Xander Schauffele LIV Golf rumors: All you need to know
Recently, rumors started circulating that American golfer Xander Schauffele was defecting to LIV. Schauffele is one of the best golfers, with seven PGA Tour victories, one European Tour win, and a gold at the Tokyo Olympics. These rumors are patently false.
Although the rumors came as a shock to many, such a move wouldn't be entirely surprising as LIV Golf has targeted top players to join their roster. For their inaugural season, LIV drew some of the big golfing names.
However, there is no truth to the rumors of Xander Schauffele joining the controversial league and he very much plans to stick to the PGA Tour for now.
In fact, he even claimed on the No Laying Up podcast that he had "no idea" how he and fellow golfer Patrick Cantlay were linked to the Saudi-backed league. He said:
"I found out in a funny way, I pretty much just received messages from my friends. Some of my friends just believed I would tell them if I was leaving the PGA Tour, and my other friends kind of texted me in disbelief thinking it was true. I was like 'come on.'"
He added that he had to Google him and Patrick Cantlay to understand what was going on.
"I had to weather that storm of all the social media news that I don't really get on my phone. I had to end up Googling what was going on, there were these articles saying that Pat and I are leaving."
Xander Schauffele said that he never even mentioned the supposed prospect to anybody and he was suddenly with these rumors.
"I pretty much just told everyone what I'm telling you, I haven't talked to anybody. I was pretty much minding my own business in Vegas and then this whole thing blew up. Why it blew up and how it blew up I have no idea, probably similar to the first time around, just random rumors that catch the wind and it just blows up in your face."
He further added that while rumor mills were exciting for some people, they did bring more attention to golf.
"The rumour mill is definitely exciting. It’s fun. Well, not for me, but for everyone else surrounding golf. It brings attention and eyeballs to our game, which I guess you can look at either half empty or half full, so that’s a good thing. It is what it is."
"I will basically just take my talents to where all the talents will be playing" - Xander Schauffele
Xander Schauffele was offered a spot on the LIV Golf's debut season, but the golfer refused, choosing to stay on the PGA Tour. While he doesn't intend to switch anytime soon, he did not give a concrete answer whether he would consider the option in the future.
According to the National Club Golfer, when asked about it, he said:
"I try really hard not to misspeak. Especially when I’m talking to media. For me to declare something outright, like you said, everyone and their mother wants to go over and play not just this tour over here, but some different tour. I can’t just just say like, ‘Oh, for sure I’m staying on this tour.'"
Xander Schauffele said that he had signed with PGA Tour events for the next season and he would continue there for years.
"Obviously, right now, I’m signing up for tournaments next year on the PGA Tour, I’m creating my schedule. So, I know where I’m playing next year, and probably if I had to guess, for years from now where I’ll be playing."
He added, however, that if anybody were to create a league with the likes of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, he would surely consider the switch. He said that he would take his talents to where all the talents will be competing.
"But if someone starts some mega tour, with Tiger, JT and Rory and everyone else decided to go play, it would be pretty hard to just sit here, do you know what I mean? I will basically just take my talents to where all the talents will be playing."
When it was pointed out that he was not giving any straight or concrete answer, Xander Schauffele had a cheeky response.
"It’s pretty funny when I know what’s going on on the inside, and everyone else is screaming on the outside, and two worlds collide. It’s pretty funny."
For now, Xander Schauffele is set to feature in the upcoming Hero World Challenge hosted by Tiger Woods. The tournament will take place in Albany, Bahamas from November 28 to December 4. He will also be eyeing the 2023 Ryder Cup, which will be held in Rome, Italy.