Hours later Jon Rahm triumphed in Abu Dhabi to lift the first trophy of the post-LIV golf stage of his career, the other big name of the rebel league, now dead, began to look to the future.
Bryson DeChambeau it was all in LIV Golf and he believed that LIV 2.0 would be “done right” if it fell off the ground. But he couldn’t carry the remains of LIV alone on his back, and on Thursday the league’s lawyers informed a New Jersey bankruptcy court that the league stretched and that LIV Golf 2.0 would not be successful.
That leaves many players with an uncertain playing future. Rahm said he has not yet spoken to the PGA Tour about a potential return and expects to play on the DP World Tour in 2027 while things get back together. Tyrrell Hatton, David Puig, and others are members of the DP World Tour, so their immediate future is on the European circuit as they try to play their way back to the PGA Tour. The PGA Tour has has not yet said that a way back for LIV Golf The flaws will appear once the league officially liquidates its assets in bankruptcy court.
As for DeChambeau, his playing future is unclear. He could accept membership in the DP World Tour via an exemption he earned for winning the US Open 2024. He could also wait to see if BC Partners, the private equity group that tried to support LIV Golf 2.0, can create a successor golf team to LIV, like the Financial Times reported is his goal, even if it is one whose probability of success is not clear. Obviously he will still work to build his YouTube channel, but where he will play his competitive rounds outside of the majors is unclear.
That leaves DeChambeau in a gray area as he charts his playing future.
In his statement, DeChambeau mourned the death of LIV Golf and said he was willing to “go about things the right way” to move forward – whatever that might look like.
Bryson DeChambeau’s statement after the death of LIV Golf
“I’m not going to rewrite the last four years,” DeChambeau wrote in a statement. “I made a decision that I believed in, and I am grateful for what came with it: playing in front of new and old fans around the world who have rarely seen the best players at home. The record crowds in Adelaide and Johannesburg will stay with me for the rest of my life.
“I believe this game could reach more people, in more places, in a new way. I still believe that. And I gave everything I had to keep the golf team alive.
“I want to thank the people who believed in this from the beginning: the staff, the operations crew, the caddies, and all those behind the scenes of LIV Golf and Crushers GC who bet their careers on it. You gave everything. And I thank my Crushers teammates, our sponsors, and every fan who came out.
“I still believe in team golf. It may be different in the future, but I still believe it is essential to grow the game.
“Arnold Palmer said that no player is bigger than the game, and I want to admit that, along the way, I said things that did not help. Whatever comes next, I will approach it with humility and respect for the people who brought this game long before me.
“In December, I will compete at the Nedbank Golf Challenge, the event of Gary Player, in front of the fans who made my first visit to South Africa unforgettable. In addition to this, I will go on everything that is close to the right path.
“My passion has been to grow this game. That’s always the goal. Thank you for staying with me.
“Together we can all grow this great game we love.”
On Sunday, Jon Rahm officially closed the book on his LIV Golf era and began a new chapter with a victory in Abu Dhabi. Hatton, who also left LIV Golf before his passing was official, finished second.
“I don’t know what else to say. It’s on the next page, right,” Rahm said of his victory being the beginning of what’s to come. “Fortunately in golf, I’ve been lucky enough to have many opportunities and take advantage of them, and I hope I can continue to do so.”
For Bryson DeChambeau, time will tell what his next chapter looks like.
