PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp faces challenges in reintegrating players from LIV Golf as the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund withdraws support after 2026. The return of players like Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm may prove more complex due to past conflicts.
Mentioned in this story
Brian Rolapp might soon have to answer a big question about professional golf's futureGetty Images
Brian Rolapp welcomed back Brooks Koepka to the PGA Tour in January. A few weeks later, the PGA Tour gave Patrick Reed a different path back from LIV Golf.
Rolapp, the PGA Tour CEO who has been on the job for less than a year, opened the door for two defectors to walk back to their old tour after doling out a harsh financial penalty to Koepka and a one-year suspension to Reed. Welcoming back Koepka, who didnât burn any bridges when he left for LIV, and asking Reed to play his way back via the DP World Tour â a feat Reed quickly accomplished â was an easy sell for a new CEO to his membership. The next one might be more difficult.
With the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund officially withdrawing its financial backing of LIV Golf after the 2026 season, questions about how Rolapp will handle the potential reintegration of players like Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm have understandably started to swirl. Where Koepka didnât ruffle any feathers on his way out, DeChambeau was the lead plaintiff in an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour, while Rahmâs 2023 exit brought the slow-moving unification process to a virtual halt. Those two might be harder sells for Rolapp should he have to make them. But that day hasnât arrived yet.
On Friday, Rolapp went on The Rich Eisen Show and admitted that the PGA Tour has had talks with some players who are trying to get a sense of what the future might hold.
âI think itâs natural that thereâs a lot of people trying to figure out what their future might look like,â Rolapp said. But overall, the PGA Tour is not focused on what a road back for LIV players would look like if the league folds. Not yet.
âThe good news is we donât have to [balance managementâs wants vs. membershipâs desires right now],â Rolapp said. âI know what you know. I know what I read. I know what I see. LIV has talked about having funding until the end of their season. I think they are working hard to figure out what life is after that. The reality is all of their guys are under contract. Until they are not under contract, itâs not really an issue we need to worry about. So weâre not really spending time a lot of time thinking about it honestly. Weâre spending most of our time talking about our future and how we make the Tour better.â
Brian Rolapp may struggle to reintegrate players like Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm due to their contentious exits and past conflicts with the PGA Tour.
The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund officially announced it would withdraw its financial backing of LIV Golf after the 2026 season.
Brooks Koepka faced a financial penalty, while Patrick Reed received a one-year suspension before being allowed to return to the PGA Tour.
Under Brian Rolapp, the PGA Tour has shown a willingness to welcome back former players like Koepka and Reed, but future reintegration of others may be more complicated.
Don't miss The Inner Circle on May 15 with a heavyweight title rematch and more!
See every story in Sports â including breaking news and analysis.
Ever since he took over, Rolapp has been consistent in his belief that he wants to do whatâs best for the PGA Tour. But he acknowledges that while he isnât scarred from golfâs great fracturing, many of his members are. Thatâs something he has to take into account should LIV fold and players seek a way back.
âThereâs a reality that we have a membership,â Rolapp told Eisen. âAnything we do to make the PGA Tour better, we need to balance that with the interest of our current golfers.â
This week at LIV Virginia, Rahm noted that he doesnât see a way out of his contract with LIV and that it isnât currently at the forefront of his mind as the rebel league tries to secure funding for life beyond 2026. DeChambeau spoke with several outlets, including ESPN and Sports Illustrated, and admitted his team has spoken to the PGA Tour, but he wouldnât divulge the nature of those conversations. The two-time U.S. Open champion said that he has a plan should a path back to the PGA Tour not work out.
âI think, from my perspective, Iâd love to grow my YouTube channel three times, maybe even more,â DeChambeau said. His YouTube channel has 2.7 million subscribers. âI would love to. Iâd love to do a bunch of dubbing in different languages, giving the world more reason to watch YouTube. And then Iâd love to play tournaments that want me.â
DeChambeau, whose contract with LIV ends after 2026, later told Skratch that he knows a potential path back to the PGA Tour will only materialize if the membership gives it the OK.
âI think thereâs a way to solve any problem. Itâs really about if the membership wants me back and if they just want me back. Thatâs what itâs about,â DeChambeau told Skratch. âI donât even think itâs [PGA Tour CEO] Brian Rolapp or anybody like one of the top executives, itâs really if the players want me back and if not, then I understand that.â
DeChambeau also told Skratch that the PGA Tourâs policy governing playersâ creation of social media content at tournaments was one of the biggest issues preventing his Tour comeback. While that policy reportedly is being tweaked, itâs clear that DeChambeauâs interests and the PGA Tourâs might not align.
Jon Rahm of Legion XIII celebrates with CEO of LIV Golf, Scott O'Neil after winning the final round of LIV Golf Mexico City at Club de Golf Chapultepec
For Rolapp, his job is to put together the best Tour â one that includes the worldâs best golfers who are committed to the vision and plan he and the PGA Tour are putting together as they begin their for-profit era. What that vision looks like wonât be for everyone.
âThe PGA Tour may not be for everybody,â Rolapp told Eisen, speaking broadly about hypothetically reintegrating LIV players. âWhat we are building, Iâm really excited about, our members are excited about, our fans are excited about. It may not excite some people. ⊠We ultimately want people who are really excited about what we are building. I think, over time, weâll just see how that plays out.â
While LIVâs future and the future of its players are up in the air, what is clear is that the Returning Members Program that was offered to Koepka â the one that DeChambeau, Rahm and Cam Smith turned down â isnât coming back. That door is closed. The path Reed took back via the DP World Tour could be open for players who, like Reed, resigned their membership on the way out and didnât break any PGA Tour regulations. For others who did not, theyâll be at the mercy of Rolapp and the membership. Whether or not they choose to open additional doors in the future will be decided when the time comes.
âWe were clear that when it comes to the [Returning Member Program], that was a particular program for that specific time that has gone away,â Rolapp said. âWeâll react when we have to react, depending on the circumstances. For us, itâs business as usual until the dust settles.â
The post For potential LIV returnees, PGA Tour CEO doesnât yet have answers appeared first on Golf.