completely honest, because there have been rumours [about Hatton joining LIV] rumbling around for quite a long time now.
"I reached out to Tyrrell's manager and Tyrrell's manager's manager, who are both usually very good at getting back to me straight away and haven't. They're usually very quick to shoot down any false reporting and they haven't on this occasion, so usually there's no smoke without fire.
"When Jon Rahm announced that he would be joining LIV, we also reported on that occasion that his No 1 target to join him on his new team, which is called Legion XIII, was Hatton and now he has got his target.
"Hatton was his partner at the Ryder Cup. They led off Team Europe together on that Friday morning, won their points and they're very close friends. They're similar characters in terms of how they behave on the golf course and it appears that Rahm has got him on his team."
Rahm and Hatton are set to be joined in Legion XIII by Kieran Vincent - who qualified via the LIV Golf Promotions event - and American Caleb Surratt, who was part of Team USA's winning Walker Cup team last year, although the line-up has yet to officially be confirmed.
DP World Tour player of the year Adrian Meronk withdrew from the PGA Tour's Farmers Insurance Open last week and is expected to sign with Cleeks GC, having won four times over the past 18 months and narrowly missed out on a place in Europe's Ryder Cup team.
Australia's Lucas Herbert has not teed it up since back-to-back DP World Tour starts last month on home soil, with the former Irish Open champion hinting on social media that he was joining Ripper GC, captained by compatriot Cameron Smith.
Kalle Samooja and Jinichiro Kozuma took the other two spots on offer from the LIV Golf Promotions event last month, a 72-hole qualifying event in Abu Dhabi, while Andy Ogletree earned his spot by topping the Asian Tour's International Series Order of Merit and will play for Mickelson's HyFlyers GC.
The 2024 campaign starts at El Camaleon Golf Course in Mexico ahead of a trip to Las Vegas the following week, with a Saturday finish to avoid a clash with the Super Bowl held in the same city, with events in Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Spain and England to come as part of a global schedule.
All regular-season events remain 54 holes with a shotgun start and no cut, with each tournament offering a $4m prize for the individual winner and $3m to be split between the winning team. Rahm's signing means there will be 13 teams involved this season, one more than the previous campaign.
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