‘No one’s coming out for a hit and giggle:’ LIV pro rejects exhibition tag

If you think LIV Golf is a series of exhibition events, best not to tell Matt Jones.

In an interview with AAP Sport, Jones sounded off on what he called “keyboard warriors” who have labeled LIV Golf as an exhibition.

“I would say don’t speak until you’ve come out here and experienced it,” Jones told AAP Sport following his final round at the LIV Golf Invitational Jeddah. “There’s plenty of keyboard warriors out there who sit behind a computer and judge everything people do for a living without getting out and experiencing it.

“If there’s people judging this from what they see on YouTube and LIV TV, it would be better to come out here and experience it.”

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Jones finished 45th out of the 46-man field (two players W/D’d last weekend) in the 54-hole event at Royal Greens and Country Club. Regardless of his finish, he earned no world ranking points for the event, like everyone else in the field, because LIV Golf has yet to be granted ranking points by the Official World Golf Ranking.

Huge prize funds put up by the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, which backs LIV, have been a main headline for the new upstart league, with each event carrying a $25 million purse — $20 million for individual prizes, and a $5 million side pot for a team competition. Next week’s LIV Team Championship has a $50 million purse.

With his next-to-last-place finish in Saudi Arabia, Jones, who’s played in all seven LIV events thus far, pocketed $126,000.

“Financially, there’s so much to gain from playing well out here,” Jones said. “There are livelihoods at stake. There are guys on one-year contracts playing for next year.”

Unlike the PGA Tour, some LIV Golfers are contracted to play in the events. Those contracts also require certain stipulations. This is counter to the PGA Tour, whose members are considered independent contractors.

Despite the apparent labeling of the series as exhibition events, Jones claims he’s seen LIV golfers working harder than they did while on the PGA Tour.

One reason some LIV golfers claimed they jumped to LIV was a lighter schedule. The league had eight events this season and is planning 14 for next year.

Jones said the fewer events has made it easier to train more.

“I’ve seen guys grinding harder here than they do on the PGA Tour because we have the time,” he said. “You can spend more time in the gym, getting fit, because our bodies aren’t getting pounded week after week.

“No one’s coming out for a hit and giggle. It’s serious and guys want to win every week.”

Jones is also one of three golfers, along with Bryson DeChambeau and Peter Uhlien, who are still part of the lawsuit against the PGA Tour for anticompeitive behaviors. LIV Golf has also joined the suit, which is now in the discovery phase.

A federal judge ruled against Jones, Talor Gooch and Hudson Swafford in the inital hearing and the trio’s suspensions from the PGA Tour for joining LIV were upheld, preventing them from playing in the FedEx Cup Playoffs.