Dustin Johnson is one of the 15 different team captains of LIV Golf's 13 teams, and he owns a quarter of his team, known as the 4 Aces.
Johnson is one of the original breakaways from the PGA Tour, and his team has been the most successful in the short history of the LIV Golf concept. Bubba Watson once quipped that everyone knows the Aces. And now Johnson's team has done something no other LIV Golf team has done.
With the start of LIV Golf's sign-and-trade period, Johnson's 4 Aces brought Thomas Pieters onto the squad via trade. Pieters had played on the RangeGoats team, Watson's team, in both of his prior LIV Golf League seasons.
However, the unique thing that the 4 Aces did wasn't signing Pieters. Players come and go in LIV Golf, both in and out of the league, as well as between teams. The unique twist is that the 4 Aces didn't trade a player to the Range Goats or cut any of their current players.
For at least right now, the 4 Aces have a fivesome.
Johnson remains the captain, while Patrick Reed, Harold Varner III and Pat Perez are still on the roster. Reed finished 20th in the final LIV Golf individual standings in 2024. Varner III finished 43rd and remains under contract with the team. Perez narrowly avoided relegation by finishing 48th in the standings.
Perez is the kicker in all of this. He's been with LIV Golf from the outset, but he has struggled. He finished 52nd in points in the 2022 LIV Golf Invitational season. He finished 28th in 2023 in a solid year. He barely avoided the boot this year. Perez in what LIV calls the Free Zone -- meaning players 25th through 48th in the standings -- and is free to sign with his current team, if they want him, or another. Or he might be out entirely. Then there's another unique option.
The 4 Aces could choose to sign Perez as their reserve player, someone to play when one of their regulars gets hurt or is otherwise unable to compete in any portion of LIV Golf's 14-event schedule. LIV Golf has typically identified reserve players that can slot into any team in the event they're needed. John Catlin is an example, playing five times this year as a fill-in. However, a franchise has been yet to identify a permanently available bench player and pay them to do so. Perez could break the mold.
