LIV Golf Indianapolis
Purse: $20M individual, $5 million team
Winner's share: $4M individual, $3M team
Location: The Club at Chatham Hills
Yardage: 7,143
Par: 71
For more information, check out RotoWire's LIV Golf Optimizer.
Tournament Preview
Joaquin Niemann vs. Jon Rahm for the 2025 LIV Golf Individual Championship.
Yes, the dominant storyline heading into Indianapolis this weekend is the same as it was this time last year, with the Torque GC and Legion XIII captains as the last men standing for the top of the individual standings. How each man got here couldn't have been more different.
As it was in his debut season, Rahm has been Mr. Consistent in 2025, finishing in the top-10 in all but one LIV Golf tournament (T11 in Dallas) to earn meaningful points in nearly every event. He doesn't have a win to his name this year but has finished second in three LIV Golf tournaments, most recently in Chicago when he and fellow Spaniard Josele Ballester were defeated by South African Dean Burmester on the first playoff hole. Rahm is the only player in the top-6 of the individual standings who hasn't won a LIV Golf tournament this year.
As for Niemann, his 2025 season could be described as feast or famine, or perhaps Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; he's won five LIV Golf tournaments this season, an absurd number when you realize that Brooks Koepka's five career LIV wins is second most in league history behind Niemann (seven). Those five wins earned Niemann 200 points, but he's accrued just 8.43 points over the other seven tournaments with one top-15 finish among them (T12 in Hong Kong). The magic number heading into Chatham Hills this weekend is 12.27; that's how many more points Rahm needs to score over Niemann in order to successfully defend his Individual Championship. Even a victory for Rahm wouldn't guarantee a successful defense, as a solo second for Niemann would be enough to finish at the top of standings. Check out Mike McAllister's article outlining all the possible scenarios for Niemann and Rahm to win the LIV Golf Individual Championship.
Players finishing first and second in the individual standings receive a bonus of $18 million and $12 million, respectively. A $4 million bonus is given to whomever is third, and that spot is currently occupied by Bryson DeChambeau. The Crushers captain was in the race for the top spot of the standings, but he has finished T30-T11-T13 over the past three LIV Golf tournaments and has been mathematically eliminated from a top-2 finish. Still, DeChambeau has a comfortable cushion, and there are only three players -- each of whom have won a tournament this season -- who can reach him: Stinger GC's Burmester (Chicago), Smash GC's Talor Gooch (Andalucia) and 4Aces' Patrick Reed (Dallas).
Individual Standings
- Joaquin Niemann (Captain, Torque GC) - 208.43 points (-)
- Jon Rahm (Captain, Legion XIII) - 196.16 points (-)
- Bryson DeChambeau (Captain, Crushers GC) - 140.74 points (-)
- Dean Burmester (Stinger GC) - 117.25 points (13)
- Talor Gooch (Smash GC) - 112.70 points (6)
- Patrick Reed (4Aces GC) - 101.90 points (4)
Team Standings
- Legion XIII - 224.66 points (--)
- Crushers GC - 178.00 points (--)
- Fireballs GC - 169.00 points (--)
- Torque GC - 128.00 points (6)
- 4Aces GC - 126.66 points (4)
- Ripper GC - 104.66 points (5)
- Stinger GC - 102.60 points (8)
As a refresher for the Team Championship in Michigan next weekend, the top-6 seeded teams will have the opportunity to choose who they face out of the bottom-6 seeds (the 12th and 13th seeds, currently Majesticks GC and Iron Heads GC, will face off in a head-to-head match). With a win earning a team 40 points, Rahm's Legion XIII are locked in as the No. 1 seed heading into Michigan, while the Crushers and Fireballs will be battling this weekend for second and third. The Stingers' playoff win over Torque in Chicago put the All-South African squad in striking distance of the All-Aussie Ripper GC for the sixth seed.
Spot in 2026 on the line
The results of LIV Golf Indianapolis could have major implications for 2026.
For starters, those who finish in the top-24 of the individual standings (aka the "Lock Zone") are guaranteed a spot on their current team for the 2026 season. Players like Tyrrell Hatton (25th), Richard Bland (26th) and Ballester (33rd) are unlikely to be traded or released by their team if they don't make the Lock Zone, but the added security for the likes of Anirban Lahiri (23rd), Charles Howell III (24th), Cameron Tringale (27th) and Jinichiro Kozuma (31st) gives plenty of motivation to climb the leaderboard in Indianapolis.
