Before Brooks Koepka’s departure, the ‘Scientist’ was already the face of the LIV Golf league. Now, he holds all the trump cards. An analysis.
The latest news first: Brooks Koepka’s first appearance on the driving range at Torrey Pines was met with neither hostility nor warmth from his former and current colleagues. At best, the LIV returning member received indifferent but friendly reactions, even Wyndham Clark, a declared skeptic of the PGA Tour’s Returning Member Program, remained inconspicuous so far.
Phone Call with Tiger Woods
‘I’m excited. There are definitely players who are happy, and definitely some who will be angry. Some won’t be pleased with how everything unfolded,’ the 35-year-old admitted a while ago. Yesterday at the press conference for the Farmers Insurance Open, Koepka politely thanked for the opportunity and revealed that his first call after being cleared to leave LIV was to Tiger Woods, the powerful figure behind the scenes in Ponte Vedra Beach.
‘I didn’t know exactly what to do or how to approach things with the PGA Tour, and Tiger was the first person who came to mind since I have always had a good relationship with him.’ Koepka clearly knows whose approval truly matters.
LIV Golf Dynamics Dramatically Changed
But wait, isn’t this article about Bryson DeChambeau? It is. Yet it’s impossible to discuss without first acknowledging Koepka’s exit, which gravely altered LIV Golf’s dynamics. The Saudi-backed league suddenly lost 33.3% of its key assets.
Koepka was a major public figure for LIV — a five-time major winner, accompanied by the glamorous Jena Sims, one of only two LIV players to have won a major while on the rival circuit. The other is DeChambeau, US Open champion in 2020 and 2024, who is exceptional in many ways.
Only DeChambeau and Rahm as Valuable Assets
The third most valuable asset in LIV is probably Jon Rahm, not just from a European perspective. Beyond them, the LIV roster becomes increasingly insignificant. There’s a bit of Sergio Garcia, perhaps Joaquin Niemann, and Patrick Reed—who carries a controversial reputation despite recently winning the Hero Dubai Desert Classic. Dustin Johnson missing the cut there was largely ignored. Tyrrell Hatton is notably more interesting than Cameron Smith. And what about Phil Mickelson?
Rory McIlroy is right when he says: ‘They haven’t signed anyone who moves the needle, and I don’t think they will.’
Only Majors and YouTube?
This brings us finally to Bryson DeChambeau. LIV lives through the 32-year-old Texan. The reverse might not be true. Recently, DeChambeau said he could envision focusing solely on majors for the rest of his career while dedicating time to his YouTube channel, ‘Break 50,’ which has nearly three million followers and earns him an estimated $800,000 annually, with a rising trend.