LIV GOLF TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP MICHIGAN

August 22, 2025

Jon Rahm

Bryson DeChambeau

Joaquin Niemann

Louis Oosthuizen

Brooks Koepka

Phil Mickelson

The Cardinal at Saint John’s

Press Conference

JASON ZONE FISHER: Good afternoon. Welcome, everybody, to our Semifinal Selection Show and press conference for the 2025 LIV Golf Team Championship here in Michigan. My name is Jason Zone Fisher, host and emcee for LIV Golf, and I'm excited to be joined by six captains of the victorious teams who will be advancing to tomorrow's semifinals.

Our highest seeded captains of today's winning teams will select their opponents for tomorrow's semifinal matchups. Today's quarterfinals round provided fantastic drama. 18 holes was not enough for some of them. A quick rundown on today's results.

The No. 1 seed Legion XIII survived a potential upset threat from Cleeks Golf Club, winning 2 points to 1, where Tyrrell Hatton won in a playoff over Richard Bland.

The No. 2 seed, Crushers GC, 2 points to 1, defeated Majesticks GC, highlighted by captain Bryson DeChambeau's win 4&2 over Lee Westwood.

We had our first upset where HyFlyers GC defeated the 3 seed Fireballs GC, winning 2 points to 0, the second year in a row that HyFlyers have defeated the higher ranked seed and held the upset, advancing to the semifinals.

Torque GC came in as the No. 4 seed, and they advance 2 points to 1 over RangeGoats GC highlighted by their captain Joaquín Niemann's 2&1 victory over captain Bubba Watson.

Smash GC provided another upset over 4Aces GC. Talor Gooch clinched victory for his team with his victory over Patrick Reed.

And last but not least, Stinger GC defeated the reigning champions from last year in our team championship, Ripper Golf Club, highlighted by captain Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel's win 4&3 over Ripper Golf Club.

12 entered and 6 remain. With those results final, let's welcome in our six captain who's won their quarter final matchups and are representing their respective teams as they get set to compete in tomorrow's semifinal round.

The captain of Legion XIII, Jon Rahm.

The captain of Crushers GC, Bryson DeChambeau.

Captain of Torque GC, Joaquín Niemann.

The captain of Stinger GC, Louis Oosthuizen.

Captain of Smash GC, Brooks Koepka.

And the captain of HyFlyers GC, Phil Mickelson.

Congratulations, gentlemen. You're moving on to the semifinals tomorrow. Let's do a quick recap of how the selection process will work.

Matchups will be selected by the captains of the highest ranking teams. When the lower ranked team is picked, that captain will need to confirm his lineup, that is, who will play singles matches 1 and 2 and who will play foursomes. The higher seeded teams will have one hour to confirm their lineups based off of their opponent's lineup where they have positioned their players. We will announce the lineups on livgolf.com and LIV Golf's social media channels soon after.

As a reminder, each team contest will consist of two singles matches and one alternate shot foursomes match with a total of 3 points available, same format as today. The first team to secure 2 points within each contest is the winner.

Without further ado, let's begin and find out which teams will face off against each other in tomorrow's semifinal round.

To start things off with the first pick is the highest seed entering our team championship. Captain Jon Rahm and Legion XIII, you have the floor, and you can make the selection who you want to face.

JON RAHM: We're going to face the HyFlyers.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Okay. Taking on the HyFlyers, captain Phil Mickelson.

Phil, you pulled off an upset today. You were in this spot last year. How do you feel about being the first name called here by Jon Rahm and the Legion team?

PHIL MICKELSON: No, it was expected, and it's a great opportunity for us. We had a really good day today. It's probably more important for our team than some of the others, but it's a very meaningful day for us. We're looking forward to the opportunity to take on the No. 1 team.

We'll keep the same lineup. So I'll play singles first. Cameron Tringale will play in the second singles slot, and we'll have Brendan Steele and Andy Ogletree play alternate shot.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Great. Thank you, Phil. Wasting no time getting right to it. Appreciate that.

Phil Mickelson in the first singles slot, Cameron Tringale will be in the second, and Brendan Steele and Andy Ogletree in the foursomes. We'll find out based on that and maybe huddling with your team in the next hour. You don't have to do it right now.

He's ready to do it. Let's break some news, Jon, if you want to make it happen.

JON RAHM: Caleb and Tom are going to round out the foursomes. I'm going to be individual No. 1, and Tyrrell is going to be individual No. 2.

JASON ZONE FISHER: We're looking forward to that matchup of Jon Rahm versus Phil Mickelson, Cameron Tringale and Tyrrell Hatton. That first matchup is set between Legion XIII and HyFlyers. Looking forward to that battle.

Jon, you've faced off head-to-head with Phil Mickelson obviously before, you guys have some history. What is it going to be like in the semifinal stage, two titans of the game going head to head for 18 holes?

