Does the PGA Tour need Bryson DeChambeau more than he needs the Tour?

Each week, we ask our panel of writers, PGA members and golf industry experts to weigh in with their views on the hot topics of the day.

The PGA Championship goes this week at Aronimink Golf Club, outside Philadelphia. Over the years, this major has struggled to find an identity and is usually regarded as the fourth major. Suggestions on how to improve it have ranged from returning to match play as it was prior to 1958, eliminating the club pros who make up about 15% of the field and changing dates. What are your thoughts on the PGA Championship and how it could be improved, if in fact you believe it needs changes?

Jim Deeks, Fairways Magazine (@jimdeeks): I’d be in favour of returning to match play – or at least, a hybrid of 36 holes medal, leaving the top 4 in match play (ties for top 4 resolved by sudden death). Huge tension through all rounds.  But the TV networks would hate it, so it won’t happen.  Otherwise, not sure any other solution would work.

Michael Schurman, Master Professional / Hall of Fame Member, PGA of Canada: The PGA Championship struggles because it is up against romance. Everybody loves the Masters! There is a fan club for the Masters made-up of non-golfers, golfers, horticulturists, arborists, photographers and people who admire the southern style of gentleness. The Open can be played on any one of 100 courses in the UK. Whereas the Masters MUST be played at Augusta National. The course is a major part of the lore. The Open is founded on history, inconsistent weather, a truly ‘open’ field and the thought of Young Tom and Old Tom itching for the next champion to join them in heaven for a wee match. The US Open is not unlike The Open in many ways, but it is a ‘national’ championship. Next is the Players’ Championship that also holds many of the same values. Unfortunately, early organizers dreamt of major status too soon and tried to force the recognition by date changes and challenges from other venues like Bay Hill and Muirfield. The PGA is falling into the same trap by date-testing which shows a lack of confidence. I agree with the new date, but it will take time before the event can compete with the top three. Further, the PGA TOUR is studying a shorter season and more Signature events. It will become increasingly more difficult for any tournament to gain unique status; in fact, the top three are distancing themselves.

TJ Rule, Golf Away Tours (@GolfAwayTJ):  I think the change to earlier in the year was a good one because as “Glory’s last shot”, it was lost in the shuffle.  It will always be the 4th of the 4 majors but putting it earlier in the year provides some excitement as it’s leading up to the bigger ones.  I like the idea of having club pros play but maybe 15% is a bit too high.  It’s still regarded as a very good field, especially compared to the Masters, so it has that going for it.  I don’t like the idea of match play because the tv viewing for a final match is terrible.  Perhaps they can set it up at a great course that can host it annually, as that seems to help the Players Championship and its popularity.

Hal Quinn, Freelance Writer, Vancouver: Never a fan of his unwatchable and seemingly interminable pre-shot routine, or his Cup captaincy, but must concede that Keegan Bradley uttered something this week that rang true. As the son of the PGA pro he’s prejudiced, still he made sense when he said the PGA sets up its tourney with ” no agenda.” Unlike the USGA, he pointed out, the PGA doesn’t contort painfully to make its Open the toughest. Bradley’s right that the PGA tries to set up a good event whether the winning score is -3 or -20. And that’s entertainment for the gallery and TV viewers. So is cheering on the club pros. There have been enough knee-jerk moves in golf lately, let the PGA do its thing.

Peter Mumford, Fairways Magazine: Each of the other majors has a clear identity. The PGA Championship has history going for it but otherwise it’s tough to distinguish it from the Siggies. They all have the top players, top courses and a huge purse. I’ve often thought the PGA of America should get together with the PGA Associations around the world and periodically move the tournament to international sites. That would certainly make it distinct.

What’s your favourite storyline around this year’s PGA Championship?

Deeks: So many good young players emerging.  Will one of them surge to the top, or will it be Scottie, Rory, Bryson and Brooks on the LB on Sunday afternoon?

