Koepka pocketed A$6.2 million for the win and a further A$1.2 million as part of the winning Smash GC team. The victory coming 18 months since he last claimed a trophy, that win coming at the Waste Management Phoenix Open on the PGA Tour last February.

In the time since, the former World No.1 has battled injuries to his knees, problems that still continue for Koepka.

“I mean, it's been before LIV, when I blue my knee out and my foot was pointed that way, almost backwards and sideways,” Koepka said. “I mean, eventually I'm going to have to have knee replacement in a few years, but I didn't know what was – I wasn't sure whether I could even move the same way and if I want to play if I could move the way I wanted. I'm fortunate be in the spot that I'm in right now.”

Uihlein won A$4.6 million for second place and his own quarter-share of the Smash GC  prize money, the pair’s individual battle a friendly affair where Koepka was able to showcase his recent return to form.

"Coming down 18, I just wanted to make sure that the team thing was wrapped up before me and Pete could kind of go at it.” - Brooks Koepka.

“Honestly, been playing very well – Pete kind of led the way the last few weeks,” he said. “We've had to play good. We played good in Boston, we did, and it's nice to see everybody play well and everybody contribute and shoot some good scores. It was difficult. It was windy.

“So coming down 18, I just wanted to make sure that the team thing was wrapped up before me and Pete could kind of go at it.”

The final round began with multiple loud explosions of lime-green and aqua smoke at 12:15pm local time. Yet when play commenced the LIV Golf motto "Golf, but louder" was closer to … Golf – but almost eerily quiet.

Royal Greens is located 90km north of Jeddah in King Abdullah Economic City. Designed as a $100 billion mega-city for two million people, 'KAEC' (pronounced 'cake') has 7000 inhabitants. It's a city that money forgot.

Half-built infrastructure sits on empty, semi-arid lots. Giant ghost-suburbs line the golf course with lamps dotting streets plumbing but no houses.

Where stately homes and villas have been built it appears nobody is living in them. Four-lane highways and palm-lined boulevards are mostly as empty as the desert through which they weave.

Royal Greens had minimal shade for spectators, golfers and caddies. There was a breeze that prevailed from the west off the Red Sea though according to one caddy, "I barely felt it – it was brutal out there".

The largest – and apparently happiest – group of spectators could be found belting balls into the Red Sea from an alcohol-free hospitality pavilion on the signature par-three 16th hole.

Best of the Australians at Royal Greens was 22-year-old Queenslander Jed Morgan who finished tied 12th at seven-under in front of Cameron Smith (five-under, T21), Marc Leishman and Wade Ormsby (both one-under, T35) and Matt Jones (three-over, 45th).