Patrick Reed and Pat Perez mean that at least 20 PGA Tour players have now committed to playing in the breakaway circuit; Both will make their LIV Golf Invitational Series debuts in Portland from June 30-July 2
Saturday 11 June 2022 18:34, UK
Former Masters champion Patrick Reed and PGA Tour veteran Pat Perez are the latest golfers to join the Saudi-back LIV Golf Invitational Series.
Reed and Perez raise the number of PGA Tour players to sign with the breakaway circuit to 20, with the 17 competing in the first event this week suspended by the Tour as soon as play started at Centurion Club on Thursday.
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said the "same fate holds true" for any players who compete in future LIV events despite being denied permission, with Reed and Bryson DeChambeau set to contest the second event in Oregon at the end of the month.
"I'm super excited," Reed said during the final-round broadcast of the opening event. "Just the thought of being able to be a part of an evolution and a change in golf for the better, for me, is unbelievable. I've been watching all weekend and with the format, the way everything is, I'm super excited and I can't wait to be a part of it.
"It's refreshing to see team golf again. It brings you back to the good old days in college and back to the Ryder Cups and Presidents Cup, where you're out there not just for yourself but also playing for your team.
"I've been talking to some of the guys after the first and second rounds and they told me how well the tournament is run and the turnout with the fans, the energy and excitement that they have. Every player seems so pumped and ready to go and Portland can't get here fast enough."
LIV Golf announced their latest signing during the final round of their series opener at Centurion Club, releasing a post on social media saying: "Welcome @PReedGolf".
Reed's arrival means he is the fifth former Masters champion to agree to join LIV Golf, following Phil Mickelson, Charl Schwartzel, Sergio Garcia and Dustin Johnson. Another former winner of the Green Jacket, 2012 and 2014 champion Bubba Watson, is widely expected to join the circuit after being included in a LIV Golf promotional video.
LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman said: "The growing roster of LIV Golf players gets even stronger today with a player of Patrick Reed's calibre. He has a proven track record as one of the most consistent competitors in pro golf and adds yet another big presence at our tournaments.
"He's a major champion who has had a significant impact playing international team competitions, and he'll bring another impressive dynamic to our team-based format at LIV Golf."
The two latest signings follow Bryson DeChambeau confirming his switch on Friday, with Perez's move to LIV Golf initially leaked by his wife on social media before being announced officially during final-round coverage.
"I'm very excited," Perez said. "It's a new chapter in my life. Since 1998 I've been on the road, grinding out and trying to do as much as I could in the game. An opportunity came along like this, I just couldn't be more excited for all the aspects that it's bringing to me. I'm over the moon about it.
"She [Perez's wife] has twice as many followers as I do! She loves it, she's so excited for me and she's so excited in general to be part of this. She's my biggest fan, she's behind me a million per cent. She kind of put some teasers out there and then it kind of snowballed.
"Now we're official, we're looking forward and we're really excited about going through this."
The inaugural event in London is the first of eight tournaments due to take place over the next few months, including five in the United States and two in Asia, with an expanded schedule then planned in the coming years.
Pumpkin Ridge GC in Portland from June 30-July 2 and Trump National Golf Club Bedminster from July 29-31 are the next two events, with further US-based tournaments take place in Boston from September 2-4 and Chicago from September 16-18.
Stonehill Golf Club in Bangkok is the venue from October 7-9 and Royal Greens Golf Club - the site of the Saudi International in recent years - hosts the following week, with the season-ending Team Championship then hosted at Trump National Doral Miami from October 27-30.
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