Is Xander Schauffele the latest PGA Tour player to join LIV Golf?
The controversial LIV Golf Series wrapped up with the season finale on October 30, and now eyes are on next season. The inaugural season of the series saw dozens of players from the PGA Tour and other world championships participate in the Saudi-backed tournament.
An insider claimed that Xander Schauffele has also agreed to be part of the next season of LIV Golf. According to @LIVtracking, he will join as the captain of Torque GC in 2023.
BOOM! @XSchauffele is confirmed to join #LIVGolf. 🚨BOOM! @XSchauffele is confirmed to join #LIVGolf.
Schauffele will be named the new Captain for Torque GC. Patrick Cantlay and Mito Pereria are also expected to join him and current team member Joaquin Niemann.
Torque GC is officially your 2023 #LIVGolf favorite.
Patrick Cantlay, Mito Pereira, and Joaquin Niemann are also expected to be part of the 2023 season of the tumultuous series.
Xander Schauffele was offered the opportunity to join the circuit before the start of the inaugural season. However, he turned down the contract and remained loyal to the PGA Tour.
As the first season of LIV Golf Miami concluded with 4 Aces lifting the trophy, Xander was one of the players targeted by Greg Norman for the series' next season.
The 2023 event is expected to have around 60 golfers around the globe, including those who have already joined the series.
The upcoming tournament is likely to be joined by players including Hideki Matsuyama, Matt Kuchar, Sebastian Munoz, and Thomas Pieters.
LIV Golf is planning to sign a broadcast deal for next season
The LIV Golf Championship has been controversial since its first season was announced earlier this year. The series offers a whopping amount of prize money, attracting most golfers.
After the successful conclusion of the first season, LIV Golf has no plans to hold back. Instead, they will be back with more attractive offers, as reported by several outlets.
A day they’ll all remember forever! 👏
#LIVGolf #LIVGolfMiami https://t.co/C9MF3GMzQq
The LIV Golf Chief, Atul Khosla, said they would sign all the players before the end of 2022. The second season is said to stage 14 events, unlike this year, which had eight events.
While speaking at Doral, Atul Khosla said:
"We are in the middle of the discussions. We are going to get it done this year. We want the teams locked in by the new year. It will play itself out over the next couple of months."
Khosla also spoke about the broadcast deal for the championship.
When you realize there’s no LIV Golf until 2023 😔
#LIVGolf https://t.co/xcP7tK3Oss
He said:
"On the US front, we are back and forth with a few different networks. Step one was to show them the product, which they clearly understood. We had to show them the graphics and how they would differ. Step two was to clear the time."
He went on to say:
"I feel good about where we are, but we must work over the next couple of months. We think we are providing an incredible commercial product. These are not six-month or one-month, or one-year deals; if a TV network is getting behind that, it's for multiple years. We have got to start commercializing the product. We have to got to get on TV; we have to get corporate partners. These are milestones that we need to hit."
The championship will be a household name overnight if the organizers have their way with any streaming services.