Bryson DeChambeau: "I do feel bad for the PGA Tour players"
LIV Golf's Bryson DeChambeau said he feels "bad" for PGA Tour players amid Tuesday's bombshell merger news.
Bryson DeChambeau says he feels "bad" for PGA Tour players amid the news of an agreement between the Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) that finances LIV Golf.
DeChambeau, 29, was one of the first star PGA Tour players to make the jump to the rival circuit. He made his debut at the league's second event, in Portland.
The 2020 US Open champion also captains one of 12 LIV Golf teams and was once a part of a lawsuit that included a bunch of LIV Golf players against the PGA Tour.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, however, it was announced that the PGA Tour would be joining forces with the Saudi PIF to "unify the game of golf, on a global basis."
The announcement said that the agreement will combine the PIF's golf-related commercial businesses and rights with the commercial businesses and rights of both the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour.
That includes LIV Golf, which is financially backed by the PIF.
The announcement also said that following the agreement, any current litigation between the two parties will come to an end.
As the news shocked the golf world, DeChambeau went on CNN and spoke about the bombshell announcement.
"I do feel bad for the PGA Tour players because they were told one thing and something else happened, and our side, we were told one thing and it's come to fruition," he said.
He added:
DeChambeau also defended the PIF governor, Yasir Al-Rumayyan.
"What I can tell you is that ... Yasir has always been a staunch supporter of golf globally, and wanting to grow the game," said DeChambeau. "That's been his vision from the start, when we first started talking a few years ago. As it's come to fruition now, I think this is the best thing that could ever happen to the game of golf."
He was also asked about Saudi Arabia's human rights record, to which he said:
"I mean look, it's unfortunate what has happened but that is not something I can speak on because I'm a golfer."
Here's a clip from DeChambeau's CNN interview:
My gosh there’s a lot here. Impossible to summarize all the batshit crazy in this interview. Just spend 5 minutes watching it.
— Tron Carter (@TronCarterNLU) June 7, 2023
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