Ben Campbell finished 36th on the LIV Tour in 2025. Photo / AFP
Ben Campbell knew what he was signing up for.
It’s been a banner year in the 34-year-old Kiwi golfer’s career, signed by RangeGoats GC to be a fulltime member of the LIV Golf field after operating as a league reserve in 2024.
It was an opportunity that afforded Campbell, a regular on the Asian Tour, plenty of learning opportunities as he joined forces with two-time Masters winner Bubba Watson and American duo Matt Wolff and Peter Uihlein.
It was the third season of the tour, backed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, and Campbell admitted that people weren’t shy in sharing their opinions on his involvement with it.
“But I knew that when I signed up,” Campbell told the Herald.
“Seeing what LIV’s done to help promote the golf up in Asia and grow that tour has been awesome ... we’ve had some really good fields on the Asian Tour that we never would have had if it wasn’t for that association with LIV.
“There’s always going to be people disagree with what you do, but, for me, it was a great call. I’ve learned a lot of things and it’s been awesome hanging around with some of the best players in the world and learning off them. I never would have been able to do that on the Asian Tour.”
Now in the off-season, Campbell has plans to stay busy. As a requirement for LIV, he must compete in three events on the Asian Tour – teeing off in Hong Kong this week, followed by events in Singapore and Saudi Arabia over the next month.
He will also return to action on home soil on December 12, teaming up with Canadian golfing content creator Mac Boucher in the annual Mānuka Phuel Chasing the Fox event at Royal Auckland and Grange Golf Club.
“I took four weeks off, didn’t pick up a club, and just had a nice break. It’s been nice getting back into it now,” he said.
“Foxy [Ryan Fox] reached out a few weeks ago. Obviously it’s a great cause with plenty of charities involved and things like that. I played plenty of golf with Mac down in Queenstown when he was based down there, so I’m looking forward to teaming up with him.”
Across 13 events around the world this year, Campbell was the second-highest finisher in his LIV team at 36th on the leaderboard – his season highlight being a third-place finish in Singapore, where he secured a US$1.5 million ($2.60m) payday. Fox Sports reported the Kiwi earned more than US$3.09m across the season. In 2024 on the Asian Tour, Campbell earned about US$1.11m over 12 events, which included a win, a runner-up and three other top-five finishes.
Of the 13 LIV events this season, Campbell only completed 11 after he hit a tree root during the tournament in Mexico and injured a tendon in his wrist. After getting scans done, it was determined he had fluid in his wrist and he was advised to take a couple of weeks off, which meant missing the following event in Miami, but he returned for the final six tournaments of the year.
Because he finished between positions 25 and 48 on the leaderboard, Campbell finds himself in the league’s open zone – where players can be either traded or released ahead of the 2026 season. The lock zone (top 24) are the only group to secure their spot on the next year’s tour, while players finishing in the drop zone (49 or lower) are relegated from the league.
“Still waiting to hear back at the moment. No real contracts have come out yet, so it’s just a bit of a waiting game at the moment,” Campbell said of his outlook for 2026. “Just got to wait, hopefully, a few more weeks and should have a bit more information.”
Reflecting on life on the tour, Campbell said it was the team aspect that he appreciated most, though he enjoyed playing in front of boisterous crowds with a bit going on in the background. The latter he’s sure to encounter again in his Chasing the Fox debut, with Australian DJ and producer Cyril performing at the sixth-hole party zone throughout the main event.
Of all the players on the tour to team up with, there are few as singular as RangeGoats team captain Watson. The American is a two-time Masters winner, a Ryder Cup winner, an Olympian and a rare case of a professional who chooses not to work with a swing coach.
“It was probably good for me. I get a bit too technical sometimes and Bubba is the complete opposite of that. He’s never had a coach, doesn’t really look at his swing on video or anything like that too much. To be honest, I learned a lot by just watching him,” Campbell said.
“I feel like our team got on really well ... having the team there, playing practice rounds, plenty of dinners, that’s one of the things that I really enjoyed about LIV was just how much you weren’t out there by yourself all the time and it was good fun.
“Our team got on well. We had plenty of team games and competitions and money games, so it was always just good fun and you trained hard as well.”
Royal Auckland and Grange Golf Club, December 12, 5pm. Tickets are on sale now.
Confirmed teams
Team Campbell: Ben Campbell and Mac Boucher.
Team Media: Dai Henwood, Jeremy Wells and Bryce Casey.
Team NZ Warriors: Shaun Johnson, Wayde Egan and Chanel Harris-Tavita.
Team Voke: Nick Voke and Taco Golf.
Fox and Friend: Ryan Fox and TBC.
TVNZ1 and TVNZ+ will be broadcasting the event from 7pm-9pm.
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.