Golf star John Catlin has admitted his number one priority is to cement a permanent place in LIV Golf through the Asian Tour’s International Series. The American is second in the International Series rankings and will earn an automatic spot in next year’s LIV Golf roster if he finishes top.
Catlin has won three European Tour tournaments and six Asian Tour tournaments throughout his illustrious career.
And the 33-year-old has already had a taste of the LIV Golf life after standing in for Charles Howell III on Bryson DeChambeau’s Crushers GC team in Houston and Nashville.
He finished T24 and T7 respectively and banked himself a mouthwatering £583,000 for those appearances.
The ace is scheduled to play in the International Series Morocco this week, before filling in at next week’s LIV Golf Valderrama showpiece event in Spain.
And ahead of the event in Africa, Catlin dropped a subtle hint to the PGA Tour as he explained: “[The international Series] is definitely priority one for me now. Having experienced the LIV Golf events, they are really cool.
“We are very well looked after and playing that calibre of field for that kind of money is something we all want. That is priority one and I am looking for what will unfold over the next eight events.”
LIV Golf have attempted to offer a relaxed environment for fans and players since launching in 2021, with some events being soundtracked by live DJs.
And Catlin added: “I’m loving it – I’ve always liked playing golf with music. Whenever I’m at home playing golf with my friends, we always have music – so it kind of feels like that again.
“The team part is really awesome. Nowhere else do we have that. We kind of have a lot of team chemistry, team camaraderie, and I feel like that’s helped make the transition easier.
“I’ve been a pro for 11 years. I’ve played on pretty much every tour in the world. I’ve had a chance to meet all these guys before and, coming back, it just kind of felt like, hey, I haven’t seen you in a while.”
Catlin will be in line for another payday at the LIV Golf event in Valderrama.
And reigning Masters champion Jon Rahm has been snapped up for the event, while Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Cam Smith will also compete.
Meanwhile, former US Ryder Cup star Anthony Kim has been handed a wildcard to the event after spending 12 years out of the game.