5 Things: A Week In The World Of LIV Golf

We look back at the week in golf and it's been another collection of fascinating storylines..

1 Reportedly LIV Golf is close to an agreement with the US TV network Fox Sports 1 to buy air time for its tournaments. The breakaway circuit has so far operated without a TV deal, with viewers watching on YouTube and Facebook, but now the reported deal will see LIV Golf pay for its own airtime with the aim to regather those costs by selling their own commercial sponsorships.

If this were to happen then the deal would be requited to comply with US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requirements that mean broadcasters must disclose when foreign governments or their representatives lease time on their airwaves.

2 Phil Mickelson and three other players, Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford and Ian Poulter, have asked to have their names removed from the antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour. Mickelson filed separately to the other three which now leaves just Bryson DeChambeau, Peter Uihlein and Matt Jones left as the only plaintiffs in the lawsuit – the trial is scheduled to begin in January 2024.

Mickelson had hinted at such a move in a recent interview with Sports Illustrated: "The only reason for me to stay in is damages, which I don't really want or need anything. I do think it's important that the players have the right to play when and where they want, when and where they qualify for. And now that LIV is a part of it, that will be accomplished if and when they win.”

3 Meanwhile Patrick Reed pulled his civil suit in Houston and then refiled his $750m defamation lawsuit against the Golf Channel and analyst Brandel Chamblee - and he has now added in other GC employees, including Eamon Lynch, Shane Bacon and Damon Hack, as well as the DP World Tour and its commissioner Keith Pelley to join his counterpart on the PGA Tour, Jay Monahan.

Reed was due to play in the Dunhill Links this week on his never-ending global tour but then cited a bad back from a soft mattress in France for his withdrawal.

4 Branden Grace had a different take on the whole world ranking points debate as the now World No. 154 claimed that LIV Golf was ticking boxes despite being a three-day tour, with 48 players and no cuts.

"There is some qualification criteria that is also being met, guys winning the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit, winning the Asia Tour Order of Merit," said Grace. “There are guys playing on the Asian Tour which have a chance to qualify for those events. If you're lying top three/top four you get into these events for a certain amount of time until you have to play well on those again to qualify for the next ones.

"You look at WGC and all of that sort of things, limited field events, no cuts, and as far as I know there's no such thing saying it needs to be 72 holes. I know it's the beginning of it but sooner or later we're going to get there."

5 LIV Golf has unveiled big plans for their season-ending 2022 Invitational Series Team Championship, which will take place October 28-30 at Trump National Doral in Miami. The Blue Monster will stage a seeded three-day, knockout competition featuring both singles and foursomes match play for two days before a strokeplay event featuring 12 teams who will compete for a whopping $50m purse – broken down into $16m for first, $10m for second and $8m for third.

Each captain will play in a featured singles and they will decide on the other singles and foursomes line-ups. On day three the final four teams will play off in a shotgun start round of strokeplay with all four scores counting and the lowest score wins.