Matthew Wolff, Carlos Ortiz Are the Next PGA Tour Winners Leaving for LIV Golf
Matthew Wolff, the 2019 NCAA individual champion who won in just his fourth start as a pro, is among three players to be announced by the LIV Golf Invitational Series on Monday as joining the 48-player field at Pumpkin Ridge outside of Portland.
Carlos Ortiz and Oklahoma State junior Eugenio Chacarra, the world’s second-ranked amateur, are also joining LIV Golf.
Wolff, 23, won the 2019 3M Championship on the PGA Tour and along with Viktor Hovland and Collin Morikawa turned pro with considerable fanfare.
But Wolff has struggled in recent years and acknowledged mental health issues that have made performing at a high level difficult. Wolff tied for 40th at the Travelers Championship and was ranked 20th in the world at the end of 2020 but has slipped to 79th.
Chacarra signed a three-year deal with LIV, according to the Spanish-language newspaper, Marca, and will make his pro debut this week.
“My position is that of a player who is not a member of the PGA Tour or the DP World Tour, and I have not earned money while I have been an amateur, so I can play in this league without problems,” Chacarra told Marca in translated comments. “This contract gives me peace of mind and ensures the future of my family. I had already achieved everything as an amateur, and now I will be able to gain experience as a professional.”
Chacarra had been expected to return to Oklahoma State for his senior year prior to deciding to pro.
Ortiz, 31, is from Mexico and has been playing on the PGA Tour, where he won the 2020 Houston Open. He missed the cut at the Travelers and is ranked 118th in the world.