{"id":654739,"date":"2026-06-23T22:10:19","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T22:10:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/654739\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T22:10:19","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T22:10:19","slug":"liv-golf-watch-stars-descend-upon-italian-open-on-dp-world-tour","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/654739\/","title":{"rendered":"LIV Golf Watch: Stars descend upon Italian Open on DP World Tour"},"content":{"rendered":"

This week, seven LIV Golf players will be in action on the DP World Tour at the Italian Open at Circolo Golf Torino<\/a> in Turin, Italy. Two players will compete at the KPGA Classic<\/a> on the Korean Tour in South Korea.<\/p>\n

OPEN D’ITALIA<\/p>\n

Circolo Golf Torino sits within the Parco Regionale La Mandria,\u00a0roughly 20 minutes north of Turin. The club moved to this woodland setting in 1956, where English architect John Morrison laid out the original Blue Course. A number of holes were later renovated by Canadian architect Graham Cooke ahead of the Italian Open’s last visit to the venue in 1999, with Cooke returning in subsequent years to further refine the green complexes.<\/p>\n

The par-72 Blue Course stretches 6,828 yards and is\u00a0lined by oak trees with plenty of\u00a0natural water hazards\u00a0on the course.\u00a0It is widely regarded as Italy’s finest layout and carries a rich competitive history. Circolo Golf Torino has hosted the Italian Open three times and is the home club of brothers Francesco Molinari and Edoardo Molinari. This week marks its return to the DP World Tour stage for the first time in over a decade, and the event also serves as part of The Open Qualifying Series, with the highest-placed finisher not already exempt earning a spot at the 154th Open at Royal Birkdale.<\/p>\n

JOSELE BALLESTER<\/p>\n

In a season full of remarkable moments for young Spanish players, perhaps none has been more eye-catching than Ballester’s round at LIV Golf Virginia in May. The 22-year-old fired a 12-under 60 \u2014 a course record at Trump National Washington D.C. and tied for the lowest score relative to par in LIV Golf history \u2014 featuring 10 birdies, one eagle, and no bogeys. “The first day in which everything just seemed to go easy, smooth, and feel super comfortable,” he said afterward. The 2024 U.S. Amateur champion and 2023 European Amateur champion is coached by Sergio Garcia’s father and hails from the same Castell\u00f3n province as his captain. At 22, he is still learning how to convert elite talent into consistent contention.<\/p>\n

THOMAS DETRY <\/p>\n

After a strong start to his debut LIV Golf season \u2014 including three top-5 finishes in the first five events \u2014 Detry stumbled slightly at Valderrama, finishing tied fifth after a closing 74 squandered what looked like a realistic shot at the trophy and the LIV Golf Open Championship exemption. Still, the 4Aces GC man has consistently shown that he belongs among the best. The Belgian is a natural fit for parkland layouts that reward steady ball-striking and patient course management. This is another chance for Detry to claim the exclusive Open Championship spot he\u2019s been coveting.<\/p>\n

\"\"\"\"<\/p>\n

Thomas Detry hits a tee shot on the 15th hole during LIV Golf Andalucia 2026. (Photo by Chris Trotman\/LIV Golf)<\/p>\n

BRANDEN GRACE <\/p>\n

Grace is coming off a solid run of form, having finished in the top 21 of each of his past six worldwide starts, with the most recent coming as a tied for 14th at the International Series Morocco. The South African is having a very strong season and ranks 18th in the league standings with two top 5s in South Africa and Mexico City. Grace\u2019s accuracy and precise iron play should help him avoid the trouble at Circolo Golf Torino this week.<\/p>\n

TOM MCKIBBIN <\/p>\n

The 23-year-old Northern Irishman has had a quieter 2026 LIV season than his debut year, managing just one top-20 finish in his first nine events.\u00a0McKibbin is a powerful,accurate driver who also possesses touch around the greens, and events like this, away from the\u00a0stacked LIV Golf field\u00a0can be exactly the reset a young player needs to rediscover form. A strong week in Turin could go a long way toward restoring the confidence that made him one of the most talked-about young talents in the world.<\/p>\n

