Weekend Wrap - Norwegian Wood Edition

I know I've devolved into a once-a-week blogger, though in my defense that still places me on the podium of my age group.  The thing is, life has suddenly gotten very busy, and I wish it were for better reasons (though the issues mostly to family members, they just require my attention).

For today, the issue is that we are hosting U.S. Open qualifying at Fairview, and we have all sorts of employees and members attempting to move on to Sectional.  A field of 120 players will be chasing six slots, so odds are long.

I'll try to do better, though not sure there's much to back up that promise.

That Thing That's Not Supposed To Happen - The purpose of the Money Grab™ is to keep the vast riches within the confines of the cool kids cabal, so something went horribly awry.  I could also have gone with a NY Times homage, such as "Women, Minorities and Cantlay Hardest Hit."  Really, the bits just write themselves....

Kristoffer Reitan’s unexpected Truist win summed up his pro golf journey

For Kristoffer Reitan, all of this has been unexpected.

Standing on the 18th green at Quail Hollow Club, having just outlasted Rickie Fowler and Alex Fitzpatrick to win the Truist Championship, a PGA Tour Signature Event, it was hard for Reitan to sum up a career-changing win, one that perfectly gels with his unique golf journey.

He went from the Challenge Tour to the DP World Tour, and then, a year ago at the Soudal Open, lightning struck and everything changed. Reitan started that Sunday nine shots off the lead. But he made nine birdies in his final 15 holes to shoot a course-record 62 and eventually win in a playoff.

“I don’t know what to say,” a stunned Reitan said that day in Belgium. “It’s been a dream of mine since I was a little kid. I keep thinking back to a few years ago when I was considering stopping playing because I didn’t find it enjoyable anymore, didn’t see progress, and to be able to turn it around the way I have been doing the last couple of years has been amazing — to seal it with victory here is ridiculous.”

That win, and another that followed, helped him secure a PGA Tour card. Then came another climb. He started slowly this season as a rookie, but his game has clicked over the last month. Then, last week, the unexpected happened again as Reitan got into the Cadillac Championship due to Jake Knapp’s Thursday morning withdrawal. He vaulted into contention at Doral but faded on Sunday. As he finished his final hole in Miami, Reitan didn’t think he would make it into the field this week in Charlotte. Despite a double bogey on his final hole, Reitan squeaked into the Truist field and made the most of an unlikely chain of events.

One week later, he had outclassed the best in the world and reached a place that he was worlds away from when he hung up the clubs in 2022.

More significantly, he ended up at a place the system was designed to keep him from.  

Of course, in pushing through the outrageous concentration of purses into a handful of events with micro-fields, fig leaves had to be employed.  Thus, arcane provisions were included to allow a few randos to play their way in.  After all, those meritocracy illusions don't write themselves....

But the look at the glory of the PGA schedule in the last two weeks.  Having jammed two of their eight Signature Events Money Grabs™, we were treated to the joy of watching a gaggle of elite players skip the first, and phone it in at the second.

Of course, it's even a little worse than that, because most of us began with a prototypical Rickie tease...  He went on an epic tear and the camera couldn't leave him, but the Man in Orange was never a great finisher at his peak, and his peak is no longer visible in the rearview mirror.  C'mon, you didn't think he was going to birdie the 18th, did you?

This is one of those "The Irony, She Burns" moments to me.  As LIV implodes and the PGA is seemingly reasserting its dominance, it's putting on a dreadful show for us.  Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Golf In The Time of LIV -  You'll be shocked to know that if you employ CTRL:F - Truist on today's Tour Confidential, it will yield zero results.  What does everyone want to talk about?  Yeah, you nailed it in one...

For the first time since news broke that the Saudi PIF will not fund LIV Golf following this season, the league’s CEO, Scott O’Neil, and players spoke to the media at this week’s D.C. tournament. What was your biggest takeaway from what you heard from Trump National?

