LIV Golf continues to chase the biggest names in the sport, but newly crowned PGA Championship winner Xander Schauffele is apparently not interested.
After winning his first major over the weekend in record fashion, Schauffele’s father told Dylan Dethier of Golf.com that winning a major and the exemptions that come with it are not a sign that Schauffele is considering a jump to the rival Saudi-backed golf league.
Xander Schauffele of Team USA, left, hits balls on the practice range as his father Stefan Schauffele looks on following the third round of Mens Individual Stroke Play Golf on day eight of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on the East Course at Kasumigaseki Country Club on July 31, 2021 in Kawagoe, Saitama, Japan. (Keyur Khamar/PGA TOUR via Getty Images)
In fact, Stefan Schauffele said there is “no chance” his son will abandon the PGA Tour.
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“The opposite would probably be closer to the truth,” he told the outlet. “No chance. Xander is not chasing the money. Xander is about legacy. And as my opinion — just as his father — there was never a chance.”
“What we told LIV in Saudi Arabia, with Xander beside me, was that if there is no path back to the PGA Tour and if there is no chance at World Ranking points we do not have anything to talk about. Even if you throw hundreds of millions of dollars at him. That word still stands.”
Stefan Schauffele, dad of Xander Schauffele of the United States, walks the fourth hole during the third round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions at the Plantation Course at Kapalua Golf Club on Jan. 8, 2022 in Lahaina, Hawaii. (Cliff Hawkins/Getty Images)
One of the biggest issues currently plaguing LIV is the failure to receive world ranking accreditation through its tournaments. LIV first filed with the Official World Golf Ranking board in July 2022, but the bid was rejected in October.
Commissioner and CEO Greg Norman abandoned that effort shortly after, which led him to publicly question the “accuracy, credibility, and integrity of the OWGR rankings” system.
Thanks to exemptions, LIV continues to be represented at the majors.
Bryson DeChambeau, who won the U.S. Open in 2020, was the biggest threat over the weekend. He finished second, just a shot behind Schauffele.
“I gave it my all,” DeChambeau said. “I put as much effort as I possibly could into it and I knew that my ‘B’ game would be enough. It’s just clearly somebody (else) played incredibly well.”
Of the 16 LIV players to compete at Valhalla, three finished in the top 30.
Xander Schauffele of the United States lines up a putt on the seventh green during the first round of the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club on May 16, 2024 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)
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Schauffele’s winning score at the PGA Championship put him in the record books with the lowest score in the 132 years that majors have been played over 72 holes.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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