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Jordan Spieth Intervenes as Brooks Koepka Upsets PGA Tour Pros With ‘Return’ Announcement

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Brooks Koepka‘s return to the PGA Tour was always going to be divisive, but as players began choosing sides, a fellow major champion, Jordan Spieth, stepped in to play peacemaker

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“You’re not going to ask somebody to change to please other people,” Spieth said, as per AP. “I don’t think he needs to play Monday pro-ams or walk along the range and shake everyone’s hand and say, ‘I’m sorry.’ He just comes back and plays really good golf. That’s good for everybody.”

Koepka knows what Spieth is saying. He knows that he has “a lot of work to do with some of the players. There are definitely guys who are happy and definitely guys who will be angry. It’s a harsh punishment financially. I understand exactly why the tour did that—it’s meant to hurt. But it (his departure) hurt a lot of people. If anyone is upset, I need to rebuild those relationships.”

Koepka was one of the best golfers before heading to LIV in 2022. He won the U.S. Open in 2017 and 2018 and then the PGA Championship in 2018 and 2019. Before leaving the PGA Tour, he won the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February 2021. He came back from five shots down to win with a final-round 65. So, one can argue that Koepka’s defection gave LIV its credibility, fracturing the sport, and hence some of the pros might feel a bit of frustration towards him now that he is returning.

What adds salt to the wounds is probably that the former LIV golfer’s time was just as successful with the Saudi-funded league. Koepka won five LIV tournaments and won the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill, making him the first LIV player to win a major. By the way, this major win made it possible for Koepka to come back to the PGA Tour under the Returning Member Program.

The 5x major winner will be back at the Farmers Insurance Open on January 29. This will be his first regular PGA Tour event since the Valspar Championship in March 2022. He has also promised to play in the Phoenix Open. He is returning, but not without penalty.

He has to give $5 million to charity and can’t get Tour equity bonuses until 2030. The PGA Tour thinks he could lose between $50 million and $85 million in total. Koepka didn’t negotiate the penalty, as he knew this was better than facing the ban and risking his move back to the Tour.

The golf world awaits Brooks Koepka’s return; meanwhile, some pros have thoughts to share on his return:

Ludvig Aberg talked about his thoughts onThe Drop Zone podcast. “We all want to play against the best.” “Brooks Koepka is definitely one of them,” Aberg said. “He has a history of winning; he’s won five major championships.” We will play better golf now that he is back on the PGA Tour.

The 25-year-old is seeing competition, but the other pros are calling the decision out. Michael Kim said on X that “guys are pissed.” And he isn’t the only one. Wesley Bryan’s short response to the PGA Tour’s Instagram announcement, “This is interesting,” added to the mixed reception.

The divide is happening because not everyone is a fan of LIV Golf. When players left the PGA Tour for the Saudi-backed league, the core argument that came up was that they chose money over traditional golf. And now that Koepka has returned, why not start from the beginning and earn the place instead of getting approval just because he has privilege?

The 35-year-old might have divided the Golf circles. But for the networks? This is good news.

Networks see gold in Brooks Koepka’s comeback timing

The timing couldn’t have been better for CBS. The Farmers Insurance Open on January 29 is the first time Koepka will play on the PGA Tour in almost four years. It is also CBS’s season opener. The network’s ratings will go up right away as golf fans will tune in to see the five-time major champion deal with his controversial return.

Golf Channel and NBC are both well-positioned to make money. The Tour’s decision to allow LIV players like Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, and Cameron Smith to transfer until February 2 keeps people interested in many broadcasts.

The effects on broadcasting go beyond just covering tournaments. Shoulder programming gets new storylines, including player interviews, behind-the-scenes drama, and locker-room dynamics. Golf’s version of free agency gives networks interesting content that goes beyond just making shots and tracking scores. Brooks Koepka’s return isn’t just about making birdies and bogeys anymore; it’s a must-see story.

TGL and ESPN might benefit the most in ways they didn’t expect. Koepka lives close to the SoFi Center and was seen at games last season. The league’s flexible alternate-player policy might allow him to play in games. This season, TGL averages more than 500,000 viewers on ESPN. Adding Koepka’s star power and controversy could drive those numbers up.

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Paige Spiranac’s surprising NFL fandom confession triggers heated debate over loyalty, authenticity, and fan culture

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The 2026 NFL Draft starts Thursday night in Pittsburgh, and the spotlight isn’t only on prospects and front offices. Golf influencer Paige Spiranac has again found herself pulled into NFL conversation, this time for her open support of multiple teams.