Jack Hirsh: That LIV is on the ropes. I think we knew this already, but nothing O’Neil said

would do anything to convince me otherwise. It seemed like O’Neil was acting more reactionary than anything, which means he didn’t see the PIF pulling funding. That’s not a death sentence, but the next time the media hears from him, he’s going to need to come up with a more concrete plan about how LIV was going to survive. It didn’t sound like he knew how that would happen yet.

Josh Schrock: As expected, it feels like everyone is trying to figure out what’s next or if there is a next for LIV Golf. O’Neil didn’t offer many specifics on what funding they might get or how a 2027 season would look. I thought Jon Rahm saying that the players would need to make “concessions” to keep the business alive was telling. What does that look like? Who is interested in doing that? Still a lot of unknowns.

Dylan Dethier: LIV as we know it is over. That’s already been true — the original vision was a marriage of Greg Norman and Yasir Al-Rumayyan and had nearly blank-check access to the Saudi PIF reserves — but it was even clearer this week, as O’Neil explained that the plan is to make a new plan and players spoke of concessions and unknowns.

Sorry, Jack, but I'll have to differ here, as it very much is a death sentence.  Sure, they'll be out pitching the historical significance and grow-the-game chops of LIV, but you'll need a moment to stop laughing, no?

Rahm's comment is interesting, but feels quite naïve.  LIV has all of two players that matter, and those two guys have to feel that they squandered their opportunity, though one may be in better shape than the other.  To wit:

One looming question is the future of Bryson DeChambeau, whose contract is up at the end of this year and who said last week he could focus on growing his YouTube channel and playing “tournaments that want me” if it doesn’t work for him to return to LIV or the PGA Tour. How valuable is Bryson to the future of the PGA Tour? And who holds the leverage in Bryson’s future?

Hirsh: There’s no doubt Bryson is super important to the PGA Tour from the standpoint of how many eyeballs he can draw to it that wouldn’t otherwise watch. That said, people are going to see

right through his bluff. Bryson is entertaining, no doubt, but if he’s not playing competitive golf, then some of that really goes away. What is to differentiate him from any other YouTuber? I think his viewers hold the greatest amount of leverage in his future. Maybe I’m wrong and people would continue to watch him if he stopped playing any competitive golf once his exemptions ran out. But if I’m not and he loses his command on his viewers, you’re going to see he come back to the PGA Tour with his tail tucked.

Schrock: Bryson has value to the PGA Tour. If you’re just looking at a spreadsheet of who brings in eyeballs and whose presence would translate into dollars and cents, Bryson would be in the green. But the PGA Tour is doing good without him and I don’t think he’s doing himself a lot of favors by saying the PGA Tour is struggling and complaining about the policy regulating players’ social media content creation at tournaments. It will be fascinating to see what a return would look like for Bryson, should he want to come back. He was the lead plaintiff in the antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour in 2022, which members had to pay to defend. He disparaged the PGA Tour on his way out and worked to recruit players to LIV. Basically, everything Brooks Koepka didn’t do, he did. Bryson had all the leverage in negotiations when Koepka ditched LIV. With the PIF no longer involved, he has lost that leverage and now it’s up to the PGA Tour to decide if and how he returns. Playing YouTube full-time is a good headline but, as Jack noted, eventually the exemptions run out. They don’t hand those out for breaking 50 with Steph Curry.

Dethier: They each really stand to benefit from an enthusiastic partnership. They’ll also each survive just fine without the other. There’s some risk in trying to force something that neither side fully buys in on; to Bryson’s point, he should only play the PGA Tour if he wants to and if they want him to.

I think they at least circle around the right issues.  Bryson's social media presence is a great asset, though one that the Tour inevitably will over-value.  But, as noted above, there are only two guys that matters, so those two guys will end up back on the Tour.

But the guys deal with only so far.  Bryson had the leverage when he was offered a return option, but with LIV's inevitable demise, he has far less leverage than he did back then.  Like Jack Hirsch, I think Bryson wants to be something more than Paige Spirinac, and to do so he needs to be a professional tour player.  He has a few more years of major exemptions, but he's not exactly lighting it up in the majors with LIV tourneys as prep, how do we think he'd perform with only YouTube content as prep?