JON RAHM: Well, as of late, our most head-to-head matches have been on YouTube, so slightly different stakes. So I'm really looking forward to it. He's a great friend and a great competitor. No matter what, it's going to be a fun day for both of us.

JASON ZONE FISHER: It will be. Higher stakes but definitely still entertaining.

Next up, let's move along to our second matchup, our second pick, and that would be the No. 2 seed Crushers GC and their captain, Bryson DeChambeau.

Bryson, who would you like to face off against tomorrow?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: We've chosen Smash.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Okay. Smash GC, the No. 8 seed and captain Brooks Koepka.

Brooks, did you expect to be called out here? Give us your quick thoughts on taking on Crushers.

BROOKS KOEPKA: We were just talking about it. We kind of thought that would be the matchup there at the lunch table. Yeah, pretty expected. We're going to keep the same lineup. It seems to work.

I like myself in 1, and Gooch is playing good at the 2 slot. Then those guys in foursomes played really solid today. We're not going to mess with a winning formula.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Well, it worked today, so they're sticking with it. Obviously if you're ready, you can reveal it, but you do have time to huddle and take the strategy if you would like.

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: I missed that, No. 1 and No. 2 were?

JASON ZONE FISHER: In the No. 1 slot captain Brooks Koepka, in the No. 2 slot Talor Gooch, and Graeme and Jason Kokrak playing in the foursomes match.

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Our foursomes choice will be the same today with Paul and Charles playing together. Then I'm going to put Anirban at No. 1 against Brooks, and then myself against Talor.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Okay. Looking forward to those matchups. That will be exciting. Any strategy you want to discuss there, Bryson, for putting yourself in the second singles slot?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: I've got my reasons. (Laughter).

JASON ZONE FISHER: All right. I'm glad I asked the question.

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: It's not personal, though, I can tell you that. It's not.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Captain Joaquín Niemann, our third and final matchup. Obviously we know who you're facing off against, but I'll let you make the official selection here.

JOAQUÍN NIEMANN: I would like to pick the Stingers.

JASON ZONE FISHER: That's a great pick right there.

LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: Didn't see that coming.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Louis, first, great playing out there today, you and Ripper Golf Club. You've got some history or rivalry there. What does it mean to get that win and now face a team that comes in red hot. They won our last event, Torque GC, just days ago when we were all in Indianapolis.

LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: Yeah, we played really solid today. We've got to take on Joaquín and them. They beat us badly in Miami, so it's a little bit of a revenge tomorrow, I think.

My team will stay exactly the same. Dean will go out first, Branden second, and then me and Charl will take on the alternate shot.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Same lineup, it worked. That seems to be the theme here. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Go with what worked.

Joaquín, you have up to an hour to huddle with your team and make a decision.

JOAQUÍN NIEMANN: I can say now.

JASON ZONE FISHER: I love this. We're not wasting anybody's time. Let's hear the lineup.

JOAQUÍN NIEMANN: He said Dean first?

JASON ZONE FISHER: Dean Burmester in the first singles slot and Branden Grace in the second.

JOAQUÍN NIEMANN: The foursomes will be Sebastián and Carlos. Slot No. 2 will be Mito, and I'll be in the first slot.

JASON ZONE FISHER: Looking forward to that matchup tomorrow. That will be an exciting one as well.

We've got your matchups officially locked and loaded here. We will begin with Legion XIII taking on HyFlyers GC in our first matchup. Our second matchup, Crushers GC facing off against Smash GC. And then finally Torque GC will take on Stinger GC. There it is, everyone. Your three matchups for tomorrow's semifinals of the 2025 LIV Golf Team Championship.

As a reminder, the six teams who lost today are not finished. They will compete tomorrow in the rankings bracket, where 7th through 12th place are still up for grabs. Those matchups are being determined as we speak, and they will be announced shortly on livgolf.com and LIV Golf social media.

We're in for a great day of competition tomorrow. Thank you to our captains who joined us today following an intense quarterfinal round, for having your picks ready all across the board and ready to reveal.

I now turn it over to William to open it up for any questions from the media. Thank you all.

Q. Jon, can you just talk about today? Obviously as we talked yesterday, you didn't get a chance to play in this competition a year ago. How would you describe today? Obviously a very tough match you had.

JON RAHM: Match play is never easy. It's extremely fun. As it goes to my match, I played well. Adrian played well. I just think my daughter, who can't even stand, would be better with a putter than me today.

Hopefully I can fix that. It was close, but I didn't make anything.

Then Tyrrell had a battle out there with Richard Bland. I think he said in the post-round interview, it's a golf course that suits him very well. He hits a lot of fairways, great wedges, great putter, so he was always going to be tough. The young boys did what they needed to do. Coming down the stretch, tied match, finished birdie, birdie on 18 and 1 to get it done.

Always full faith in my team. I'm just hoping their captain shows up tomorrow with a better level of golf.

Q. Phil, this is the second year in a row you guys have had to play Legion in the semifinals, a little bit different lineup this time.

