Richard Bland shares how LIV Golf has helped him play better golf with Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm’s presence

Richard Bland believed that joining LIV Golf has made him a better player. In a conversation shared by golf journalist Matt Vincenzi on X, he explained that the level of competition within LIV Golf forced him to play his best. Bland admitted that there was simply no way to show up with anything less than peak performance.

Vincenzi shared the post on June 29, captioning it:

"Richard Bland on how coming to LIV Golf has made him a better player:

"Just playing against the guys that are out here. When you play against Bryson and Jon Rahm and Brooks, those guys, I have to play my best golf. There's no ifs or buts about it. I can't turn up here and bring my "C" game and expect to compete with Jon. I can't do it. That's not going to happen. "

"I have to bring my "A" game every single time. That doesn't mean to say that's what I am going to do, but if I've got any chance of competing, I've got to play up towards some of the best golf I can play. It just brings it out of you. There's no other way. That's what I have to do. But also, it kind of drags -- when I'm not playing quite so well, it elevates that a little bit better. So yeah, coming to LIV has made me a much better player than I was."

Recently, at the 2025 LIV Golf Dallas, Bland finished tied for fourth after carding a 3-under 69 in the second round at Maridoe Golf Club. He entered the final round four shots behind leader Patrick Reed, playing alongside David Puig and Tyrrell Hatton.

Earlier this year, at LIV Golf Mexico City, Richard Bland made headlines with the second albatross in LIV Golf history on the par-5 16th hole at Club de Golf Chapultepec. For the 2025 season so far, he finished with a T7 in Korea, a T11 in Mexico City, a T29 in Virginia, and a T40 in Riyadh. He sits 21st in the LIV Golf individual standings. Apart from that, Richard Bland stirred the pot as he decided to skip the U.S. Senior Open.

Richard Bland prioritizes LIV Golf Dallas over U.S. Senior Open title defense

Richard Bland had a choice between going to Colorado Springs to defend his U.S. Senior Open title or Texas for LIV Golf Dallas. The Englishman chose LIV Golf. Bland is competing at Maridoe Golf Club, where he fired a 3-under 69 in Saturday’s second round. Sitting at 5-under, he’s tied for fourth on the leaderboard heading into the final day.

Speaking after his round on June 28, Bland opened up about the decision, saying:

“Obviously, you always want to defend something you won the year before, especially a tournament like the U.S. Senior Open. But as always, I’m committed to LIV. I didn’t even ask the question. I know I have a contract, and I have to honor that.

“I know I’ve taken a little bit of stick back home for it, but it’s one of those unfortunate things. I spoke with the USGA. They were fine with it. Obviously of course they’re disappointed.”

Last year, Bland won both the Senior PGA Championship and the U.S. Senior Open. Just last month, he returned to the Senior PGA as the defending champion and finished tied for 14th. His U.S. Senior Open win also earned him a spot in this year’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst, where Bland failed to make the cut.