What happens next with Brooks Koepka could shape the golfing landscape for the next decade.
Brooks Koepka decided to leave LIV Golf ahead of the 2026 season, as the five-time major winner saw his form plummet since joining the Saudi-backed league. Koepka was winless in 2025, missing three of the four major championship cuts and recording just two top-five finishes on LIV.
Where the American will play in 2026 is yet to be confirmed, as the golf world awaits a key decision from the PGA Tour. Will the tour allow Koepka to come straight back, despite receiving a five-year suspension when he joined LIV in 2022, or force him to serve his full suspension and play on the DP World Tour in 2026?
On one hand, allowing Koepka to come straight back to the PGA Tour could be the end of LIV Golf, paving the way for LIV’s underperforming stars to leave. But PGA Tour players who stayed loyal, turning down the millions offered by LIV, might not take kindly to Koepka being able to come back unpunished.
Two PGA Tour players, Xander Schauffele and Billy Horschel, made their feelings clear about Koepka’s potential return.
Billy Horschel and Xander Schauffele’s honest thoughts on potential Brooks Koepka PGA Tour return
We first learned that Koepka was planning to jump ship from LIV Golf weeks before the announcement, meaning the news was no great surprise to avid golf fans. And eight-time PGA Tour winner Horschel revealed that these conversations had been taking place for a while.
Horschel admitted that he’s changed his stance on whether Koepka should be able to come back to the PGA Tour, saying to the Palm Beach Post, “At the very beginning, I think I was on the side of, there needs to be some punishment for these guys.
“And now I’m on the side that I think for the betterment of the game, for the quality of the PGA Tour product to continue to grow…
“Selfishly, having equity stake in the PGA Tour now, bringing Brooks back, that does add value. So I think there needs to be a process to figure out what (brings) these guys back.
Is this the end of LIV Golf?
“I wasn’t shocked. Let’s just say there’s been a lot of talk for a while now about Brooks possibly wanting to come back to the PGA Tour, trying to find some way to get out of his last year of his contract.”
“Let’s just say I’ve had some conversations with him as well through the year. So, like I said, I wasn’t shocked. And I don’t know what’s going to come from it. I don’t know if he’s going to be on a PGA Tour in 2026 or if it will take a little time. But yeah, I wasn’t shocked by it.”
Like Koepka, Schauffele suffered poor form in 2025 as he recovered from a rib injury. But he said he’d be happy to see the former LIV star back on the PGA Tour, despite the fact that others might feel differently.
The two-time major winner explained, “It’s going to be a mixed bag. Depending on who you interview, what point in their career they are, where they sit in the standings, what the world ranking is. You’re just going to get an array of different answers.
“It’s going to be hard to make everybody happy, I can answer that. So do we need everyone to come back together? Absolutely.”
It seems to be a common opinion among the PGA Tour’s biggest stars. Justin Thomas advocated for unity in golf earlier in the month. But it’s easy to say for those who aren’t in realistic danger of losing their tour cards in 2026. For those further down the roster, Koepka’s return could spell danger for their future on the PGA Tour.
How much money LIV Golf offered Xander Schauffele to leave the PGA Tour
It’s mature of Schauffele to support the return of Koepka, especially considering how much money he rejected to stay loyal to the PGA Tour. Reports said that he was offered up to $200 million by the league.
But according to his father, Stefan, it was never an option for Schauffele, who was concerned he would no longer be in contention for major championships if he made the move. “They could’ve doubled the money, and we still wouldn’t do it,” said Stefan Schauffele in 2024.
Which of these LIV Golf stars would you least like to see back on the PGA Tour?
His loyalty was rewarded, as Schauffele won two major championships that year, but this could pose a problem for the PGA Tour if they decide to allow Koepka back.
Schauffele might be mature enough to see past the money, but would others? It would be reasonable to question why Koepka is allowed to cash in on LIV, spend a few seasons away from the PGA Tour, and come back with no consequences.
The players on the PGA Tour could be left questioning why they stayed loyal in the first place.
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