PHIL MICKELSON: Yeah, like I say, we're really excited about how today went, and we're excited about the opportunity tomorrow. I think the world of Jon, and it's a great -- it will be a fun match. We played a lot of golf against each other. I haven't done so great against him, but I'm looking forward to tomorrow's opportunity.

We're excited with how the team's playing.

Q. Cameron doesn't seem like a guy that would be bragging much, but he is 6-0 in this competition. Has he ever mentioned that to you?

PHIL MICKELSON: Yeah, we are greatly aware of the record, but he doesn't talk about it. On our team, my role is the talking, and he is the playing. So he doesn't really speak much. He just goes out and shoots low scores, and he's been tough to beat.

Q. Bryson, can you talk about going into this week versus last year? Obviously a really disappointing result last year. How much of that was incentive going into this week?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Yeah, we were disappointed with how it happened last year. We just fight back, and we're just focused on tomorrow's match and playing the best golf we can because that's all that really matters. Anything can happen. It's match play, right?

Like Jon said, it's one day, and we've got to be firing on all cylinders. I trust my guys to play the best golf they can. I think they're ready for the challenge.

Q. Brooks, did you sense that Jason and G-Mac were going to have a really good day today, especially considering what happened to them last year?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Yeah, I think they were definitely motivated, just the way they kind of finished the match last year. But, yeah, they came out of the gates very strong. Like I said, G-Mac is a good foursomes player, and I think they suit up really well with each other. Today proved that. I'm excited to see what they can do tomorrow.

Q. Louis, you guys are on a revenge tour. Is that kind of what we're hearing?

LOUIS OOSTHUIZEN: I wouldn't say that, but there's going to be a little bit of it, a revenge tour of Miami.

Yeah, they're a great team. They're playing well. So it's going to be tough for us tomorrow, but yeah, we're ready to face them again.

Q. Joaco, last question from me. You talked about it on the broadcast. You said, because of Mito's situation, he's kind of the heart of the team right now. Can you just kind of expand on that?

JOAQUÍN NIEMANN: Yeah, obviously he's in the relegation zone, which is obviously not a great situation to be in. It's pretty sad to kind of lose him on the team. He's such a good influence for the team, and he brings such a good vibe to be all four together.

Playing for Mito, I think, is big for us. It's kind of like -- I mean, we were talking about it with Sebastián, the four of us, and Sebastián came out with this idea of kind of The Last Dance, Michael Jordan's show on Netflix, and we're like, yeah, let's try to pull through it and do it for Mito. Yeah, I feel like it's a good motivation for us to kind of like finish the season in this way. So Mito again can leave with a better feeling.

Q. Bryson, the other day we kind of talked about how you were trying to find that right foursomes pairing, trial and error the last few years. Today Paul and Charles looked incredible. Do you think you kind of unlocked something with that tandem?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: I think it's taken a bit of time for us to figure out exactly how to fit all of our guys together because we're so unique and different in our own ways and what works best.

For them today, they felt comfortable, they said. I feel like it was a great pairing. They're super comfortable. They played great golf. We're just going to keep the train rolling.

Q. Phil, you played David Puig, who obviously hits it really, really far. Do you think there's kind of an advantage in match play when you can be the first one hitting into the green and put pressure on the other guy like that?

PHIL MICKELSON: It certainly can be, but when he drives it a yard off the green on 18 and 1 and you know he's going to make birdie, the pressure is already on me. It didn't go exactly as you had said or I had planned, but I was fortunate to make enough birdies to offset his and come out on top.

Q. Bryson, what did you make of the fan atmosphere, the vibe out there, the support you got given that this is an area where you have won before?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Yeah, it was fantastic. There was a lot of people out there supporting. I had a great time interacting with the fans. They were loud, which is good. Today it was fun just seeing their interactions and how positive they were.

There's a lot of great players out here, and I think it's fun getting these guys seeing a new product, especially the team championship, seeing the team atmosphere, and what it really means to us to be competing and playing as a team because it's fun individually to play, but the reason that we're out here as well is because of the team aspect. I think it's cool for fans to see that and experience that.

It's not just me, but for everybody as well.

Q. Bryson, just about the course --

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Can somebody else get a question, please?

Q. Just the course, shorter course for you guys, recently renovated by Ray Hearn. What did you make of the course? How did it play for you?

BRYSON DeCHAMBEAU: Yeah, it fits perfect for my wedge game. It's a perfect challenge for my wedge game.

No, but it's fun. There's holes you can get after it, but there's a couple holes that are tough. You look at -- yeah, 6 is a brutal hole. I didn't play it today actually, but 6 is definitely a tough hole. You've got to drive it well. There's a few others out there. No. 12 is difficult. You got to get it in the fairway. 13 is semi tight off the tee, but you get it down there and you get an easy wedge in the hand.

For the most part, it's a pretty easy, gettable golf course, fun to play. I think we can make a lot of birdies, and that's what makes it exciting for the team side of the coin.