EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsRory McIlroy said two-time major champion Bryson DeChambeau would "bring eyeballs" to the DP World Tour in 2027 because of "everything he brings with him, good and bad."Joining the European tour might be DeChambeau's only option to play competitive golf next season after the LIV Golf League folded last week. There doesn't seem to be a pathway for DeChambeau to return to the PGA Tour in 2027.The DP World Tour's player commitment deadline for next season is Nov. 16."Yeah, look, I think a name like Bryson DeChambeau and everything he brings with him, good and bad -- he brings eyeballs, which is a good thing for tournaments," McIlroy told reporters Tuesday ahead of this week's DP World Tour Championship in Dubai."And honestly, look, I'm certainly not in his shoes -- and nor would I ever want to be -- but it doesn't seem like he's got many options. You know, if he wants to play competitive golf, it doesn't seem like he's got many options."On Sunday, DeChambeau addressed the end of LIV Golf in a statement he posted to his social media."I'm not going to rewrite the last four years," DeChambeau wrote. "I made a decision I believed in, and I'm grateful for what came with it: playing in front of fans new and old around the world who rarely got to see the best players at home."The two-time U.S. Open winner is scheduled to play the Nedbank Golf Challenge in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Dec. 3-6.DeChambeau didn't reveal much else about his future in the statement, other than saying: "I'll approach it with humility and respect for the people who carried this game long before me."The PGA Tour has suspended other golfers for a year after their final start in the LIV Golf League. Previous Masters champion Patrick Reed left LIV Golf in January and was able to return to PGA Tour competition in August, a year after his final start in the breakaway circuit.But DeChambeau's situation might not be as simple. He was among the LIV golfers who sued the PGA Tour in federal court, accusing the tour of using its monopoly power to squash competition.DeChambeau also turned down the PGA Tour's offer to return in January under a New Member Program, which Brooks Koepka used to come back.The PGA Tour isn't expected to address the status of former LIV golfers until after LIV Golf's Chapter 11 bankruptcy is finalized in early January.Reed played on the DP World Tour this past season and is third in the season-long points race. The top 10 finishers will earn PGA Tour cards for 2027.Former LIV Golf players like Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton and others have committed to play in Europe in 2027."To be honest with you, I mean, I don't really get any satisfaction from making a decision and watching the other guys have to sit out a year and have the repercussions of that," Reed said Tuesday. "The more satisfaction is going out there and playing solid golf. You never want to see guys struggle or have to sit out, things like that."We're all competitors. We're all athletes and really, at the end of the day, a lot of those guys that are going through that are good friends of mine. You sit there, and you just hope that they are able to come out and do what I did: Come out and play solid golf and come out on the PGA Tour."
