Rory McIlroy told by former PGA Tour winner: I respect you but you're wrong about Brooks Koepka

Brandel Chamblee says he disagrees with Rory McIlroy over his stance on allowing Brooks Koepka to return to the PGA Tour without consequence. 

LIV Golf announced in December that Koepka won't be back for the 2026 season.

Koepka still had 12 months remaining on his reported $100m contract but was allowed to leave to "prioritise the needs" of his family. 

Speculation is mounting over whether or not the 36-year-old American will be permitted to return to the PGA Tour at some point this season.

McIlroy, once one of LIV's harshest critics, told The Overlap earlier in the month he has no issue with Koepka, or any LIV player, returning. 

As far as the reigning Masters champion is concerned, LIV players have "paid their consequences" in terms of the damage to their reputations. 

But McIlroy acknowledged it may be legally tricky for Koepka to walk back through the door without any punishment whatsoever. 

Chamblee told his podcast, The Favourite Chamblee, that he appreciated McIlroy's comments. 

But he disagrees completely. 

"I think he's well-informed and a very smart guy," Chamblee said of McIlroy. 

"I would just say that institutions that forget about the cost of disruption invite repetition, and so for that reason I think the PGA Tour needs to be careful about setting a precedent here.

"To allow Brooks to come back with no consequence, I think, would undermine the meritocratic foundations that are the one thing that makes the PGA Tour legitimate. It's not about retributions. It's about setting a precedent.

"Institutions protect themselves by having rules that apply even to elite players—especially to elite players. 

"And the PGA Tour is not just a showcase for great talent. It's an institution, and they function only if commitment has meaning, contracts have meaning, defection has consequences, and loyalty is not optional for elite players.

"If they allow Brooks to come back after leaving and causing or contributing to the disruption of the game and normalising defection to LIV, the message will be clear that the rules only apply to the expendable and not to the exceptional—and I think that's corrosive."

Chamblee acknowledged the majority of golf fans want to see the best players compete against each other. 

"But you can't forget about what they did and the consequences of their actions," he said. "They hurt the PGA Tour. They hurt the ecosystem of the game.

"If you let them come back without any consequence, then you've privileged those who defected over those who stayed—and again, that's not right. The damage they did was systemic; it was not symbolic.

"They caused a lot of damage to the professional game. They weakened fields, undermined the meaning of competition, triggered legal warfare, made historically long sponsorship deals unstable, and brought about the disruption of the whole professional game. 

"They changed the structure of the professional game.

"People say, well, PGA Tour players make more money now because of that. I'm like, well, they do—but who's to say the net consequences ten years down the line, twenty years down the line, won’t be that they destroy the professional game that we all know and love?

"The game is based as much on philanthropy as it is on profit. 

"If it becomes disproportionately about profit instead of philanthropy, it will become more about selection than earning your way on the PGA Tour. From what I can tell, the PGA Tour has become a little bit more like LIV.

"It's become more about smaller elite fields, and when you do that, you guarantee less competitive fields. The game becomes more about selection than earned status.

"So yeah, I couldn't disagree more with what Rory said. I couldn't disagree more with those who think that Brooks should be able to come back without some consequence.

"It's great if he does want to come back—I think that's good. It's the best legitimate tour in the world. But he was a key legitimiser of LIV. He wasn't just an innocent bystander. So that's my two cents."

"I don't think they're going to quit"

McIlroy also cast doubt on the future of LIV Golf as he believes it "hasn't really resonated with people". 

He acknowledged there were some good elements to LIV, but suggested their financiers may walk away given the reported lack of a ROI. 

"I've watched a little bit of it and it's just not - maybe I'm too much of a traditionalist to get it but it just doesn't seem to have anything," said McIlroy.

"They were coming into the game saying 'we're gonna be different, we're gonna be this, we're gonna be that.' 

"Even the fact that they've now switched from 54 holes to 72 holes to get world ranking points so it's like you're just doing what everyone else is doing."

Chamblee said LIV's expenditure so far, reportedly north of $5bn according to the Money In Sport newsletter, is a drop in the ocean. 

He said: "Most men, when they’re getting married, think about what they’re going to spend on an engagement ring, and they’re not averse to spending a month’s salary on it. A month’s salary.

"Well, the Saudis haven't even spent a week’s salary on LIV. Collectively, over the years, this is nothing to them.

"LIV has never been about maximising profit. It has never been about that. It is about the rehabilitation of their reputation. And it hasn’t worked at all from that standpoint.

"But do I think they’re going to quit trying to rehabilitate their reputation? No. I don't think they’re going to quit. I don’t think they're going to give up on it.

Laughable to give LIV OWGR points

LIV Golf applied for Official World Golf Ranking points during its inaugural campaign four years ago. 

They were ultimately rejected by the sports global rankings body, but it appears recent changes to the format and structure may ultimately pave the way for a major breakthrough. 

OWGR chairman Trevor Immelman recently said no decision had been made but insisted productive talks were being held. 

Chamblee believes it is "laughable" to even consider LIV to receiving OWGR accreditation. 

"They're not even close to warranting world ranking points," he said. 

"Why? Because the very nature of that tour is not about earned status. It's about invitation.

"That's not what sport is. Everybody who watches sport—whether they articulate it or not—understands that, and it's communicated by the apathetic response to LIV.

"Things based on invitation and not earned status are exhibitions, not competitions. LIV is not a competition. LIV is an exhibition. It has no business getting world ranking points. Zero.

"Expanding to 72 holes is like trying to stuff one hole in a boat that has a thousand holes and is sinking—it matters not. 

"They would have to completely undermine and change the whole structure of LIV, including implementing a qualifying process to gain status.

"None of the players earned their way onto that tour. There's no reasonable relegation, no reasonable elevation. 

"They play team events while playing individual events. Everyone tees off at the same time, so there’s no rising sustained pressure throughout the day. The leaders don’t finish last.

"It's laughable."