Viktor Hovland Joins as Pat Perez Departs: Dustin Johnson’s Evolving LIV Golf Team”

Dustin Johnson’s LIV Golf team could be set for a shake-up in 2025.

The two-time major champion’s 4Aces quartet endured a tough season in the breakaway tour’s Team Championship, finishing near the foot of the table. Johnson led by example, finishing ninth in the 2024 money list after collecting just over £6million ($7,822,202).

Teammate Patrick Reed also had a solid year, ending up 19th £4million ($5,189,300). However, 4Aces’ other two players were less than, well, ace. Harold Varner III finished 37th, while Pat Perez only just avoided relegation.

Players who rank 49th or lower in the 56-man league risk being relegated from the league next year. Here’s what could transpire for 4Aces before the start of the 2025 season…

Perez dropped

While Perez just kept his head above water, it’s far from certain he will be retained by Johnson, who will be looking for better in 2025.

Having finished outside of the top 24 – in the so-called Open Zone – Perez could be dumped by Johnson, who opted to retain Perez following his 28th-place finish in 2023.

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Hovland arrives

If Johnson, 40, does decide to make changes, he could feasibly make a blockbusting move for PGA Tour star Viktor Hovland, who has previously flirted with a move to LIV.

Earlier this year, the Norwegian said he had seriously considered defecting to the Saudi-backed tour following Europe’s victory at the 2023 Ryder Cup. He told the Times in July that it “might have been a pretty cool opportunity”.

“Obviously, they’re throwing out a lot of money, but I’ve already made a lot of money,” he said. “I’m not a very materialistic person. It’s nice to make life easier for yourself, but that’s not what gets me up in the morning.

“At the end of the day, the question is, ‘What’s going to make me a better player?’ And hey, in 20 years, if I’m on the back end of my career, playing LIV Golf wouldn’t be too bad.”

So while it was a ‘no’ for now, it wasn’t a ‘never’. And if golf has taught us anything over the last couple of years, it’s that previously entrenched opinions can change very quickly. Just ask Rory McIlroy!

Much, of course, will depend on continuing merger talks between LIV’s Saudi backers and the PGA Tour and DP World Tour. It was reportedly recently that an agreement worth £1billion had been reached following a breakthrough in talks, with an official truce potentially on the cards before Christmas

However, nothing can be taken for granted following Hovland’s previous criticism of PGA Tour chief Jay Monaghan.

Varner III and Reed stay

While Varner had a disappointing campaign, he probably has enough credit in the bank thanks to his excellent 2023 season, which saw him finish seventh in the standings with RangeGoats before being traded to 4Aces. If Johnson can find a quality replacement for Perez, 4Aces could be a force to be reckoned with in 2025.

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