LIV Golf announces a new competition format that pairs professional golfers with popular content creators in a made-for-YouTube event premiering April 5.

“The Duels: Miami” is a nine-hole scramble competition featuring six LIV Golf professionals and six prominent golf content creators. 

The event, filmed during LIV Golf Miami week at Trump National Doral, represents the organization’s latest effort to engage digital audiences and evolve the traditional golf experience.

“At LIV Golf, we champion bold, new approaches to the game, and ‘The Duels’ is a perfect example of how golf continues to evolve and engage fans,” Adam Harter, LIV Golf League’s Chief Marketing Officer, said in a press release.

Lineup and Distribution

The inaugural event features pairings including Phil Mickelson with Grant Horvat, Dustin Johnson with Wesley Bryan, and Joaquin Niemann with Rick Shiels. Additional teams include Sergio Garcia with George Bryan, Bubba Watson with Luke Kwon, and Cameron Smith with Fat Perez.

Commentary will be provided by personalities Mason Nutt, Andrew Santino, Joey Demare (Joey Cold Cuts), and Robby Berger (Bobby Fairways), offering minute-by-minute action coverage.

The competition will premiere exclusively on Grant Horvat’s YouTube channel on April 5, followed by extended content across participating LIV Golf teams’ digital platforms. This distribution approach aligns with the event’s focus on creator-driven content to engage younger golf enthusiasts amid declining television viewership.

Creator Competition Trend Continues

According to Golf, the format bears similarities to the PGA Tour’s “Creator Classic,” a series of events pitting YouTube golfers against each other in 9-hole competitions at tournaments like the Tour Championship and The Players Championship. The PGA Tour expanded its Creator Classic from a single event in 2024 to multiple events in 2025, with Horvat winning the most recent competition at TPC Sawgrass.

Professional Status Considerations

Among the content creators, Wesley Bryan maintains conditional PGA Tour membership following his victory at the 2017 RBC Heritage and three Korn Ferry Tour wins in 2016. He competed in three PGA Tour events earlier this season with mixed results.

Golf notes LIV Golf events remain non-sanctioned tournaments by the PGA Tour, even amid ongoing investment negotiations between the Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund. PGA Tour members typically must request releases to participate in non-Tour-sanctioned events.

“The Duels” does not include LIV Golf stars Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, and Brooks Koepka, though future iterations of the competition might expand to include these prominent players.

LIV Golf Miami, the league’s first U.S. event of the 2025 season, will air live on FOX, FS1, and the FOX Sports App beginning Friday, April 4, at noon ET.