Dallas recap: RangeGoats GC has frustrating week but 2024 positive as a whole
CARROLLTON, Texas – Even though RangeGoats Golf Club didn’t finish the Team Championship in Dallas as it hoped, it doesn’t mean 2024 had more negatives than positives. In fact, with some new faces finding their footing and being in the mix most weeks, the future looks bright.
The team finished 12th at Maridoe Golf Club after a start that put the team behind the eight-ball. RangeGoats GC was on the wrong end of “Upset Friday” during the quarterfinals. Entering as the No. 9 seed, the team lost 2-1 to No. 10-seed 4Aces Golf Club.
Peter Uihlein did his part, defeating 4Aces GC Captain Dustin Johnson 3&1 to earn his team a coveted point, but Thomas Pieters lost 5&4 to Patrick Reed, leaving it to a crucial foursomes match to advance.
But the duo of Captain Bubba Watson and Matthew Wolff fell 2&1 to Harold Varner III and Pat Perez, ending a chance to advance to Saturday’s semifinals.
On Sunday, the team entered in Tier 3 with four other teams, with the goal of finishing in the tier’s highest spot at No. 9. RangeGoats GC would end up finishing 12th.
While the Team Championship didn’t end exactly the way RangeGoats GC wanted, Watson was able to reflect on not only this season but on the LIV Golf League overall.
“The creative juices are flowing,” Watson said. “When you’re in the meetings for all 54 guys and for the league, it’s a startup business and you’re trying to grow it. Look at other sports. At the end of the day, they go and high five and hug or whatever. And now we travel together. Even though we’re trying to beat everybody, we’re still friends. We’re trying to grow the business together, so it makes it more fun because we see the same faces every week. On other tours, you might not see a guy for a few weeks because they’re taking a break, doing other things.
“This is awesome for me. It gives my mind a place to go besides golf and be creative and try to create something that we’ve never been able to do before. I think everybody behind me and with me are the same way. This is a dream come true, to be able to create something from scratch.”
As the team looks to reset in the offseason and focus on 2025, the positives will be the focus. Wolff was one of the best storylines of the season and rebounded well after a tough 2023. He finished No. 18 in the season-long individual standings – the highest of any RangeGoat – and new teammate Peter Uihlein wasn’t too far behind at No. 27. Thomas Pieters was solid and was No. 30 in the standings. Couple all of that with Watson’s vision, attention to detail and leadership, and the RangeGoats’ future looks bright for next season.