Losing Wolff To LIV Would Be Another Big Loss For The PGA
As the exodus to the new LIV Golf series continues, is Matthew Wolff the latest player to be taking his talents elsewhere?
The talented 23-year-old out of Oklahoma State was one of the most exciting young prospects to set foot on the PGA Tour back in 2019.
Matthew Wolff was fresh off a decorated collegiate career that included winning both the Fred Haskins Award and an NCAA Championship with the Cowboys in 2019.
It didn’t take long after turning pro before people began to take notice of the special talent who had elite power off the tee and one of the most unique swings in the game to match.
All it took was three starts into his debut 2018-19 season on the PGA Tour before Wolff earned his first win. The breakthrough victory came during the most dramatic of circumstances at the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minnesota.
Matthew Wolff battled and outlasted both Bryson DeChambeau and Collin Morikawa during an electric Sunday finale in July 2019 when he drained a long-distance Eagle putt on the 72nd hole to claim the title.
He continued his ascension towards golf’s upper echelon in 2020 after two 2nd place finishes at both the 2020 Rocket Mortgage Classic and the 2020 Shriners Open, and two top 5 finishes at both the PGA Championship (4th) and the U.S. Open at Winged Foot (2nd).
When 2020 came to a close Matthew Wolff had reached a career-high 15th in the Official World Golf Rankings.
Matthew Wolff takes a step back
2021 proved to be a turbulent period for the talented young player, however, and after a string of unsatisfactory results during the early portion of the year, Matthew decided to take some time away from the game.
The 2019 3M Open winner continued to endure varied results throughout the rest of the 2020-21 PGA season. The highs included a 15th place finish at the 2021 U.S. Open upon his return and a top 20 finish later in the year at the 2021 WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational.
The 23-year-old Wolff began the current PGA season with some encouraging results after recording another 2nd place finish at the Shriners Open, followed by finishes of 5th and 11th in his next two starts.
As the calendar turned to 2022 though, results once again started to slip. Then at the 2022 Wells Fargo Championship back in May, he emerged once again after an opening-round 65 at TPC Potomac.
Wolff stated that his renewed focus was on having a good attitude and having a good time, following the conclusion of his opening round.
"“I can go out and shoot 90 tomorrow and as long as I have a good attitude, I can put a check mark on this week and say that I’ve grown as a person and as a player and that’s just all I really care about right now…to be honest, it’s funny, but I’m not here to win a golf tournament, I’m here to have a good time.”"
He would later go on to finish 25th for the week.
Matthew Wolff answering the LIV Golf call?
The performance in Maryland was one of the lone bright spots for Wolff this year, who since the Wells Fargo has missed three consecutive cuts on Tour.
Vast amounts of guaranteed money could prove to be too much for Matthew to resist, especially with the struggles he has had on the PGA Tour over the past year and a half.
Earlier this week LIV Golf announced the field for their second event since launching last month. It will be the tour’s debut event in the United States.
The Portland field includes new signees, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Patrick Reed, and Pat Perez, and it notably highlighted the fact that only 45 of the 48 positions had been filled.
There are now rumors floating around that Matthew Wolff could be about to fill one of those vacant positions.
There’s a growing expectation that Matthew Wolff will be announced as joining LIV Golf early next week and will be in the field for Portland.
— Rick Gehman (@RickRunGood) June 25, 2022
Wolff, who is currently in this week’s Travelers Championship on the PGA Tour, fired a round of 66 on Friday to make his first cut since TPC Potomac.
dark. Next. LIV Golf Has Arrived, What’s Next For The PGA Tour?
Resisting the lure of LIV Golf is proving to be a difficult task for many as they opt to take their talents elsewhere. Could Matthew Wolff be the next big name to go?.
Despite his struggles, Wolff was a player coming out of college that was as heralded as both Collin Morikawa and Viktor Hovland, so he would certainly be another big loss for the PGA Tour.