“I have been struggling” - LIV golfer confirms injury ahead of start, out for six months 

LIV Golf professional Hudson Swafford has announced that he will undergo hip surgery that will keep him out of action for four to six months. This means that Swafford will miss the majority of the second season on the Saudi-backed circuit.

The 35-year-old made the following statement:

"I have been struggling with a hip injury which has caused a decline in my on course performance," said Swafford. "After consulting with a specialist, I was unfortunately advised my best option for an optimal recovery was to undergo surgery which will require 4-6 months of rehab."

Swafford added that it will not affect his future as a LIV professional and he will attend the remaining events in a non-playing capacity as soon as he recovers, just like Bubba Watson did in 2022.

“I remain a LIV Golf player and supporter and will be attending the events as soon as my recovery allows me to in a non-playing capacity," he said. "While I undertake my rehab, I am excited for the year ahead to get healthy again back to playing the way I know I can look forward to being back on the course soon."

2022 was not great for Swafford as he could only have one top 10 finish in the eight events he played. He was with the Niblicks GC where he captained as well.

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Thomas Pieters Signs with LIV Golf

World No. 34 Thomas Pieters has joined the LIV Golf

Thomas Pieters is the latest big name to join LIV Golf for its upcoming season, which starts this week with an event at El Camaleon Golf Club in Mexico.

Danny Lee and Brendan Steele are the other two names to confirm their association with the Saudi-backed league. Previously, Steele had declared that he wasn't joining the rival league.

Steele has three victories on the PGA Tour but hasn't won since 2017's Safeway Open. The 39-year-old will play for Hy Flyers GC, which is captained by Phil Mickelson.

Pieters was disappointed that he couldn't participate in his favorite Genesis Invitational despite being World No. 34 in the OWGR. It was inevitable that he wasn't happy with they way things were going on with the DP World Tour.

Here are all the teams and their members for the upcoming LIV Season:

Smash GC: Brooks Koepka*, Chase Koepka, Matt Wolff, Jason Kokrak

4 Aces GC: Dustin Johnson*, Patrick Reed, Pat Perez, Peter Uihlein

Iron Heads GC: Kevin Na*, Scott Vincent, Danny Lee, Sihwan Kim

RangeGoats GC: Bubba Watson*, Talor Gooch, Thomas Pieters, Harold Varner III

Torque GC: Joaquin Niemann*, Mito Pereira, Sebastian Munoz, David Puig

Fire Balls GC: Sergio Garcia*, Abe Ancer, Carlos Ortiz, Eugenio Chacarra

HY Flyers GC: Phil Mickelson*, James Piot, Brendan Steele, Cam Tringale

Ripper GC: Cam Smith*, Marc Leishman, Matt Jones, Jed Morgan

Cleeks GC: Martin Kaymer*, Bernd Wiesberger, Richard Bland, Graeme McDowell

Crushers GC: Bryson DeChambeau*, Paul Casey, Anirban Lahiri, Charles Howell III

Majesticks GC: Ian Poulter*, Henrik Stenson*, Lee Westwood, Sam Horsfield

Stinger GC: Louis Oosthuizen*, Branden Grace, Dean Burmester, Charl Schwartzel

Note: * denotes Captain for each team.