JOAQUIN NIEMANN <\/p>\n

Niemann arrives in Turin as arguably LIV Golf\u2019s most in-form player right now. He won LIV Golf Korea in a playoff over Talor Gooch three weeks ago to claim his record eighth individual LIV Golf title \u2014 and first of the 2026 season \u2014 and then followed it with a T7 at the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills<\/a>, the best major result of his career. The Torque GC captain showed remarkable resilience at Shinnecock, bouncing back from an opening 78 with a second-round 65 built on five birdies in his first six holes. “I feel like I’ve been playing great golf lately,” Niemann said afterward. With a playoff win and a career-best major result in consecutive weeks, he arrives at Circolo Golf Torino riding as much momentum as anyone in the game.<\/p>\n

DAVID PUIG <\/p>\n

The young Fireballs GC star has played impressively in 2026. He finished tied for sixth in South Africa, solo second in Mexico City \u2014 his best-ever individual LIV Golf result \u2014 and tied for fifth at Valderrama. He is one of the most dangerous drivers of the golf ball in professional golf and has quietly assembled a DP World Tour\u00a0resume\u00a0that now includes the Australian PGA Championship, where last November he became just the second Spaniard to win that title after Seve Ballesteros. The Italian Open carries some additional resonance for Puig as a DP World Tour member, and a course that rewards length off the tee and sharp long iron play suits his profile well. He has every tool to contend at Circolo Golf Torino.<\/p>\n

ELVIS SMYLIE <\/p>\n

It\u2019s been an inconsistent season for the young Australian since his fairy tale debut win in Riyadh back in February, when he became the first player to win on his LIV Golf debut since Henrik Stenson in 2022. The Italian Open offers Smylie a chance to rediscover his form from early in the year.<\/p>\n

KPGA CLASSIC<\/p>\n

The KPGA Classic takes place this week at Cypress Golf & Resort in North Gyeongsang, South Korea. The region’s mountainous terrain creates a demanding layout that places a premium on accuracy and course management.<\/p>\n

MINKYU KIM <\/p>\n

The Korean Golf Club player returns to home soil for the KPGA Classic. At just 25, Kim already has two Kolon Korea Open titles on the Asian Tour to his name, so he is accustomed to playing great golf in the region.\u00a0His debut LIV Golf season has been a learning curve, sitting 55th in the standings through nine events.<\/p>\n

DOYEOB MUN <\/p>\n

The 34-year-old Seoul native joined Korean Golf Club mid-season as a replacement for Danny Lee, having spent years grinding through development tours before finally breaking through on the Asian Tour. He was\u00a0leading the KPGA Tour in points when he made his LIV Golf debut in Korea last month. Back on the Korean Tour this week, Mun will be among the favorites on a circuit where he has been one of the best players this year.<\/p>\n

PLAYER NEWSJoaquin Niemann posted his best-ever major result (T7) at the U.S. Open, guaranteeing his spot at Pebble Beach for the 2027 edition of the tournament.\u00a0The Torque GC captain led the field in GIR (78%) and was 5th in Strokes Gained: Putting. \u201cWe’re getting closer and closer,\u201d Niemann said. \u201cThat’s the only direction I’ve seen since I started playing golf, that I always get closer to my goals and my dreams. I know it’s one step forward to that.\u201dNiemann and RangeGoats Golf Club\u2019s Peter Uihlein tied\u00a0for low-round honors in Rd. 4 at the U.S. Open, both firing 4-under 66s. Niemann also shared low-round honors in Rd. 2 with a 5-under 65.Tyrrell Hatton also finished T7 at the U.S. Open, marking back-to-back top 10 U.S. Open finishes and now has four top-10 finishes in 11 starts since joining LIV Golf.Caleb Surratt of Legion XIII made the cut at last week\u2019s U.S. Open in his first ever major championship start. “A massive takeaway is that I feel like I belong out here,” Surratt said. “I felt very comfortable playing, and if I can continue to clean stuff up and get more comfortable, I think I can contend out here.”Bryson DeChambeau debuted a new driver<\/a> at the U.S. Open. According to Adrian Rietveld, TaylorMade\u2019s long-time representative who works closely with Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler, conversations with the Crushers GC captain actually took place a while ago. \u201cWe\u2019ve been speaking to Bryson for years about stuff, ideas,\u201d Rietveld told GOLF.com<\/a>. \u201cBryson hits a lot of drivers. Bryson hits a lot of balls at high speed. That driver will hold its shape and hold everything for thousands of shots.\u201d Despite missing the cut, DeChambeau was fantastic off the tee, gaining +1.78 strokes per round.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This week, seven LIV Golf players will be in action on the DP World Tour at the Italian…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":654740,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[5904,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-654739","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-golf","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654739","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=654739"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/654739\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/654740"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=654739"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=654739"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=654739"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}