Dustin Johnson handed LIV Golf boost with struggling team’s future in doubt

Pat Perez has proven his value to LIV Golf captain Dustin Johnson, after the struggling star secured his first top-10 finish of the season at the Asian Tour’s International Series event in Morocco.

While LIV Golf is on a break before their European swing later this month, Perez chose to compete on the Asian Tour in an attempt to regain his form ahead of next week’s event at Valderrama. Perez currently sits just above the LIV drop zone, and finishing in the bottom four could result in him losing his spot on the breakaway circuit.

Facing potential relegation, Perez improved his chances of avoiding the drop zone at LIV’s last event in Nashville, where he delivered his best performance of the 2024 campaign so far by tying for 14th place. Perez and Johnson’s LIV team, 4Aces GC, won the league’s team championship in 2022 and 2023 but is 10th in the standings this season.

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It’s clear that Perez will need to maintain this level of performance in the final four events of the regular season if he wants to avoid relegation, and his decision to compete in Morocco seems to have been beneficial. Perez continued his comeback at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam.

The former PGA Tour star concluded the week on the Asian Tour tied for eighth place, shooting nine-under-par across 72 holes. His standout performance of the week came in round three on Saturday, when Perez made seven birdies en route to an impressive five-under 68.

This left him four shots behind the leaders going into the final round. Although he couldn’t catch the front-runners on Sunday, a one-over 74 ensured his place in the top-10 in North Africa. The event, part of the Asian-based circuit, was filled with players from the LIV setup, who were able to participate in the International Series through a partnership between the two tours.

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Despite competition from players like Perez, it was New Zealand’s Ben Campbell who emerged victorious after defeating John Catlin in a playoff. Despite narrowly missing out on the win, it only bolstered Catlin’s quest for promotion to the LIV setup, as he moved into the lead position of the International Series’ Order of Merit.

Catlin’s recent performance has caught the attention of one of LIV’s biggest stars, Bryson DeChambeau. The U.S. Open champion called upon the Asian Tour star as an injury substitute for his Crushers GC team. Catlin stepped in to replace Charles Howell III at LIV Houston and LIV Nashville and made a strong impression.

Competing in the latter, Catlin tied for seventh place. After getting a taste of life in the breakaway league, he is now aiming to secure a permanent spot on the LIV roster by winning the International Series Order of Merit.

Earlier this week, he expressed his enthusiasm for the LIV Golf events, saying: “Having experienced the LIV Golf events, they are really cool. We are very well looked after and playing that calibre of field for that kind of money is something we all want. That is priority one and I am looking for what will unfold over the next eight events.”