That said, the interesting bit to me is whether he and Rahm will be treated differently.  I asked AI about his role in LIV v. PGA Tour, and got this synopsis:

• Role in Suit: Alongside Phil Mickelson, DeChambeau was one of the most prominent players among the original 11 golfers who sued the PGA Tour for suspending them after joining LIV Golf.
• Reason for Suing: DeChambeau stated he remained part of the suit for a time due to money he claimed the PGA Tour owed him for the Player Impact Program (PIP), calling it a matter of "principle".
• Withdrawal: In May 2023, DeChambeau and Matt Jones were the last two players to drop their names from the lawsuit, with his agent noting it was "not my fight" as the legal battle shifted to focus on the LIV Golf entity itself.

 I expect to see Bryson treated a bit more harshly than Rahm, but time will tell.

While appearing on The Rich Eisen Show last week, PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp said he’s interested in doing whatever makes the PGA Tour better when it comes to player reintegration, but “we need to balance that with the interest of our current golfers.” How does Rolapp go about improving his Tour while also not irking current members who never left in the first place?

Hirsh: Oh man! Isn’t that the million-dollar question? I don’t think there’s a scenario where the

PGA Tour product vastly improves for the fan, but the majority of Tour pros (especially guys ranked from like 75-125) aren’t irked. Personally, I’m not a fan of the proposed two-tier Tour, but I can see how that would make it easier for the casual fan. As for reintegration. I say guys who wouldn’t otherwise be exempt need to take the Patrick Reed route. Sorry, not sorry.

Schrock: When someone finds the answer to this question, let me know. I do think we’re really only talking about a handful of players and the real questions revolve around Bryson and Rahm. Feels like the second-tier bucket — the Tyrrell Hattons and Joaquin Niemanns — can take the Patrick Reed route back via the DP World Tour and most of the membership wouldn’t bat an eye. But how Rolapp constructs a punishment and way back for Bryson and Rahm, two players who have irked membership in a way Brooks Koepka didn’t, will be a fascinating tight-rope act.

Dethier: I think we’ve seen versions of these reintegration programs with Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed — but those guys returned voluntarily, while LIV was still in existence. This version is far more complex. Especially with Bryson declaring that he’ll be with LIV as long as LIV exists, and that he wants to watch out for the league’s young would-be stars and their futures, too. I don’t see a simple fix.

Schrock mostly hits it I think, though he thinks Rahm has more 'splainin' to do.  He may be right in that Rahm's timing no doubt gave LIV encouragement to go on....

Even as I acknowledge that those two guys will make it back, it's not like I miss either of them.

Anything On For Tis Week? - I'm already eyeing the exit, so please bear with me.  But at least the TC panel noticed a certain event on for this week:

The second men’s major of the year has arrived, as we head to Aronimink outside of Philadelphia for the PGA Championship. What’s your top storyline for this year’s event?

Hirsh: That more golf tournaments need to be in Philly. I’m biased, but come on, we only get a golf tournament in the Philly metro every four years (the next one on the schedule is the 2030

U.S. Open at Merion). There are dozens of outstanding tournament-quality venues within 90 minutes of the airport. Not to mention it’s the best food city in the northeast (I said what I said). I think the Philly crowds are going to show out in force this week and show everyone exactly why we need to have a regular event. I’m sure the Cobbs Creek project will be highlighted and hopefully, soon, that might be the host of a tournament in Philly.

Schrock: I feel like every PGA Championship has the same top storyline, which is: So, what’s the identity of this major? Ever since the move to May, the PGA Championship has been adrift. It’s a major, but doesn’t really have the major juice we will get at the U.S. Open, Masters or Open. It’s almost Chevron-esque in that you’re telling me it’s a major but I’m not seeing it. Going to Valhalla and Quail Hollow hasn’t helped. I’m bullish on Aronomink giving us a major feel we’ve been missing at this event but we’re still looking for an identity for the fourth major.

