Bryson DeChambeau is perhaps the player fans of the PGA Tour miss seeing involved in their events the most, with the two-time major champion establishing himself as the biggest superstar on LIV Golf.
There is no question that Bryson DeChambeau is one of the most popular players on the planet. He has been one of LIV Golf‘s main success stories – as one of only two players to win a major after making the jump.
Recently, DeChambeau has spoken of wanting to see the game come back together.
Which LIV golfer do you most want to see return to the PGA Tour?
But there have been few signs in 2025 – since talks over a merger broke down anyway – that there is going to be any sort of overlap between PGA Tour and LIV Golf stars outside of the majors in the next couple of years.
What a PGA Tour official said about Bryson DeChambeau following The Skins Game
With that, events like The Skins Game and the Hero World Challenge perhaps represent the best pathway towards getting the world’s best players back together more often.
Interestingly, some behind the scenes at the PGA Tour even felt that those working on The Skins Game missed a trick, after the event involving Xander Schauffele, Keegan Bradley, Tommy Fleetwood, and Shane Lowry attracted mixed reviews.
Speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast about the potentially underwhelming field at the Hero World Challenge, Rex Hoggard suggested that some would back leaving the door open for LIV’s biggest stars to feature in the more unique off-season events.
“I was in the airport on Monday landing here and I was speaking with a PGA Tour official, and he was talking about last week’s Skins Game and how it seemed a little flat to him,” he said.
“I watched a little bit of it and it didn’t come off like I remember. And the idea was why couldn’t we have used that opportunity to bring a Bryson DeChambeau, bring a Brooks Koepka back? And this is a tour official that’s telling me, and I’m a little dumbfounded because I’m like why are you telling me this? Yes, it would be a really good opportunity to try and open some sort of pathway, try to open up some sort of level of communication between the two sides.
“I don’t think any of the rank and file of the PGA Tour are going to be upset if Bryson is somehow invited into this field and he’s going to have some sort of exemption by the PGA Tour based on what’s happened on the last three and a half, four years. It seems like a missed opportunity and maybe that could be a way to structure this.”
Why adding Bryson DeChambeau to The Skins Game may not have solved all the event’s problems
There is an argument that The Skins Game was underwhelming to some simply because of the players not being used to the format.
Of course, they will wind each other up when they are playing casual rounds, but there is a different pressure when the cameras and microphones are on and they are expected to be entertainers.
DeChambeau knows this better than most, too.
Following The Skins Game, Colt Knost replied to the suggestion on social media that DeChambeau should have been involved by pointing out that he did not shine in The Showdown in 2024.
In many respects, the match between Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, and DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka was even more disappointing given the star power involved. There were also bragging rights for their respective tours on the line.
That is not to say that DeChambeau would not have been a great addition to The Skins Game. He certainly would have been.
However, the bigger issue may perhaps be that the modern golfer has to adjust a lot more when on a stage where their charisma is almost more important than the golf they play.
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