Adrian Meronk has listed a number of reasons – including playing less golf and earning more money – as to why he opted to turn down full playing rights on the PGA Tour to join LIV Golf.

Meronk became one of LIV’s biggest signings in 2024, making the Saudi switch just days after being announced as the DP World Tour’s Player of The Year for 2023. That year, the Pole played some of his best golf, which in turn saw him secure a card to play full-time on the PGA Tour in 2024.

Despite this, the 31-year-old opted to turn down the offer to compete Stateside, instead making the decision to join Greg Norman and co on the LIV setup.

Having now played one full season on the Saudi-funded series, the 31-year-old has opened up on why he opted to make the Saudi switch. Meronk was back in Tour action last week, having done enough to earn a spot in the DP World Tour’s opening season-ending playoff at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

His tied-37th finish at Yas Links also proved enough to book himself a spot at the circuit’s finale, the DP World Tour Championship this week, with the top 50 players in the Race to Dubai rankings competing. During his trip to the Middle East, Meronk told Golf Digest: “I made my decision based on a few factors.

“One was my desire to play less and enjoy my life a bit more. Last year I was so tired at the end of what had been the best season of my career. But I had no time to enjoy anything because I had to go to Australia to defend my Australian Open title. I remember thinking how nice it would be to play fewer tournaments.

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Adrian Meronk

The Pole revealed the reason behind his decision to join LIV Golf

“So that was maybe the main reason behind my design to join LIV.” Meronk also admitted he was enticed in by the financial incentives on offer with LIV, as well as the team aspect, adding: “There were financial reasons as well. It would be silly to deny that. I would be lying if I said otherwise.

“And I can’t imagine anyone would take me seriously if I did. But I have enjoyed being part of the team and traveling together. It has been a lot more entertaining and reminds me of my time at East Tennessee State.” Meronk’s decision to defect came after he also missed out on a spot on the European Ryder Cup team.

The Pole was well-backed to be one of Luke Donald’s six captain’s picks, but the Englishman opted to go elsewhere. “Not making the Ryder Cup team definitely opened my eyes to the fact that I need to focus on myself, my career, my game, and my life,” he commented.

“I realized that the Ryder Cup is not the most important thing in the world. I would love to play, and if I perform well enough next year I could qualify. But it’s not my priority.“