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With the Steelers hosting the first round, her long-standing connection to Pittsburgh has resurfaced. But it’s not just about hometown ties. Her broader fandom, which stretches beyond one franchise, continues to draw mixed reactions at a time when fan loyalty is often treated as non-negotiable.

Paige Spiranac roots for 2 NFL teams: Who are they?

Paige Spiranac has never hidden where her loyalties lie, even if they don’t fit the usual mold. She has consistently pointed to her roots while leaving space for other allegiances.

“Both my parents are from Pittsburgh so I’ve been a Steelers ..fan since the day I was born. I also love the Bills. It’s a complicated relationship…Who’s your team?” she previously asked her followers. It’s a candid admission, one that reflects personal history more than calculated fandom.

Still, the reaction has been sharp. NFL culture tends to rew ..

 

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Quiet moments on the course can say a lot about what’s coming next.

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Sometimes the most important work happens when nobody is really watching.
Lexi Thompson was out on the 18th green, working through her putting during a practice round ahead of the Chevron Championship in Houston.

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It’s a simple scene, but it shows the kind of quiet preparation that goes into these big tournaments—getting the feel of the greens, adjusting to conditions, and building trust in every stroke.

These are the small details that can shape how a player starts when the pressure kicks in.

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Predicting what will happen to Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson if LIV Golf collapses

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It looks like LIV Golf is over.

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The Saudi Public Investment Fund has reportedly decided that this league simply isn’t worth the hole it’s burning in their pocket, and they’re pulling funds at the end of 2026.

That gives them less than a year to seek new investment. While CEO Scott O’Neil seems confident, it’s going to be extremely difficult to secure funding for a league that is operating at such eye-watering losses.

So this probably pulls the curtain closed on one of the most turbulent, frustrating, confusing, and ridiculous eras in golfing history. Hopefully, we can all return to some reality after the year is over.

But there is still so much uncertainty surrounding golf’s future thanks to this. Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed saw the signs early and jumped ship, but they did that with some leverage. So what on earth is going to happen to the rest of these players who didn’t take the olive branch when it was offered to them?

Feelings will be hurt, and careers will be ended. Let’s take a look.

Jon Rahm rejoins the PGA Tour

Koepka returned to the PGA Tour under the returning member program, which saw him pay $5 million to charity, accept that he’ll receive no FedEx Cup bonus money, and agree he cannot be a sponsor exemption for the 2026 signature events.

 

That same deal was offered to Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau. They didn’t accept it, but a similar offer will likely be handed out to them again.

 

If LIV Golf folds, Rahm will not hold the same leverage as Koepka did, but he is a bigger star at this stage of his career. Make no mistake, the PGA Tour will want him back immediately.

But Rahm does risk leaving himself without any options at all. Reed didn’t come straight back to the PGA Tour, so he’s spending a year on the DP World Tour first. You’d imagine Rahm would consider doing the same, but it might not be so easy for him.

Rahm is in a feud with the DP World Tour, as the only one of eight players to reject a deal which would have seen him retain his full-time membership. If Rahm agreed to play in six DP World Tour events this year, then he could have played on both LIV Golf and the tour. He did not agree.

For now, his membership is at risk. So, will it be possible for him to spend a season on the DP World Tour like Reed? Maybe not. That makes it all the more likely that Rahm will be back on the PGA Tour the moment LIV folds.

Bryson DeChambeau does YouTube full-time

With DeChambeau, I don’t think it’s as much of a done deal that he returns to the PGA Tour. Not immediately anyway.

He’s been negotiating his contract with LIV, which expires at the end of this season. During these negotiations, he’s made it very clear that he is completely willing to step away from full-time competition and be a full-time YouTuber.

DeChambeau’s channel has over two million subscribers, so he could feasibly do that with all of the money he’s making there.

He was annoyed to see LIV move to a four-day format, so he could commit himself fully to being the content king. It would be a wild thing to do, but it’s also exactly the kind of move you could see the two-time major winner making.

He could qualify for The Open Championship and the US Open, and earn enough points there to play The Masters and the PGA Championship. It’s possible.

He does seem to live for competition, so maybe YouTube won’t quite scratch the itch, but it is on the table for DeChambeau. At least for a year until his suspension expires. Out of Rahm and DeChambeau, the American is absolutely the least likely to take a deal.

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