Dethier: Jordan Spieth hunting the career Grand Slam, fellas! [Returns to earth] Honestly, for me it’s the ongoing Scottie-Rory major hunt. To Schrock’s point, as the PGA continues to hunt for an identity, its strongest virtue is that yeah, it’s a major! These are the ones that we really keep track of. I can’t wait.

A good rule of thumb is that any city with its own school of golf architecture is likely to be a pretty good golf town....

I'm certainly relieved that Dylan's tongue was planted firmly in his cheek as he touted the Spieth Grand Slam quest.

And this inevitable query:

Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler have won four of the last five majors, with McIlroy already taking the Masters this year. Which player do you like better heading into the PGA?

Hirsh: Rory just won one. Scottie has finished second his last like bajillion events. I more likely see him defending his title than Rory getting halfway to the slam.

Schrock: Rory won at Augusta with his B- game. Scottie has been playing with his B- game for like the last two months and barely finishes outside the top five. I feel like Scottie’s floor is Sunday contention and a to -five, whereas Rory could win or bomb out early. I’ll take Scottie.

Dethier: Scottie’s the best golfer in the world and continues to play like it, so I’ll take him at an old-school major championship test over anyone. But I think Cameron Young might win, and I also think these three could end up 1-2-3 in some order, like they did at Augusta National.

Can I take a Fitzgerald brother to be named later?  And this GMTA moment:

Alex Fitzpatrick wasn’t a PGA Tour member until he teamed with his brother, World No. 4 Matthew Fitzpatrick, to win the Zurich Classic last month. But in his first two starts as a Tour member, Alex tied for 9th at the Cadillac Championship and now 4th at the Truist Championship Sunday. Has his play been the biggest surprise of 2026? If not, what has been?

Hirsh: Yeah, and I don’t think anything will top it. To go from having zero status to winning a

team event with your brother and finishing top-10 in the next two Siggies? Now he’s playing in his second major. Quite the whirlwind.

Schrock: In a year of surprises, from Brooks Koepka’s return to Rory’s second jacket and a freakin’ Gary Woodland win, I think Alex Fitzpatrick’s last month, namely how he has played post-Zurich, is the biggest surprise. I would like to throw in Brandt Snedeker winning in Myrtle Beach today, which was his first win in almost eight years and first since he had experimental surgery on his sternum. He had five top-10s in six years coming into this week!

Dethier: The biggest surprise of 2026 is what Sungjae Im did from that bunker on the weekend. Other than that, though? Yeah, I’d say the Brothers Fitzpatrick take the cake, with a nod to some epic, inspiring wins from the trio of 40-somethings (Rose, Woodland, Snedeker). Also, did you see what happened on the Euro Tour this weekend? Golf is full of glorious, unexpected surprises. Maybe another one this week.

You know what stays in my mind?  The image of Matt seeking out and congratulating the Young family after his heartbreaking loss to Cam at Sawgrass.  I'm thinking this is a family for which I am happy to root.

The Times, They Are A-Changin' -  Via longime reader and golf buddy Mark. W:

Claire Dowling has been nominated by the Past Captains of the Club and becomes the first woman to serve as Captain. Claire will begin her year in office after the traditional Driving-in

ceremony on the first tee of the Old Course on Friday 25th September 2026.

A distinguished amateur golfer, Claire represented Great Britain and Ireland in the Curtis Cup on four occasions and was part of the 1986 team which secured the first GB&I victory over the USA team on American soil with a 13-5 win at Prairie Dunes.

Born and educated in Dublin, Claire attended Dublin College of Catering and graduated from Trinity College in 1979 with a Bsc(Mgt) in Hotel and Catering Management.

Yes, Mark, we will be at Crail in August.  Will you be there for Dowling's Driving In ceremony in September?

That will have to suffice for today, as Sned's popular win will be left on the cutting room floor.  Have a great week.

Weekend Wrap - Summer of Nelly, Part II

Did you discern that my tongue was firmly in my cheek with that header?  Seeing last week's header as I hit the "Create New Post" icon, it seemed that that particular summer is ongoing.... Not that I saw any of it or intend to blog it.

