Sports reporter Brian Wacker has confirmed PGA Tour star Xander Schauffele will NOT be joining LIV Golf, despite a vicious rumour going round on social media this week.
Wacker, who writes for the New York Post, took to Twitter to clear up where Schauffele’s allegiance really lies heading into 2023.
Some LIV Golf news: Xander isn’t going, despite, ahem, “report”; TV deal will be with Fox Sports in some capacity; 5ish events in US next year. Related, if/when they get world ranking points, that changes equation for some.
— Brian Wacker (@brianwacker1) November 9, 2022
Wacker, who has over 25,000 followers, tweeted: “Some LIV Golf news: Xander isn’t going, despite, ahem, “report”; TV deal will be with Fox Sports in some capacity; 5ish events in US next year. Related, if/when they get world ranking points, that changes equation for some.”
The final line of Wacker’s tweet would indicate that should LIV Golf end up receiving Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points, then the decision may become a bit more of a headache for a number of potentially interested PGA Tour players.
This is exactly the point we made in a recent feature on the latest LIV Golf situation.
As it stands, LIV Golf players are tumbling down the OWGR as a result of being shut out of picking up valuable points each week.
This is also providing serious concern for a number of current LIV players who are outside the automatic spots and eligibility criteria for the four majors of the year at The Masters, US PGA, US Open and The Open.
Confusion over Schauffele’s imminent future in the sport has come as a result of a number of rumours doing the rounds on social media.
None more so than one provided by an “insider” LIV Tracking account this week.
The account claimed Schauffele was a done deal to LIV Golf, and also went as far to say it had an “unblemished record” when it came to golf player transfers this season.
We can only assume the account forgot about the time Jon Rahm shut it down earlier this season when declaring his allegiance to the PGA Tour.
The account also said Schauffele was going to become the new captain of Torque GC, and how his best mate Patrick Cantlay and Chile’s Mito Pereira were joining too.
See the tweet below:
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.
— LIV Golf Insider (@LIVTracking) November 6, 2022
The Guardian also reported recently how Cantlay and Schauffele were heavily linked with a move.
That is seemingly all it is right now.
A link.
Talks have clearly happened between LIV Golf execs and the likes of PGA Tour stars Schauffele and Cantlay.
But right now, there is no deal in place for either player.
With Wacker now confirming Schauffele is sticking by the PGA Tour, at least for now, you have to feel Cantlay will also follow suit given their close relationship both on and off the course.
According to our own sources here at GolfMagic, and no it is not LIV Tracking you will be pleased to know, we have been informed that Pereira is the most likely of any PGA Tour player to move to LIV Golf ahead of 2023.
A large part of this is down to being very good mates with Joaquin Niemann, who made the move from the PGA Tour to LIV Golf earlier this year.
But nothing has yet been made official, so we await the latest news on that one.
LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman made it clear at the season-ending Team Championship that he wants at least seven new players joining his new LIV Golf League in 2023.
Norman also wants to get deals done before the end of 2022 so team preparations and trades can get fully underway.
Some action has already taken place with 4 Aces GC captain Dustin Johnson trading one of his players for Peter Uihlein.
Picking further points out of Wacker’s tweet, and he also confirms that LIV Golf will partner with FOX Sports “in some capacity” in a new TV deal.
This aligns nicely with what LIV Golf commentator Jerry Foltz revealed on the ‘Fore The People’ podcast earlier this week.
Foltz is not much of a fan of a TV deal though.
“I dread the fact we are going to be on TV,” he explained on the podcast.
Wacker also confirmed in his tweet that approximately “five” of the 14 LIV Golf tournaments in 2023 will be held in the United States.
You can check out more early details of the new LIV Golf League season here.
Next Page: R&A boss teases LIV Golf decision as he opens up on Greg Norman snub
This news is republished from another source. You can check the original article here