Bryson DeChambeau may soon bid farewell to the Masters unless Augusta National grants his request.
He is set to compete in his last tournament in 2025 with a Masters exemption as he joins LIV Golf. Professional golfers can secure a place in the Masters through various channels, including finishing in the top 50 world rankings from the previous year, securing victory in a PGA Tour event in the twelve months between the major, winning one of the past five most recent US Opens, Open Championships and PGA Championships, claiming success in the Masters itself or receiving an invitation.
The predicament facing many players who join LIV Golf is they don’t participate in PGA Tour events and the Saudi league’s games don’t add up to any world ranking points. In DeChambeau’s case, he prevailed in the 2020 US Open – implying 2025 will be his final year playing the Masters. But this could change if he manages to fulfil one of the aforementioned criteria. Conscious of his position, when questioned about it following his latest round on Sunday, DeChambeau responded: “I don’t know what the future holds. But one thing I do know, if I do get invited, I’d gratefully come back after my exemption is up.”
The invite extended to LIV player Joaquin Niemann by the Masters this year signifies that the competition is open to assimilating LIV players. Furthermore, Rahm, the previous year’s champion who recently defected to LIV, hosted the champions dinner on Tuesday night, showing an acceptance for LIV players.
Certainly, Augusta may reconsider DeChambeau after his prior remarks about the golf course. The 30-year-old earlier argued that it should be classified as a par-67 course rather than a par-72, given the driving distance under his control.
“I can reach all the par fives in two, no problem,” he confidently asserted to the Golf Channel. “If the conditions stay the way they are, that’s what I feel like par is for me.”
However, DeChambeau would later regret those words when he didn’t make the cut in both 2022 and 2023 events. But this year he showed improvement and even threatened to take the lead a couple of times.
He acknowledged his mettle in the competition before eagerly waiting for the 2025 edition, whether or not it’s his final Masters.
“I’m looking forward to next year,” he optimistically remarked. “I really am. There’s a few more things I need to dial in with my equipment, but I a
m super close.”
