Kevin Na is now history in LIV Golf. A very grey and decidedly discreet history. The Korean Golf Club, the new name for the Iron Heads of which he was captain until 2025, will have a new leader. It is the Korean Byeong Hun An, currently a player on the PGA Tour. Additionally, the young Minkyu Kim and Younghan Song will join the team. The only one remaining from last year is Danny Lee, born in South Korea but playing under the New Zealand flag. The Korean economic newspaper Maeil Business Newspaper was the first to report the news, which will be officially confirmed by LIV Golf in the coming hours.
In truth, there were already suspicions of a significant move within this team, the first to have a country in its name, following Kevin Na‘s absence from the press conference held this Tuesday by the LIV Golf captains. It is indeed strange that the Saudi officials did not have time to finalise the agreement with Ben An in time to present him to the public precisely on this media day. The only thing it demonstrates is that An did not give his approval to the agreement until the very last moment. In fact, this same publication claims that he had many doubts before taking the step forward.
Ben An made his name in the golf world by becoming the youngest player in history to win the US Amateur back in 2009. Now, at 34 years old, his major victory is the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in 2015. His latest triumph came at the Genesis Championship in 2024, a tournament that closed the regular season on the DP World Tour where he won in a tight finish against his compatriot Sungjae Im. Additionally, he has had a notable career on the PGA Tour, very solid, maintaining his card each year without much fanfare, although with the obvious blemish of never having achieved a victory on the American circuit. In this regard, he is the player with the most accumulated earnings without a win.
Ben An has been chosen to replace Kevin Na after a search process that approached Sungjae Im and Si Woo Kim, both of whom declined. Negotiations were held with Kim, figures were discussed, but no agreement was reached.
Joining Ben An are Minkyu Kim, a young player who has won the Korean Open twice and secured a victory on the HotelPlanner Tour in 2018, although he has not had much luck in his appearances on the DP World Tour, as well as Younghan Song, another Korean with experience whose career has primarily developed on the Japanese circuit. Both have already played some tournaments in LIV Golf as substitutes, so they are not entirely new faces. Departing are the aforementioned Kevin Na, who has not yet announced where he will play in 2026, if he decides to continue competing at 42; Yubin Jang, who lost his category due to ranking, and the Japanese Jinichiro Kozuma, who remained in the open zone, where renewal is uncertain, and it has been decided to let him go.
Kevin Na becomes the first captain not to continue in LIV Golf by the circuit’s decision. He was not renewed. Previously, Henrik Stenson left, in that strange triumvirate formed in the Majesticks with Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter, because he lost his category on the golf course, and Brooks Koepka, who voluntarily terminated his contract with the Saudi league and returned to the PGA Tour. The fourth member of the team will be Danny Lee, the only one remaining from last year. It should be noted that Kevin Na unfollowed the LIV Golf account on Instagram a few hours ago, suggesting that the split was not the most amicable.
Thus, only one spot remains to be filled in the Saudi league. It is the fourth member of Phil Mickelson‘s team, a captain who already has Cameron Tringale and Brendan Steele in his ranks. A replacement is being sought for Andy Ogletree, who lost his category this year after a very poor season. The left-hander from San Diego stated yesterday that it will be a young golfer. Various media in the United States claim that the chosen one was Akshay Bhatia, although the young American rejected Mickelson’s proposal. The chosen one will be known in a matter of hours, as LIV Golf starts in 20 days.
