LIV Golf’s Joaquin Niemann pictured on the current 2024 Australian Open.
William WEST / AFP / Getty Photographs
After being burned by Jon Rahm on the final second to lose the 2024 LIV season-long title, Joaquin Niemann has fought again for a giant win of his personal, one which brings with it a ton of worthwhile world-ranking factors.
The 26-year-old Chilean LIV star survived a livid nine-under cost by fellow LIV professional Cameron Smith on Sunday on the 2024 PIF Saudi Worldwide, ultimately outlasting Smith and Caleb Surrat — one other LIV Golf participant — in a playoff to win.
Regardless of the preponderance of LIV professionals on high of the leaderboard, the Saudi Worldwide isn’t a LIV occasion. As a substitute, it’s an Asian Tour occasion sponsored by the Saudi PIF — monetary backers of LIV Golf. The match is a part of the Worldwide Sequence, a 10-tournament collection which was created to each give LIV gamers an opportunity to earn world rating factors and new gamers an opportunity to earn a spot on LIV.
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LIV occasions don’t award world rating factors, which has triggered its gamers to plummet within the rating and threaten their means to qualify for golf’s main championships. However as a result of the Worldwide Sequence is sanctioned by the Asian Tour, it does award world rating factors to its rivals.
Niemann, who has two PGA Tour victories, had reached as excessive as fifteenth within the Official World Golf Rating again in 2022, however he noticed his place dive after becoming a member of LIV in August of that 12 months.
By December 2023, he’d fallen to 87th, nicely out of the vary to qualify for majors, then received the 2023 Australian Open to leap to 59th.
However as just lately as a month in the past, Niemann’s rating had fallen all the way in which all the way down to 138th, earlier than stable finishes on the DP World Tour Championship and 2024 Australian Open moved him to 124th heading into the Saudi Worldwide.
Along with his victory, Niemann is predicted to take an enormous leap up within the rating, seemingly inside the highest 75, in line with the Related Press.
Niemann’s win additionally earned him $1 million and the season-long Worldwide Sequence crown. He had been main the LIV Golf season-long chase for a lot of 2024, however Rahm ultimately handed him at LIV Chicago to steal the title and its $18 million bonus.
After his win, Niemann admitted the loss to Rahm offered motivation for his efforts this week.
“The place the place I completed in second on LIV, I actually wished to win. I really feel like I labored actually arduous for it. I used to be going to say I really feel like I deserve it, however you don’t actually deserve something right here in sports activities,” Niemann defined. “I do know that I really feel prefer it give me that further motivation to return and play right here for this final occasion of the 12 months and make one thing occur.”
He continued, “It’s nice to have a win with the Worldwide Sequence rating as nicely. Yeah, it offers me a greater style on the finish of the 12 months that beats second on LIV. So I’m actually pleased with the way in which it completed and searching ahead for the day without work.”
Niemann’s much-deserved day without work may not be as stress-free as in different years. The professional additionally revealed that he’s getting married on December twenty first forward of Christmas and New 12 months’s along with his household. Now they’ll all have a little bit one thing further to rejoice throughout their busy vacation season.