Young At Heart - I didn't see a single minute of yesterday's action, though I did watch a bit of the early rounds.  I was moderately interested in how Young would hold after multiple days with big leads, especially after the series of guys (Justin, cough, Rose) showing tightened collars....  But not here, apparently.

Geoff ledes with some bullet points:

What can we take away from the PGA Tour’s vibe-free Signature snoozefest at Trump Doral? Plenty.

• Cameron Young established himself as the favorite heading into the PGA Championship after a resounding six-stroke victory at Trump Doral. The 30-year-old posted a 19-under-par 269 total to beat Scottie Scheffler by six strokes.

• Young took the Cadillac Championship wire-to-wire with less than his best par-5 play (-3) or approach precision (48/72 greens, 38’3” proximity, SG 26th).

• The city-raised reformed street gang member* led the field in birdies (24) and Strokes Gained Putting (7.062). His power off the tee remains his greatest attribute after posting a 311.7-yard, all-drives average.

• Young has been on an incredible run. His stroke play finishes since missing the cut at The Open last year: 1-5-11-T4-T9-10-T22-T41-T55-T7-T3-1-T3-T25-1

• He calls penalties…on himself. At No. 2 Sunday he was assessed a stroke penalty for a breach of Rule 9.4 (player causing ball at rest to move) and then made 13’6” putt to save par.

• Scheffler’s game is not far from his best form. The so-so first rounds and occasional off-days approaching greens popped up at Doral but in far less worrisome fashion. In his final start before the PGA at Aronimink Scheffler hit 56/72 greens with a 40’10” proximity average, finishing 6th in Strokes Gained Approach. And he seemed as miserable as ever on the course!

Like me, you might be scratching your head over that third bullet point.  Geoff is blessed with a good memory and it's an amusing click-through if you're so inclined.   Though, perhaps not if you still harbor any illusions about journalism....

And he's even got more, especially for those wondering what he thinks upon a return visit to this venue:

• Justin Rose’s new irons from McLaren Racing didn’t get off to the best start. Granted, they may not have received a fair shot after Rose hit only 29 of 56 fairways and needed a final round 68 to finish T62. But when the Tour’s leader in greens in regulation hit a fairway, the new clubs did not shine: he lost 1.311 strokes to the field, hitting 48/72 greens.

• Rory McIlroy and five other top 15 players did the right thing avoiding a hot and humid Bermudagrass test that will play nothing like Aronimink.

• As brother Matt took the week off, Alex Fitzpatrick put his Zurich Classic-enabled PGA Tour card to excellent use. A final round 67 landed Fitzpatrick a T9 finish and a $500,000 check. Yes, $500k. What a farce. But good on Alex.

• Following a bogey-free weekend and final round 64, World No. 54 Adam Scott will be inside the world top 60 status ahead of the U.S. Open’s May 18th OWGR cutoff. After playing next week’s PGA Championship, the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock would be Scott’s 100th straight major.

• It’s time for the Blue Monster moniker to decamp to Boca Vista Phase 5 and buffet dinners at 3:45 pm. Stretched to 7,739 yards with firm greens featuring a big first bounce until Sunday’s inch-of-rain, 59 of the 72 players finished under par. Half the “Monster” holes played under par. The field finished -330.

Good point there from Geoff.  Not only do the mental midgets minding the store in Ponte Vedra Beach lay in signature events the two weeks prior to the PGA Championship, but they put the guys on friggin' Bermuda.  

Of course, I was reliably informed by Mr. McIlroy himself that golf would only survive if we as fans know when Rory is going to play.  And then he refuses to show, so it's just possible that he was, yanno, lying to us.

Geoff kept himself under control in those bullets, but shall we let him fly his freak flag?

The Tour’s return to Miami was an optics disaster for the new leadership and board members who bequeathed “Signature” status on this mundane effort.

