Kennedy ready to resist pressure in LIV Golf quest in Abu Dhabi
Max Kennedy alongside Karandeep Kochhar and Sampson-Yunhe Zheng at his pre-tournament press conference
Royal Dublin amateur Max Kennedy says he’s ready to test his game under pressure in the $1.5 million LIV Golf Promotions event in Abu Dhabi as he bids to win a dream ticket to join some of the game’s biggest stars in the breakaway circuit next year.
The University of Louisville star (21) will tee it up at Abu Dhabi Golf Club in the United Arab Emirates on Friday looking to play 72 holes over the three days and finish in the top three who will be drafted to a LIV Golf team next season.
Ranked 77th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, he will be joined in the UAE by his Palmer Cup teammate Ryan Griffin (23) from Maynooth University.
Kennedy won the Aggie Invitational on the US collegiate circuit and Ulster Men’s Strokeplay this season but he knows he will have to be at his best if he’s to join the likes of major champions Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Graeme McDowell, Patrick Reed, Cam Smith and Bryson DeChambeau on the Saudi-funded circuit in 2024.
“I played 18 yesterday, and I played 14 holes today, and this course is amazing,” Kennedy said. “It's beautiful. The conditions are already pure, and it demands very good golf.
“So you’ve got to play well. All parts of your game have got to be in good shape this week.”
The Dubliner revealed he’s a big fan of LIV Golf, which is a team-based league where players compete over just 54 holes with a shotgun start.
“So obviously, it's a very new concept. And it's a very different concept to what golfers are used to,” he said. “But I loved it overall. I think there's a lot of, you know, questionable points. But in general, I'm a fan. And I'm a fan of inclusivity within the game, and I loved it.”
Kennedy and Griffin must first make the top 20 after the first round before joining 14 exempt players in the second round.
They paid their $25 entry fee for the chance to win a $200,000 payday and a lucrative LIV spot next year.
Only those who finish in the top 20 and ties advance to Saturday’s second round.
Scores will then be reset, and the field will be joined by 14 players who automatically qualified for day two.
The top 20 players (after tiebreakers) following round two will advance to the final day, where scores will reset once more for a 36-hole shootout.
It’s a high-pressure situation but Kennedy is ready to test himself
“I mean, at the end of the day, you've got to play good golf and that's what I'm here to do is play good golf and then see where that takes me,” he said. “So not at all.”
As for the prospect of team golf and world travel next season, he added: “The team golf aspect of it is quite unique. It hasn't been done before in the pro leagues.
“So it's definitely unique. It's not something that I'm not used to. We play team golf in America, so I'm definitely used to it. It's interesting, and I kind of like it. So looking forward to it.
“I'm someone who likes to travel. I love seeing different places. And I love visiting new places and seeing the culture and all that sort of thing. So that would be something that I'd be very interested in doing.”
The field features former PGA Championship winner Jason Dufner and Ryder Cup player Jeff Overton as well as PGA Tour, DP World Tour, and Asian Tour winners such as Chris Stroud, Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño, and Alvaro Quiros.
Members of the Palmer Cup and Walker Cup teams were exempt into the event but only Kennedy and Griffin took the plunge as Ireland’s Walker Cup players Liam Nolan, Alex Maguire, Mark Power and Matt McClean opted not to play.
"LIV Golf Promotions creates an open pathway for players to compete in the LIV Golf League, and the interest shown in the event’s inaugural year reinforces the significance of these new opportunities for the sport,” said LIV Golf Commissioner and CEO Greg Norman.
“There is exceptional talent from all corners of the globe and LIV Golf is establishing a platform for these current and rising stars of the game to build their careers in new, exciting ways.
"LIV Golf’s future is bright, and our anticipation grows to see which competitors will be part of this game-changing league in 2024.”
Former European Ryder Cup player Victor Dubuisson was entered, but he withdrew on Tuesday and announced his retirement from golf at 33.
“I feel like I’ve reached my limits and I know I can find pleasure elsewhere, I’m convinced of that,” he said in an interview with L’Equipe.
“It’s life, for me it’s not an end. I started from nothing, so I’m extremely satisfied with what I’ve done. I still see myself as a little kid with my little bag and my Decathlon clubs. I was not predestined to have this career at all.”
He added: “Many people will say that I could have done more and that I could have been world No. 1. But I’m more than happy with it (his career). I don’t live in regret all the time. When I look behind me, where I started and where I am, I can tell you that I am very happy.”
