Rory McIlroy knows Bryson DeChambeau, with limited options post-LIV Golf, would bring 'eyeballs' to DP World Tour
· Yahoo Sports
While he may not be the biggest fan, Rory McIlroy knows Bryson DeChambeau would be a significant boost for the DP World Tour next season.
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And, after LIV Golf's collapse, it may be DeChambeau's only option.
"I think a name like Bryson DeChambeau and everything he brings with him, good and bad, he brings eyeballs, which is a good thing for tournaments," McIlroy said on Tuesday ahead of the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
"And honestly, look, I'm certainly not in his shoes, and nor would I ever want to be, but it doesn't seem like he's got many options. If he wants to play competitive golf, it doesn't seem like he's got many options."
DeChambeau had been all-in on "LIV 2.0" in recent weeks, and even said on a podcast last month that he thought the new version of the league made "full financial sense" and could exist "forever."
But last week, LIV Golf officially moved to shut down after losing a funding plan from BC Partners. The league, which once caused so much chaos in the golf world, had been struggling to find a path forward after Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund announced earlier this year that it would stop funding it.
DeChambeau has several paths forward, depending on what he wants to do. He announced on Sunday that he will play in the Nedbank Golf Challenge in South Africa in December, but didn't reveal plans beyond that.
The DP World Tour has offered DeChambeau full status with its league in 2027, if he wants it. But DeChambeau has to commit by next week. If he goes that route, DeChambeau could spend the year in Europe while earning his PGA Tour card back, something Patrick Reed has been doing all season. Other former LIV Golf members, like Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, are planning to do that in 2027.
Or, DeChambeau could try to strike a deal with the PGA Tour to return early. Brooks Koepka received a deal in January through the "Returning Member's Program," but it cost him an estimated $85 million in earnings. It's unclear if that'll be offered again, or what it would look like.
DeChambeau has also said he could just keep doing his own thing and playing the major championships while growing his YouTube channel. That path wouldn't be sustainable long term, unless he keeps winning majors and earning exemptions into those tournaments.
Regardless, DeChambeau will have to make a decision here soon.
"I don't really get any satisfaction from making a decision and watching the other guys have to sit out a year and have the repercussions of that," Reed said on Tuesday in Dubai. "The more satisfaction is going out there and playing solid golf. You never want to see guys struggle or have to sit out, things like that. I mean, we're all competitors. We're all athletes and really, at the end of the day, a lot of those guys that are going through that are good friends of mine.
"You sit there, and you just hope that they are able to come out and do what I did: Come out and play solid golf and come out on the PGA Tour."