At least the event provided a signature example of what it looks like when a tournament has no legacy, no ties to the community, poorly-timed scheduling, and a bloated, unsustainable purse. The Cadillac Championship also provided a convenient reminder that no-cut, limited fields are particularly drab in a splintered, post-WGC world.

Worse, the purveyors of mundane mess managed to make LIV look good.

That dying entity drew better crowds in its April playings at Doral. LIV also had a much more impressive buildout and managed to exude atmosphere. (No, I’m not saying this needed a DJ spinning Careless Whisper remixes.)

OK, let's take a moment to enjoy that bit of schadenfreude....  I'll just add that Florida golf courses look visually awful on TV, because of the grain mostly.  I just the look of it, which is especially funny when you consider that the venues owner hated the look f Pinehurst.

Shall we allow Geoff to ramble on?   Again, rhetorical.

But this was the first event created from scratch by the PGA Tour’s newly renamed “Events” business—you know, the one that’s expected to be a driver of profit for the Strategic Sports Group. They gave us a dreary, cheap-looking product in a major market that had little interest in seeing the Tour return.

We’ve been told that this combination of the SSG wisdom and a CEO coming from the NFL was supposed to bring fresh perspectives. They would bring in beancounting-forward entities at Fenway Sports for fresh approaches to big time golf. This one looked more like a nightmarish hybrid of John Henry’s 2026 Red Sox and Steve Cohen’s dismal Mets. Other than CBS’s continuing to push innovation on the telecast front, there were no signs of a fresh approach. Throw in brilliantly scheduling the Cadillac Championship on the same weekend when F1 was in Miami, sprinkle on some lack of appreciation for what makes a market or golf tournament click, and the frugal-looking presentation hardly gave the Tour’s new owners “brand equity”. Or whatever nonsense will get Blankie his 11% return.

Thought: maybe instead of hitting the majors up for money, the Tour should ask for advice on how to put on a tournament? Just one idea.

Still, it was astounding to see how few people bought tickets the first three days. For those old enough to remember what it looks like when people attend a tournament at Doral, I can confirm it used to be a festive, fun event to watch when kicking off the Florida swing.

In May, when it’s 90 degrees and $90 to get in before fees and exhaustive security searches, it’s a wonder they drew anyone at all. Throw in the Trump factor as he polls in Jimmy Carter territory, and the event needed a creative approach to compensate for various constraints. But at least that massive charitable contribution will…

Props to Geoff for the linkage to the Red Sox and Mets' fortunes....  He is spot-on about the lifelessness of the Tour these days, which I assume means that they'll have to figure out a means to get more money into Patrick Cantlay's pockets.

Life In The Time of LIV -  In the moment of that D-Day announcement back in 2023, someone suggested a wellness check on Brandell Chamblee.... I'm awaiting proof of life on Phil.

I'll not stint in my enjoyment of their failure, though it would be far more pleasing had the PGA Tour not been turned into LIV-lite.  But it's all the Tour Confidential panel wants to chew upon this morning:

In a press release Thursday, LIV Golf announced new board members as it transitions from “a foundational launch phase to a diversified, multi-partner investment model.” Hours

later, its bankroller, the Saudi PIF, released its own statement saying the “PIF has made the decision to fund LIV Golf only for the remainder of the 2026 season. The substantial investment required by LIV Golf over a longer term is no longer consistent with the current phase of PIF’s investment strategy.” Now that you’ve had a few days to digest this bombshell — and after a rollercoaster April for LIV Golf — what thought has lingered with you?

Josh Sens: That for all the tumult, not much changed, aside from some players getting a whole lot richer. I suppose you could say LIV’s birth shook the Tour out of its complacency, which led to (ongoing) schedule changes and even fatter purses for already extravagantly paid golfers. Beyond that, though, what? Is there now an insatiable demand for team golf? There is not. Is professional golf itself a better product now for fans? I don’t see a ton of evidence of that.