21. Charl Schwartzel (Stinger GC) - 56.30 points
22. Phil Mickelson (Captain, HyFlyers GC) - 55.97 points
23. Anirban Lahiri (Crushers GC) - 54.33 points
24. Charles Howell III (Crushers GC) - 54.03 points
---
25. Tyrrell Hatton (Legion XIII) - 52.15 points
26. Richard Bland (Cleeks GC) - 51.03 points
27. Cameron Tringale (HyFlyers GC) - 49.19 points
28. Dustin Johnson (Captain, 4Aces GC) - 48.90 points
29. Louis Oosthuizen (Captain, Stinger GC) - 45.13 points
30. Brooks Koepka (Smash GC) - 45.13 points
31. Jinichiro Kozuma (Iron Heads GC) - 43.33 points
32. Caleb Surratt (Legion XIII) - 41.23 points
33. Josele Ballester (Fireballs GC) - 39.28 points
What players want to avoid by year's end is the dreaded "Drop Zone," representing those who finish 49th or below in the season standings. Players who finish in the Drop Zone are relegated from the league and must either earn their way back through the LIV Golf Qualifying tournament (in which the winner earns a spot in next year's league) or by being retained by the team. Last year, notable players who were relegated include Kalle Samooja, Scott Vincent, Kieran Vincent, Branden Grace and even RangeGoats captain Bubba Watson (the relegation exception for team captains was removed in 2024). Stinger GC and the RangeGoats opted to keep Grace and Watson, respectively, and those moves have paid off, but the Vincent brothers and Samooja were unable to make their way back in the league.
The 2024 Qualifying Tournament was won by (Chieh-Po) Max Lee, who is serving as a Wild Card this year and sits 45th in the standings with 9.16 points. That should be enough for him to avoid relegation, but there are several notable names that may not be in the league next season, including all three Majesticks GC co-captains (Lee Westwood, Henrik Stenson and Ian Poulter), Torque's Mito Pereira and Wild Card and 2024 signee Anthony Kim.
45. Max Lee (Wild Card) - 9.16 points
46. Brendan Steele (HyFlyers GC) - 7.36 points
47. Lee Westwood (Co-captain, Majesticks GC) - 7.20 points
48. Henrik Stenson (Co-captain, Majesticks GC) - 5.52 points
---
49. Mito Pereira (Torque GC) - 5.10 points
50. Andy Ogletree (HyFlyers GC) - 4.93 points
52. Ian Poulter (Co-captain, Majesticks GC) - 4.50 points
53. Yubin Jang (Iron Heads GC) - 1.28 points
55. Anthony Kim (Wild Card) - 0 points
55. Frederik Kjettrup (Cleeks GC) - 0 points.
Champion's Profile
Chatham Hills is the venue for the 2025 regular-season finale, and it's the first time the course will host a LIV Golf tournament. The course was designed by Pete Dye, who designed over 200 courses in North America, including TPC Sawgrass and Whistling Straits. The course follows Dye's paraphrased motto of an unfair design for an unfair game; water plays a factor on most holes, including both off the tee and around the green on the par-4 fifth hole. Course management is going to be crucial here, so players who can select the right club and get out of trouble unscathed are going to be the most successful at Chatham Hills.
With the last LIV Golf tournament of the regular season on the horizon, here are picks for LIV Golf Indianapolis:
DraftKings Value Picks
Based on a Standard $50k Salary Cap
Tier 1 Values
Bryson DeChambeau (Captain, Crushers GC) - $11,600 (winning odds at The DraftKings Sportsbook: +550)
DeChambeau hasn't exactly been lighting it up over the last three LIV Golf tournaments (T30-T11-T13), which resulted in him fading out of contention for the Individual Championship. He briefly held the lead in Chicago before finishing the final round with a three-over 74 score (eerily similar to The Masters when paired up with Rory McIlroy). Still, DeChambeau has all the tools needed to succeed on a course like Chatham; he leads the league in scrambling opportunities and ranks near the top of the field in birdies made, driving distance and accuracy and GIR.
Jon Rahm (Captain, Legion XIII) - $11,400 (+425)
You could go either way between Rahm and Niemann ($10,800), but I opted to go with the reigning Individual Champion and 2023 Masters winner. Rahm came up clutch down the stretch in 2024, winning two of the last three LIV Golf tournaments (United Kingdom and Chicago) and finishing solo second behind Brooks Koepka at Greenbrier, accruing 110 points in the process to breeze past Niemann at the finish line. Rahm's consistency throughout the season translates well to courses like Chatham Hill, and some timely birdie putts will thrust him in pole position to go back-to-back in his first two years in LIV.
Talor Gooch (Smash GC) - $9,800 (12-1)
Gooch has flipped the switch over the second half of the regular season. He opened the season with finishes of T44 or worse over the first three tournaments, but he has finished T13 or better in seven of the last eight, including a victory in Andalucia (the fourth LIV Golf win of his career) and solo third and fourth in Korea and the United Kingdom, respectively. Gooch ranks in the top-15 in scrambling opportunities, driving accuracy, GIR and putts per hole this season.
