Brandel Chamblee takes (yet another) huge swipe at LIV Golf

Since LIV Golf first emerged a little over two years ago, Brandel Chamblee has been amongst its most vocal – and consistent – critics.

That position shows no sign of changing any time soon.

Former PGA Tour winner turned Golf Channel analyst Chamblee took to X (formerly Twitter) this evening to share what he believes is evidence that the Saudi-funded league has been “detrimental” to the competitiveness of its star players.

A total of 27 different LIV players contested the men’s major championships this year, making a combined 60 appearances.

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Collectively, they managed six top-ten finishes – three of those by Bryson DeChambeau – and finished out the top-40 a total of 41 times and missed 21 cuts.

“With the exception of DeChambeau,” wrote Chamblee, “not one LIV player managed a top-five in a major in 2024.

“Bryson is without a doubt one of the most compelling figures in the game and his newfound engagement with the fans was a highlight of the major season but on the whole LIV players were a huge disappointment in the 2024 majors.”

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He added: “It is a relatively small sample size given LIV has been playing for less than three years, but it’s safe to say that LIV golf has been detrimental to the competitiveness of their careers when they compete at the highest level.

“To be sure, several of their players are missed from the upper echelons of the game from a spectacle standpoint but there is very little evidence that events are substantially compromised competitively by their absence.

“Or, for that matter, that the world rankings are very far askew given the fall-off of almost all of the LIV players’ games.”

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Responding to a follower’s suggestion he analyse the players’ bank accounts, Chamblee doubled-down.

“Those are substantial, although few contracts were what’s been reported from the sounds of it,” he added.

“But when one looks at the after tax dollars and the cut their managers all got, and the fact that they lost their autonomy as players (note, none of them could properly prepare for links golf the week before the Open because they had to play a LIV event in Spain) and the money that most or all lost in endorsements upon signing, and the buzz of playing at the highest level week in and week out, perhaps not as substantial all in.”

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