Josh Schrock: I think Sens pretty much nailed it. What will stick with me long after LIV either morphs into something else or goes away entirely is that money couldn’t buy the parts of professional golf that actually resonate with fans: the tradition, the history and the meaning of the results. Billions of dollars can do a lot, but they can’t speed up time. It takes decades for sports leagues to resonate with fans and to develop a connection. LIV Golf was never going to be able to achieve that goal in a short time frame. As our Michael Bamberger wrote, LIV Golf changed the PGA Tour, but not for the better. And I feel like a reckoning is coming now that the Tour’s great opponent is teetering.

James Colgan: Good points, gents. My lingering thought was this: We never heard the “don” of LIV Golf, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, say a single word. However golf history remembers LIV’s most powerful Saudi benefactor, it will NOT remember him for saying a single word about the sport. “His Excellency” left golf as he entered it: Without a peep.

Exactly.  They didn't improve or change golf, they merely hurt the place they left.  Oh, large checks were cashed, which was in fact the entire point.

I'm just saddened that His Excellency wasn't granted the Augusta National membership that may have been what this was all about.  But to all the folks who said the Saudis could fund this as long as they wanted...... Isn't funny how you can be correct and still not get it.  

At Trump Doral for this week’s Cadillac Championship, several players were asked if LIV members should be welcomed back to the PGA Tour, and what types of penalties they should face. If you werePGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp, how would you handle players’ reintegration? Is it different for everyone? Would you not allow certain players at all?

Sens: Open a pathway for guys to play their way back on, with a point system that has some kind of reward for past performance. So that maybe the likes of Bryson and Rahm and Smith can compete in regular Tour events but not elevated events, which they’d still have to play their way into. The less relevant LIV guys would probably just retire rather than face that grind. And the younger guys would be left to try to earn their cards, which is what they’d probably be doing anyway.

Schrock: It’s going to have to be a case-by-case basis. As Rolapp and Jordan Spieth have noted, the PGA Tour extended an offer to Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith earlier this year and it wasn’t accepted. The next deal shouldn’t be as forgiving. Both Spieth and Rolapp also subtly mentioned the lawsuit that DeChambeau was a key plaintiff in after LIV launched in 2022. That’s a lawsuit that PGA Tour players had to pay to defend, and the road back for those who signed on to sue the Tour should be harsher than those who went to LIV quietly, like Brooks Koepka, and didn’t rock the boat. Rahm will be the interesting case. His exodus came at a time when LIV was floundering, and it gave the rebel league juice and calcified the two sides’ stances in golf’s civil conflict. That rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. I’m not sure there’s an easy way to bring either of the big names back without upsetting a big portion of Tour membership, but the Tour would certainly benefit economically from reintegrating them quickly. As for the rest of LIV’s roster, some who resigned their membership, like Patrick Reed, can try to play their way back via the DP World Tour or KFT. Many will disappear with their millions and not even knock on the door at the global home. In all honesty, we’re probably talking about 15-20 players in total that decisions need to be made on.

Colgan: I’d give Bryson a path back. His presence would single-handedly change the PGA Tour’s economics, and he’s probably the only LIV player for whom that is true (Jon Rahm probably deserves consideration here as well). Everyone else would be subject to a lengthy (and expensive) return process through the Tour’s strategic partners at the DP World Tour and the KFT, or a short-term retirement.

There's a few points that I'd like to make here.  The first is that I'm struggling to identify anyone beyond Bryson and Rahm that's even worthy of discussion at this point.  I'll concede that Bryson has created a following, one that the geriatric PGA Tour can't help but overvalue, but does anyone think Rahm moves the needle?

I will confess that Rahm is that quintessential guy that can't read the room.  he jumps thinking naively that he's so important that they'll have to cut a deal....  How did you enjoy your years in the isolation tank, Jon?  How has it helped you prepare for the majors?  And now?  he picks this time to hold out and go to war with the DP World Tour, just as LIV is vaporizing....  I guess he wants to ensure that he has absolutely nowhere to play in 2027.  Which, quite frankly, works for me.  He was arguing about having to play six of their events instead of four, so I'm totally cool with him playing in none.