Tier 2 Values
Carlos Ortiz (Torque GC) - $9,300 (30-1)
Ortiz was in a slump heading into Chicago, finishing T40-48-T25 in the three LIV Golf tournaments prior to Bolingbrook. He turned things around this past weekend, going nine-under across the last two rounds to surge to a solo fourth finish. Ortiz is in the top-5 in birdies made and top-15 in driving distance, GIR and putts per hole.
Paul Casey (Crushers GC) - $9,000 (25-1)
Casey is having a strong finish to the 2025 season, finishing T2-T32-T11-T5 over the last four LIV Golf tournaments. He was in contention for his first LIV win in the United Kingdom and Chicago, and what seems to be holding the Englishman back is his putting game (1.61 putts per hole, T34 in the field). Like Rahm and DeChambeau, Casey has the tools to thrive at Chatham Hills; he's fifth in both driving accuracy and GIR and 12th in scrambling opportunities this season. However, Casey will need to put it all together for all three rounds if he wants to end the season on a high note.
Harold Varner III (4Aces GC) - $8,500 (40-1)
Varner III is in the conversation with Rahm and Sebastian Munoz as the most consistent performer in LIV Golf this year. While he doesn't have any podium finishes, Varner has earned points in 10 of 12 tournaments this season and has finished T5 in two of the last four events, including in Chicago when he caught fire in the final round to card a six-under 65. Varner ranks fourth in GIR and is top-20 in the field in driving accuracy and distance and birdies made.
Tier 3 Values
Bubba Watson (Captain, RangeGoats GC) - $8,300 (60-1)
Watson has been much better in 2025, and the RangeGoat's decision to keep the crafty lefty as a player (rather than moving him to an executive role) has paid off nicely. He has earned points in six of the last LIV Golf tournaments (including a T4 finish in Virginia and a solo second in the United Kingdom) and he surged to a T17 finish in Chicago with a four-under 67 final round. Watson leads the league with nine eagles and ranks in the top-15 in driving accuracy and distance, GIR and birdies.
Thomas Pieters (4Aces GC) - $8,000 (45-1)
Pieters has strung together some nice performances in LIV Golf this season and has three top-10 finishes, including T8 in Chicago last weekend thanks to his six-under score over the final two rounds of the tournament. He sits somewhat comfortably in the Lock Zone, and a top-24 finish would surely be enough for him to guarantee his spot in the league for 2026. Pieters is in the top-15 of the field in scrambling opportunities, driving distance, GIR and putts per hole.
Josele Ballester (Fireballs GC) - $7,400 (60-1)
Ballester earned the first podium finish in his young LIV Golf career in Chicago, making clutch putts down the stretch to earn a spot in the playoff alongside Rahm and Burmester. Ballester replaced Luis Masaveau on the Fireballs earlier this year, and the move has paid off for Sergio Garica's team, with Ballester finishing T23-T7-T2 over the last three LIV Golf tournaments. Despite playing in just five LIV events, Ballester sits 33rd in the individual season standings with 39.28 points, and another big performance would catapult him into or just short of the Lock Zone.
Tier 4 Values
Branden Grace (Stinger GC) - $7,300 (70-1)
What a difference a year can make. Grace was looking down the barrel of being kicked out of the LIV Golf league after being relegated last year, but the South African was given another shot after re-signing with Stinger GC. While the first half of the 2025 season looked like 2024, Grace has turned things around since the beginning of June, accruing points in each of the last five LIV Golf tournaments, securing two top-5 finishes over the last three events, and winning the team trophy for Stinger GC in Chicago with his birdie putt on the first playoff hole.
Caleb Surratt (Legion XIII) - $7,100 (70-1)
Surratt fell back down to earth a bit after his podium finish at LIV Golf UK, finishing T29 in Chicago. However, the young American carded a five-under 66 in the final round, so he'll have a little bit of momentum behind him heading into Indianapolis. Surratt's 1.54 putts per hole leads the league, and he also ranks T3 and eighth in birdies made and driving distance, respectively.
Henrik Stenson (Co-Captain, Majesticks GC) - $6,600 (300-1)
Stenson's putting game has been dreadful this season (1.70 putts per hole, 54th in the field). However, he leads the league in driving accuracy and ranks T7 in GIR. Stenson would avoid relegation if he can convert his birdie opportunities this weekend.
Anthony Kim (Wild Card) - $6,000 (1,000-1)
I'm throwing in Kim as a bonus here, in case you decide to go top-heavy with some combination of Rahm, Niemann and DeChambeau. Kim has not finished in the top-24 of a LIV Golf tournament since joining the league midway through the 2024 season. However, he does have some momentum behind him; masked behind his T44 finish in Chicago is the fact that he finished eight-under over the final two days of the tournament, including a five-under 66 final round.
Check out the latest Sportsbook Promo Codes before wagering on LIV Golf Indianapolis.
