'I Can Tell You That Right Now; I Would Love To Be Out Here' - Bryson DeChambeau's Stand-In Teammate Hoping To Boost Chances Of Permanent Move By Winning First LIV Golf Title

With all the talk of a world tour being the future of men's pro golf, John Catlin already has plenty of experience as a globe trotter.

The Californian - making his second LIV Golf League start this week in Nashville - has teed it up on the Gateway Tour, the Asian Development Tour, PGA Tour Canada, the DP World Tour, and the Asian Tour before grasping his opportunity as a member of Bryson DeChambeau's Crushers GC.

Although he was born in America and has played on the third tier of men's pro golf in the US, Catlin believes he has only competed maybe a dozen times on home soil.

And having jetted off to Asia for the majority of his career - supplemented by spells in Europe and beyond - Catlin is now keen to sample one of the key benefits to LIV Golf - less frequent travelling and more tournaments that do not require the need for his passport.

That quest is far from a done deal, though, with the 33-year-old 13-time pro winner only filling in on DeChambeau's quartet as long as Charles Howell III is out through injury.

But in just his second LIV start, there is a chance Catlin could walk away with not only $4 million but also a significantly better chance of a permanent contract next season.

Heading into the final round of LIV Golf Nashville on Sunday, Catlin trails Legion XIII's Tyrrell Hatton by three shots in the individual standings as both golfers search for their debut LIV success.

While winning is clearly front and centre in terms of his objectives this weekend, the University of New Mexico graduate is looking at the wider picture too.

Following a round of 65 on Saturday which moved him to 10-under for the event, Catlin was asked how much trying to secure a future with LIV Golf is playing on his mind this week.

He said: "I'd be lying if I said it didn't creep in there, but again, I don't really have any control over that. That's up to the captains. That's up to managers. That's up to the team organization.

"If I just keep doing what I'm doing, things are going to work out, and I'm going to keep putting in the work, and I hope I get more opportunities to showcase what I can do. We'll just have to wait and see.

"I hope so. I can tell you that right now; I would love to be out here."

As an equally-interesting aside, both Catlin and Hatton are backed up by their respective captains DeChambeau (Crushers) and Jon Rahm (Legion XIII) in the fight for the team trophy in Nashville.

Legion XIII start the final round with a five-shot advantage but could easily be reeled in by DeChambeau, Catlin, Anirban Lahiri, and Paul Casey.

Crushers captain DeChambeau is optimistic his foursome can do it, and paid tribute to the quality of Catlin's play this week in particular.

On his fellow Californian, DeChambeau said: "Yeah, he's a fantastic golfer. I grew up playing some golf with him in northern California, and we had some battles early on in our careers, in junior golf even. He's a stellar player. He's shot in the 50s and won a few times this year now.

"It just fit our team really well, and I'm praying for Charles [Howell III] that he's going to be healthy and get back here pretty soon. He's struggling with some stuff, but I have faith that he'll be back at our next event.

"You know what, I couldn't be more proud of John and the way he's performing for our team. We're in second place right now, and we've got to get the job done tomorrow. It's been too long."