Follow us on Google Discover People behind the scenes with LIV Golf remain convinced that Bryson DeChambeau is fully committed to the league despite his contract expiring imminently.
There is so much uncertainty surrounding LIV Golf right now. Despite Scott O’Neil claiming that an agreement is in place with a lead investor ahead of the 2027 season, there appears to be no guarantees that the league will continue beyond this year.
How do you feel about Jon Rahm potentially returning to the PGA Tour?
What punishment should he face?
A lot of plates are spinning. The prospective investors want the big names to commit to staying, while the big names clearly want some assurances about the future of the league as they consider their own plans.
Reports have suggested that LIV are resigned to losing Jon Rahm. So a lot rests on Bryson DeChambeau‘s shoulders over the coming months.
Bryson DeChambeau remains fully committed to LIV Golf despite his contract running down
DeChambeau’s contract with LIV expires at the end of the season. He has previously hinted that he could be prepared to consider his options following Brooks Koepka‘s departure late last year.
But the Crushers captain has also been involved in talks with the potential investors. DeChambeau led a players-only meeting ahead of the recent New York event.
And according to Rex Hoggard, who was speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast, many are convinced that DeChambeau is up for the challenge of transforming LIV Golf beyond this year.
“I think it’s fair to say, and Bryson DeChambeau hasn’t really spoken about this with anyone, nor has Jon Rahm spoken with anybody about this, but depending on the various reports that are out there – I believe some of them, don’t believe others – it seems as if Jon Rahm is ready to move on from LIV Golf. He has a couple more years in his contract. It’s complicated. There’s bankruptcy involved, not going to get into any of that,” he said.
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“Bryson DeChambeau’s contract is up at the end of this year, essentially on Sunday when they putt out here at Chatham Hills. So those two players are going to be the lynchpins. It seems like Jon is going in one direction, and Bryson is going in the other. Everyone I’ve spoken to about Bryson said he is all in, both publicly and privately, and this is something he wants to embrace. You can see how he feels like this is going to impact his legacy. But it depends entirely on how many of those players he can convince this is worthwhile to stick around for another year and see what happens.”
He added: “Bryson himself can be polarising, not just among the media and the fans, but even among the players. My guess is there’s some players that really like Bryson and some players who think not my kind of guy, don’t really want to hang out with him. I think the decisions will come individually. By that, I had the chance to talk with some players off the record yesterday afternoon, and the idea is it really depends on where you are in your career. Do you have one eye towards PGA Tour Champions? Maybe what comes next in that chapter, or do you still feel like you’re in your competitive prime? I think that’s going to factor into it. But I did think Brendan Steele’s take was interesting because you could argue that you have a lot of middle class players on LIV Golf. I would argue there’s a lot more middle class players than there are in that top half of players. And you’re right, you can see why it’s attractive to them.
“Now I could see your point about Bryson DeChambeau, the idea that he can be the leader of a team for the first time. He can mould how this tour develops in his own image. Scott O’Neil just said he’s been really instrumental in whatever this next chapter is going to be, and probably continues to be that way.
“Also, I don’t think we need to stick our head in the sand. If we look at the lead investor, according to various reports, his name is Ted Goldthorpe. He’s the co-founder and partner in something called BC Partners. And if you follow that line down, the management firm that represents Bryson DeChambeau is a subsidiary, essentially, of BC Partners. So you can see how this is all lining up for Bryson DeChambeau to kind of be the default commissioner of this league. I’m sure he loves the idea of being able to do this in his own image, because this is exactly the type of off-course thing that would keep his mind occupied.”
The risk LIV Golf would be taking by giving Bryson DeChambeau control over the league’s future
It is easy to look at LIV and think that losing DeChambeau – particularly if Rahm does leave – would be the fatal blow for the league.
DeChambeau is the league’s biggest superstar. But the truth is that allowing him the keys to the kingdom would be a dangerous move for the incoming investors.
Ultimately, a LIV Golf tour that had $6 million of backing from the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia and included DeChambeau failed to sustain a rivalry with the PGA Tour.
It seems almost inevitable that there will be even fewer superstars involved next year. The days of big names jumping from the PGA Tour are surely long gone now.
DeChambeau has been extremely successful on YouTube. But it would be a real gamble to let him dictate the league’s future just to ensure that he stays put.
It would certainly be good news for LIV if DeChambeau does stick around. However, they should not be breaking the bank and handing over full control to the two-time US Open champion to make it happen.
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