Pat Perez’s time as a player on LIV Golf are over (Image: Getty Images)
Pat Perez, the former player, has spoken about his unexpected shift from the greens to the broadcasting booth ahead of the new season.
The 48-year-old, who was a founding member of the controversial breakaway league in 2022 with the 4Aces team, found himself just one place above the drop zone after a lacklustre 2024 season.
Despite finishing 48th, Perez was anticipating playing this year until a sudden change saw Thomas Pieters take his spot on the 4Aces’ roster, and Perez was announced as an on-course reporter for LIV’s broadcast crew.
On LIV’s podcast, Perez revealed his surprise at the turn of events, saying: “To be honest with you, it was a little more forced than I thought it was going to be. I’m going to be perfectly honest, I thought I was going to be playing this year and I’m not.
“I’ve always thought about TV anyway because I did the Tiger-Phil match and YouTube stuff. I thought it would be there one day and it seemed like a couple of weeks ago was the day.”
Perez has insisted that he has not retired (Image: Getty Images)
Despite the abrupt career pivot, Perez is embracing the new opportunity: “I’m actually looking forward to it. It’s going to be nice to see the other side of it and learn the ins and outs of what it is, especially from people like [Jerry] Foltz and [David] Feherty and people have been part of the broadcast forever. I get to learn what it is and I’m excited about doing it.”
Perez is adamant his time on the greens isn’t up, though he admits playing chances are scarce since LIV golfers face a one-year PGA Tour ban post their last rebel circuit game. While in limbo, Perez is keen on exploring TV broadcasting, saying: “I’m really in no-man’s land now because I’m still banned by the tour, but I think I’m going to focus on the TV.
“I’m really going to focus on it this year and learn to find my niche,” and adding, “If it works out great and I can do more TV, I don’t know, I might stick with it. To be honest with you, I have only played four days since Dallas finished last year and I haven’t really missed it much. I don’t think about going to the course, I’m not sore anymore and my hands and elbows don’t hurt.
“It’s been nice to hang around the house and not think about it. It’s kind of a midway point of maybe starting something new and I think I’m going to enjoy it a lot and I’m really looking forward to it.”