It is very rare when a reigning champion of a particular event does not return to defend his title in the game of golf. The 2024 edition of Genesis Invitational is experiencing something similar. The defending champion Jon Rahm will not be participating at Rivieria because he is ineligible to do so. Since all the LIV Golfers are banned from playing on the PGA Tour, the Spaniard could not mark his presence at this week’s signature event.
The third signature event of the 2024 season is one of the most historic events on the US-based tour. The tournament which was established as Los Angeles Open in 1926, has a long list of winners. However, this time, six of its victors will not be teeing up at Rivieria thanks to their decision to make a switch to the LIV Golf league.
Let’s look at all the six LIV Golfers who have won the Genesis Invitational trophy in the past.
1) Jon Rahm
Despite going through a tough patch of form with his putter, the Spaniard overcame his weakness and won the trophy on February 19, 2023, Sunday at Rivieria. While all the attention was gathered by returning Tiger Woods, Jon Rahm managed to record a two-stroke victory over Max Homa.
Soon after the event, the Spaniard overtook Scottie Scheffler to take up the top spot for the fifth time in his career in the Official World Golf Rankings.
2) Bubba Watson
The two-time Masters Champion is the most successful LIV Golfer at the Genesis Invitational. He has won the prestigious tournament at Rivieria Golf Course three times in his career.
Bubba Watson came out victorious first time back in 2014 when the tournament was known as the Northern Trust Open. He defeated Dustin Johnson by a margin of two strokes. Later, in 2016, he defeated Jason Kokrak and Adam Scott by one shot to win the tournament second time in his career,
After failing to defend his title in 2017, Watson recorded his third victory at the tournament in 2018 by defeating Kevin Na and Tony Finau. This time, the tournament was renamed as The Genesis Open. He tied with the likes of Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan, and Lloyd Mangrum to become the second most successful player at the event.
3) Dustin Johnson
The former World No. 1 won the Genesis Invitational in 2017. Johnson’s victory came between his fellow LIV Golfer Bubba Watson’s second and third title win at Rivieria. After finishing as runner-up twice at the event, Johnson finally beat Scott Brown and Thomas Pieters by five strokes to win this title for the first time in his career.
Dustin Johnson was on his career’s best run as he shot 49 consecutive holes without a bogey. Also, he dethroned Jason Day from the top spot in the OWGR to reach the rank for the first time in his career.
4) Phil Mickelson
There is rarely any prestigious tournament that Phil Mickelson may have not won on the PGA Tour. He has won the Genesis Invitational twice in his career. Interestingly, he was the sixth and the last player till now to defend the title successfully.
Mickelson first won the title in 2008 by defeating Jeff Quinney by a two-shot margin. Later in the following year in 2009, he defeated Steve Stricker by one stroke to retain his title at Rivieria Golf Course.
5) Joaquin Neimann
The Chilean golfer’s first PGA Tour victory came at the Genesis Invitational 2022. Interestingly, he and Jon Rahm have both joined the LIV Golf league just a year after winning the tournament at Rivieria Golf Course.
When he won the tournament in 2022, Joaquin Niemann became the first wire-to-wire champion in its history. He ended all four rounds as the topper of the leaderboard. He defeated Collin Morikawa and Cameron Young by a margin of two strokes.
6) Charles Howell III
The 44-year-old American is the first among all the six LIV Golfers to win the Genesis Invitational. He won the tournament back in 2007 after defeating Phil Mickelson in a playoff match at Rivieria Golf Course. This was his second victory on the PGA Tour and he received a paycheck of $936,000 as prize money.
Although the Saudi-backed league’s players have missed two consecutive editions of the tournament, they might return in the future if the PGA Tour and PIF close a deal together. Fans would surely hope to see some of the previous winners return at the Tiger Woods-hosted event.
