LIV Golf Invitational Series 2022 Boston: Tee Times, Prize Money and Predictions

Cameron Smith ascended to the No. 2 spot in the Official World Golf Ranking while having tremendous success on the PGA Tour. Now, it's time for a new chapter in the 29-year-old Australian's career.

A host of top golfers have left the PGA Tour to join LIV Golf, and Smith recently did the same. He'll be making his LIV debut this weekend when the startup tour hosts its fourth event at the International Golf Club in Bolton, Massachusetts, which will be taking place Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Smith won't be the only one in the 48-golfer field making his LIV debut. Anirban Lahiri, Marc Leishman, Joaquin Niemann, Cameron Tringale and Harold Varner III will also be playing in their first LIV event.

Each of the first eight LIV tournaments in the tour's inaugural season has a total purse of $25 million, with $4 million going to the winner. Golfers will also be split up into 12 teams of four, and the top team will split a $3 million prize.

Unlike the PGA Tour, LIV Golf is using a shotgun start, meaning each group will start at the same time on different holes. The tee time is scheduled for 1:15 p.m. ET on each of the three days.

Here's everything else you need to know about this week's LIV tournament taking place just outside of Boston.

---

Preview, Predictions

It's been a breakout year for Cameron Smith. He finished in the top 13 at three of the four major tournaments, which included a victory at the Open Championship in July, marking his first major win.

Smith was also named the PGA Player of the Year for the 2021-22 season. But now, he's an LIV golfer, a decision he recently explained to Evin Priest of Golf Digest.

“The biggest thing for me joining is [LIV’s] schedule is really appealing,” Smith said, per Priest. “I’ll be able to spend more time at home in Australia and maybe have an event down there, as well. I haven’t been able to do that, and to get that part of my life back was really appealing.”

There was also the money. According to Tom Morgan of the Telegraph, Smith's contract with LIV golf is worth $100 million. Smith told Priest that the finances were "definitely a factor" in his decision as well.

Smith is far from the only top golfer who has made the jump from PGA to LIV. This weekend's tournament will feature 10 of the 38 top-ranked golfers in the world: Smith (No. 2), Joaquin Niemann (No. 19), Dustin Johnson (No. 22), Abraham Ancer (No. 24), Brooks Koepka (No. 26), Louis Oosthuizen (No. 31), Paul Casey (No. 33), Kevin Na (No. 34), Bryson DeChambeau (No. 37) and Jason Kokrak (No. 38).

Among the other big names playing this weekend include Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and more.

So, this should be the most competitive LIV Golf event yet, considering the list of golfers joining the tour has continued to grow. The winners of the first three LIV tournaments were Charl Schwartzel (London in June), Branden Grace (Portland in July) and Henrik Stenson (Bedminster, N.J., in July).

Smith will likely have a strong showing in his LIV debut. He's mostly played great golf this summer and is coming off a 20th-place finish at last weekend's Tour Championship. Smith won't win his first LIV tournament, but he'll end up in the top five.

Instead, it will be a different LIV first-timer atop the leaderboard come the end of the day Sunday: Harold Varner III. The 32-year-old has struggled a bit of late, missing the cut at three of his past six tournaments, so a fresh start could be coming at a good time for him.

If Varner can get back to playing the way he was early in 2022, his LIV debut could be an impressive one. So don't be surprised if he ends up notching a win this weekend.

Prediction: Harold Varner III wins LIV Golf debut