As things stand, LIV Golf’s biggest signing of the winter looks set to be Thomas Detry with the Belgian joining The 4Aces ahead of the 2026 season.
It has definitely been an underwhelming winter for LIV Golf, particularly with Brooks Koepka leaving to return to the PGA Tour.
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Brooks Koepka has left, while they have signed the likes of Laurie Canter and Thomas Detry so far
But they have managed to sign a winner from the 2025 PGA Tour season. Dustin Johnson confirmed on Tuesday that Thomas Detry is joining his team this year.
Detry won the WM Phoenix Open in hugely impressive fashion last season. At the time, it looked entirely possible that the Belgian would push for a place on Luke Donald’s Ryder Cup team for Bethpage.
Smylie Kaufman left surprised by Thomas Detry deciding to join LIV Golf
He was unable to really kick on. Detry did not register another top 10 over the remainder of the PGA Tour season. Nevertheless, he still managed to finish 44th in the FedEx Cup.
That is why Smylie Kaufman was so surprised to see reports claiming that the 32-year-old and Elvis Smylie were about to make the jump to LIV this year.
“For these two guys who are going over to LIV, Detry’s the more surprising one to me. Detry was in all the signature events this year. So he had to have gotten a really nice offer to be able to go because he’s really betting on himself in that one year that he plays well in the majors. Because as soon as this year ends, I imagine that OWGR is going to tank. So he’s got to play well in the majors this year or he’s back to not being a player who’s at the major championships,” he said on The Smylie Show.
“And maybe for Thomas, getting back with his buddy Thomas Pieters, who he played college golf with in Illinois, maybe he’s like, ‘dude, I don’t like the PGA Tour, I don’t like playing on the PGA Tour’. Maybe that’s the case.
“I don’t know because it’s hard for me to fathom why you would make the jump now and not next year potentially or the year after just to see how you play in the signature events, to see if, ‘hey, what if I go win two or three signature events next year, what does that do for my career?’ Where you’re potentially in the majors for a couple of years.
“Everybody’s in a different spot, but to me, that was an interesting jump and one we haven’t seen a player make at this point because it’s such a big benchmark to be in the signature events.”
The timing is definitely odd from Detry
Clearly, players have different priorities. Pieters never quite enjoyed life on the PGA Tour, and it may be the case that Detry is not a fan of where the tour is heading.
But Kaufman is right to point out that Detry has turned his back on an excellent opportunity after forcing his way into the signature events in 2026.
Even the biggest LIV fan will admit that the league is not in the best position right now. They have lost Koepka and have failed to make any notable signings this winter.
With that, an offer from the league was likely to be on the table again in 12 months. LIV is not going anywhere, regardless of what happens with the remainder of their star players.
LIV will take it as a good sign that the likes of Detry and Laurie Canter have turned their backs on playing on the PGA Tour to make the move this winter.
But clearly, it is a gamble from the Belgian.
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