Despite reports suggesting that a deal was imminent in recent weeks, it appears that golf fans will have to wait a while longer for an agreement which brings the PGA Tour and LIV Golf back together in one form or another.
It is rapidly approaching two years since the framework agreement between the PGA Tour and the PIF was announced. In that time, there have been a number of false dawns.
Most recently, it was reported that LIV stars could feature at the Players Championship, with the PIF and the PGA Tour set to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House for further talks about a deal.
Unfortunately, it appears that those slim hopes of seeing Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm tee it up at TPC Sawgrass have been dashed. Discussions did not go as well as hoped, despite the parties spending four hours in Washington DC.
What Bryson DeChambeau would be telling Donald Trump as talks between the PGA Tour and the PIF continue
There seemed to be plenty of optimism when Trump was elected that it would pave the way for a deal between the respective sides – not least because the 47th President would relish the chance to say that he was the man to bring the game back together after years of division.
Brandel Chamblee was amongst those who expected Trump to have an impact. And speaking on the Golf Channel, he suggested that he expected Bryson DeChambeau to be encouraging the President to get things resolved.
“People only watch sport when it matters. You are going to give your time up. The sport better darn well matter! The PGA Tour matters. Historically speaking it matters. We talk about Tiger chasing down Jack Nicklaus, we talk about Tiger Woods tying with Sam Snead, we talk about the possibility of Scottie Scheffler ascending up and encroaching on that number one spot most weeks. Obviously Tiger is going to hold it all to himself. But can he chase down Greg Norman? We talk about all those things because from a historical context they matter. I don’t know that anybody is talking about the Saudi backed league with the same sort of reverence,” he said.
“Look, as it relates to President Trump. When he got elected I certainly thought it was inevitable there would be some partnership between the two tours. I would argue that golf does not have many better friends, if any better friends, than President Trump. He loves the game. I don’t know anybody who plays more golf than President Trump and he loves to play with good players, so along the way he has played with many of the players who went to LIV. Knows them, talks to them, amongst them Bryson DeChambeau. I am sure they are saying we would like to get back. No doubt they want to come back. No doubt they do. You know what they don’t get? They don’t get talked about, they don’t get watched, they don’t get looked at, except for four times a year.”
What Bryson DeChambeau said he missed about the PGA Tour
Having DeChambeau back would be big for the PGA Tour. His victory at the US Open in 2024 showed that he has become one of the most popular players in the game. And it was a big blow for the tour that fans would not see him at one of their events in the weeks following Pinehurst.
You could certainly ask questions about how genuine DeChambeau is, particularly as he was such a polarising figure in the early stages of his career. But what you cannot question is his appreciation for the history of the game.
And in 2024, DeChambeau shared what he missed most about the PGA Tour.
“What I miss the most about the PGA Tour has got to be the tournaments that I have gone to and won at,” he told Bob Does Sports.
“Really appreciating the impact in the community that we are able to make. Like the Shriners Hospital for Children Open, the Vegas event. I won that and then I was staying after, helping all the kids out and doing a bunch of stuff with the kids. That was really a lot of fun for me.”
While Chamblee is probably overstating how keen he will be to come back, it would be no surprise if the two-time major champion did relish the opportunity to play in some of the marquee events on the PGA Tour once again.
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