A disappointing Masters for LIV Golf has reignited the debate over whether its schedule is leaving players undercooked for the game’s biggest events.
The 2026 Masters wasn’t a good one for LIV Golf.
The Saudi-backed circuit – which is subject to rumors that it is about to be discontinued – had 10 players in the field at Augusta. Half of them missed the cut, and only Tyrrell Hatton managed a top-20 finish.
For a league still trying to prove its competitive relevance, it was a bruising week.
2023 Masters champion Jon Rahm has now recorded his two worst-ever finishes at Augusta since joining LIV Golf, but he bristled at suggestions the breakaway tour is leaving players undercooked for the season’s first major.
After battling back from an opening 78 with a two-under 70 to make the cut on the number, Rahm was asked whether LIV provides adequate preparation.
“Same as any other golf tournament in the world, yeah,” he replied abruptly.
But not everyone agrees.
DP World Tour pro Eddie Pepperell offered a far more critical assessment, arguing the evidence is now stacking up against LIV players at the majors.
“No, I don’t agree with him. I don’t know how you can say that,” Pepperell said on The Chipping Forecast. “I think it is unequivocally true now that LIV is not working for these guys at the majors.
“You could look at Cam Smith – he’s fallen away dramatically. Jon Rahm… Bryson… Okay, you can look at Tyrrell [Hatton] – I personally think Tyrrell plays well in the majors because he much prefers being at the majors than he does being at LIV Golf.
“If you had asked Jon or Bryson, when they finished their tournaments, ‘You must be disappointed, but what a great thing LIV Golf Johannesburg was because you’ve taken golf around the world’, I don’t think either of them would really give a shit about that, because they would be most disappointed about their performance at Augusta.
“And that tells me that there’s an alignment issue between what success looks like for LIV Golf and what it looks like for Jon and Bryson and these guys coming off LIV, because they still care most about the majors, and I don’t think they were adequately equipped to turn up at Augusta this year and compete against Scottie Scheffler and Rory. I just don’t.”
Pepperell stopped short of writing LIV players off at majors entirely, but he believes the early-season schedule is far from ideal preparation for the year’s first grand slam event.
“I think things will change as the year goes on,” he said. “But they’ve done so much traveling. They’ve been all around the world and haven’t even played in the US [before the Masters]. They’re playing against guys who have just been in the West Coast and Florida. It’s chalk and cheese. I cannot believe for a moment that LIV Golf is adequately preparing these guys to come to Augusta and be where they need to be there. It’s just not.”
One of the LIV stars to struggle at Augusta was 2017 Masters champion Sergio Garcia. The Spaniard joined LIV Golf in 2022 and missed his next three cuts at the Masters. He went slightly better this year, with a T47 finish, but it was his behaviour on Sunday that drew the most attention.
Playing alongside Rahm, Garcia’s frustrations boiled over early. After missing right off the first tee, he followed it with another wayward drive on the par-5 second.
The combustible Spaniard slammed his driver into the turf twice, carving out a sizeable divot on the tee box, before turning and striking a nearby water cooler in anger, breaking his club in the process.
For Pepperell, it crossed a line.
“Sergio is the most petulant of them all,” he said. “I think there’s a difference doing it at Augusta; it shows a slightly higher level of psychopathy than I’m comfortable with, and I think that’s where you can really reveal something about your character that maybe shouldn’t be revealed.”
Augusta National is one of golf’s sacred arenas – a place steeped in history, tradition, and respect – and it demands a certain standard of behaviour from those who walk its fairways.
“That place should command utmost respect, and if you can’t do it there, then there’s seemingly nowhere you can do it.
“I’m sorry to say that, but Sergio, once again, did not cover himself in glory. Love him as a golfer, but as is the case so often, he’s just a childish brat, frankly, on the course and it’s sad to see someone of his age do it – that’s the tough thing to watch.”
Pepperell also hinted at a broader cultural issue, suggesting the company players keep can influence standards.
“This is the guy that Jon Rahm spends a lot of time with on LIV,” he added. Rahm has recently been embroiled in a feisty dispute with the DP World Tour over fines for joining LIV and his Ryder Cup eligibility.
“So we look at the way he then corresponds with the DP World Tour in his position on this. You know, you’ve got to be careful who you surround yourself with in life. And Jon should be asking himself some questions on that front, in my view, because he [Garcia] is not a good influence.”
Even more damning for LIV was the performance at Augusta of players who have now departed.
Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed – both of whom quit LIV this season – delivered strong performances at Augusta, underlining what sharp, competitive preparation can produce.
“I think this week, if ever there was a week where these LIV golfers should seriously reflect, it’s this week,” said Pepperell. “Because touch on Patrick Reed and Brooks Koepka; Brooks Koepka looks a different guy. He’s fit. He looks up for the fight. He’s playing better. There’s a guy who could go and win a major this year or contend, and I don’t think you could have said that about him a year ago.”
Whether it’s scheduling, sharpness, or something deeper, Augusta has a way of exposing the truth – and this year, it didn’t make for comfortable reading for LIV Golf.