The LIV tour has produced yet another storyline in the golf world, this time internal strife between Smash GC teammates Brooks Koepka and Matthew Wolff.
Koepka, captain of Smash GC, blasted Wolff in an interview with Sports Illustrated, criticizing him for "quitting" on the team. Wolff withdrew from LIV's May tournament in Washington, D.C. before the final round with an undisclosed injury.
"I mean, when you quit on your round, you give up and stuff like that, that's not competing," Koepka told Sports Illustrated. "I'm not a big fan of that. You don't work hard. It's very tough.
"It's very tough to have even like a team dynamic when you've got one guy that won't work, one guy is not going to give any effort, he’s going to quit on the course, break clubs, gets down, bad body language, it's very tough. I've basically given up on him — a lot of talent, but I mean the talent's wasted."
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Koepka's harsh criticism of Wolff stems from LIV Golf's team dynamic. Golfers can earn money depending on their individual finish, but stand to earn even more in winnings depending on how their four-person team finishes.
To date, Smash GC has had only one top-three finish this season, when it finished second on the team podium in Orlando. Smash GC is tied for seventh in LIV's team standings and has not had a finish better than fifth in any other tournament this year.
Part of the team's struggles have to do with Wolff's drop-off in production following a strong start to the season. He opened with three top-10 finishes, but has struggled in the five tournaments since: He finished tied for 44th in Australia; tied for 41st in Singapore; tied for 30th in Oklahoma; withdrew from D.C.; and finished tied for 44th in Andalucia. He is currently 27th on LIV's money list.
Koepka, who is second on LIV's money list, has four top-10 finishes this season. Those include a win in Orlando and top-three finishes in Singapore and Andalucia. His worst finish on the season was 31st in the season-opener in Mayakoba, when he shot 1 over par.
Jason Kokrak and Koepka's younger brother, Chase, make up the remainder of Smash GC. Per Spotrac, they are 25th and 39th, respectively, on LIV's money list.
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Wolff addressed Koepka's criticism of him with Sports Illustrated, saying he's simply trying his best for the team.
“I'm here, you know, trying to do what I can to play the best round of golf and that's going to help the team,” Wolff told SI. “I'm just here to focus on myself and try to play some good golf and that's what everyone's really trying to do, because golf is trying to put the best score up and then if that helps your team it's great.”
Sports Illustrated asked whether Wolff wanted to be on another team — they change on a yearly basis — prompting the golfer to stare, shake his head and walk away from the interview.
The top 24 earners being guaranteed entry to the tour for the ensuing season. Wolff, who has one PGA Tour win to his name — the 2019 3M Open — is likely to return in 2024. It almost certainly will not be alongside Koepka.