But maybe the best reflection is how those three guys will regret not taking the Tour's offered deal.  None as much as Cam Smith, who by the evidence couldn't qualify right now for the championship bracket of your club championship.

Even if LIV Golf receives alternative funding, with the substantial PIF coffers no longer

available, does this end any sort of competition that was remaining with the PGA Tour?

Sens: I think so. If LIV taught us anything, it’s that the world does not need more professional
golf. At least not for the money these guys think they deserve to be making. Ironically, the Tour’s real competition for eyeballs these days doesn’t come from LIV. It comes from a bunch of YouTube bros producing their own content.

Schrock: Yes. Without the $30 million purses and signing bonuses, LIV will cease to be any sort of threat to the PGA Tour. It sounds like it’s close to a wrap, barring an unforeseen bailout.

Colgan: No fat lady is singing. Yet. But it sounds like she’s warming up.

I confess that I didn't think the PGA Tour was financeable, but LIV?  Surely you jest

What’s the best-case scenario for LIV Golf going forward?

Sens: Maybe pivot to crypto?

Schrock: Try to merge with the DP World Tour. LIV can slink along with limited funds, but there will almost certainly be a talent exodus once the money dries up.

Colgan: I think there’s a vision that could exist with significantly smaller purses at LIV’s previously successful golf-crazy venues (Korea, Australia, South Africa). The problem LIV is going to run into is that every sports league needs significant TV revenue to survive, and they’re not anywhere close to that right now.

I don't know, what does McKinsey say?  Have you stopped laughing yet?

With the benefit of hindsight, they should have tried to do a deal with the Euro Tour or, even better, the LPGA.  But McKinsey assured them world domination was their birthright, so what could go wrong?

Dis and Dat - Just a couple of minor bits to get me out of here.  The TC panel reference above could only spare this silly question about the week's play:

Sunday’s golf slate featured two blowouts, as Nelly Korda won by four in Mexico and Cameron Young won by six in Florida. Both have had fantastic starts to 2026, but which one are you taking as most likely to continue this success through the summer?

Sens: I think they’ll both keep rolling, but Young’s summer is going to stand out just a bit more boldly when he wins his first major at Shinnecock.

Schrock: It’s Korda for multiple reasons. The first is that she’s the unquestioned best player on her tour. Young has been fantastic but has to deal with Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and the blistering hot Matt Fitzpatrick. Korda changed her mentality after a winless 2025 and has been relentless to start this season. The only thing that can hold her back is a balky putter, but her new putting coach seems to have at least made that a net neutral. I expect her to win at least one more major this year and wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a three-major 2026 for Nelly.

Colgan: Cam! He’s a no-doubt top-5 player in the world right now, and a maiden voyage PGA Championship at Philly looms.

Cam has no doubt found his footing, but nelly can beat those girls in her sleep.  At least when she stays out of her own way.

I'm forever leaving browser tabs open, but do you agree I can dispense with this one?

Luke Donald is back as Euro Ryder Cup captain. What about Tiger Woods?

His Greta Garbo act in 2025 seems to have moved the needle, as many more folks now agree that he's the GOAT of dicks.

I'm not going to dive in too deeply, but there is something really odd in play with the R&A's site selection process:

Royal Lytham & St Annes To Host 2028 Open

The 11-time site returns, ending speculation that Trump Turnberry or Muirfield would land the next available open date.

Really?  Wee Lytham?

Not too many years ago, it was unclear if Lytham would ever return to rota hosting status after the 2012 edition won by Ernie Els. With most of the contenders hitting irons off tees to avoid Lytham’s 206-or-so bunkers, the links looked outdated by a modern game just beginning to welcome golfers who could walk without assistance, occasionally eat something green, and even dare to lift a weight. Els lifted the second Claret Jug of his celebrated career that week by edging out Adam Scott.

Turnberry hasn't hosted since 2009 and Muirfield since 2013, so the plot thickens.  Will we ever see Muirfield again?

That will have to suffice for today.  Have a great week.