Schurman: As much as I’m not a fan, Spieth has a chance to capture the Lifetime Grand Slam, again. Currently, he is driving the ball better than he ever has. Aronimink is very generous off the tee and the greens are huge. However, the landing zones are much like Augusta, quite friendly but very difficult to position to attack the flag. The greens are built in quadrants with each section divided by ‘spines’. If a player fails to acquire the correct location off the tee, pins will become harder to attack. This should suit Spieth IF he can putt like he used to.

Rule: I think it’s the golf course.  I am always excited to watch the pros play Donald Ross courses, even if they’ve been significantly lengthened since the Scot’s original design to account for the length of today’s game.  I hope they set it up relatively tough so there isn’t anyone challenging the course record of 62 but sadly I think that’s in danger this year.

Quinn: It’s great that there are so many terrific young players, including Cam. Don’t think it will a Daly-like thunderbolt because we’ve gotten to know these guys over the past few months/years and so it wouldn’t be shocking if any one of them got their first Major. Of course, Speith going for the Grand Slam is a recurring storyline. He seems to be sorting things out. It would be a great story but really doesn’t look like it’s in the script.

Mumford: I’m all for a Spieth Grand Slam moment. Or a veteran resurgence. Think Adam Scott or Justin Rose. Or an epic international battle of titans. Think Scheffler and DeChambeau slugging it out against McIlroy and Rahm. Or the crowning of a well-deserved new major winner like Tommy Fleetwood or Cam Young. Just not another Shaun Micheel or Rich Beem or Jimmy Walker. Nice for them but for me it seems like those PGA Championships were a swing and a miss.

By some reports, Bryson DeChambeau is the most popular golfer in the world. His contract with LIV Golf is up after this year and the future of LIV Golf is in doubt. DeChambeau has indicated that he could just become a YouTube golfer and play in the majors as long as he’s qualified. Bryson rejected an earlier offer to return to the PGA Tour – the same offer that Brooks Koepka took – so his future after this season is up in the air. How important is it to have Bryson back on the PGA Tour?

Deeks: If you took American fan support out of the equation, I doubt BDC would be in the top 10 in popularity. Nonetheless, I’m in the “less I see of the guy, the better” camp, in spite of his transformation into Chatty Cathy.  So, if he disappears to YouTube, fine.  I do concede that he’s interesting to watch.  But if he bails, I’m sure the Tour will survive.

Schurman: Lots of people want Bryson on the PGA TOUR. I don’t care one way or the other. He employed the concept of ‘uni-length’ irons and basically allowed himself credit for creating it. The idea was taken from the way Moe Norman gripped his clubs. I totally dislike the style of today’s game which Bryson has advanced. I felt a certain smugness when he was paid huge amounts by L1V. I support his freedom to choose tours but there is a level of civility, almost a humility or humbleness that is appreciated by others when that kind of windfall occurs. For all his bluster about distance, he isn’t the longest on Tour. However, he is great with kids and charities.

Rule: He brings eyeballs and is a storyline every week, so even though he’s not the most liked golfer, he would be good for the Tour and its popularity.  He allegedly makes millions a year on his YouTube channel so if he increases his presence there, he can make more money than playing on Tour and have fun doing it.  He just may lose his eligibility for the majors and not have a spot to tip it up at all in a couple of years.  So I think he needs to get back to the Tour one way or another, that’s best for all parties involved.

Quinn: His “popularity” ranking must be based on the ‘likes’ he gets from hitting balls over houses, guessing the ‘likes’ come from the same mouth-breathers that shout “Go in the hole” after tee shots on par 5s. As de Chambeau (as he should spell it) conceded recently, it’s up to the Tour players if they want him back. If put to a vote, there’s no indication he’d be welcomed to the locker room. Admitting that he’s got so much Saudi money in the bank that he can ‘just You Tube’ must have swayed any Tour member who might be on the fence. It is of no importance to have de Chambeau back.

Mumford: Nobody has ever done it so it’s uncertain Bryson could stay popular and stay in contention for majors without playing regularly on a Tour. The exemptions might run out and then what? As for the PGA Tour, they’d be crazy not to have BDC in their fields as often as possible. He’s a huge draw and a gift to the media. In the final analysis though, I think he needs the PGA Tour more than they need him.