Brandel Chamblee’s biggest concern for golf is not a scandal or a scoring controversy. He fears that fans could start watching golf hoping to see players fail. Speaking on the We Need a Fourth podcast on September 28, the Golf Channel analyst warned that golf’s growing link to sports betting could change the culture that has always made the sport different from others.
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“Golf has a lot of problems, but right now I think the biggest one is that they have to decide what they want to be,” Chamblee said. “Do they want to be what they’ve been, which to me is the greatest sport in terms of comportment, or do they want to try to be one of the biggest sports? And in doing so, they’re going to surrender what made golf unlike everything else.”
He believes there is an unspoken agreement between fans and players that fans stay polite, respectful, and focused on enjoying good golf. He worries that more gambling could change that. Fans who bet on players may start reacting more strongly to every shot and result, which could damage the etiquette that defines the game.
“There’s this underlying agreement that they’re going to be polite,” he said. “And to the degree that they want to make this game more popular, they’re going to have to align it with gambling. And if they align it with gambling and predictive gambling… fans have always come to golf to appreciate the game, to see the best golf played. But to whatever degree they align it with gambling, that means that there’s going to be an element of people that come to a game that want to see bad golf, that they’ve bet on it. And that is going to change the very nature of the game of golf, and that is dangerous.”
Betting is not just a future concern for golf. It has grown significantly since the 2018 repeal of PASPA and is already a big part of professional golf’s business. FanDuel is an Official Betting Operator of the PGA Tour, which gives it rights to use Tour branding, advertise through Tour media, and create betting content. The Tour also provides official live scoring data to betting companies. This does not prove Chamblee’s concerns will happen, but it shows how closely the two are tied.
Since LIV Golf started in 2022, its team events have drawn louder and more energetic crowds than many traditional Tour events. Some believe this shows that a more entertainment-focused style of golf can change how fans behave on the course.
Chamblee’s main concern is why people watch golf. Traditional fans watch to enjoy the skill and see the best players succeed. But a fan who has money on a player may see things differently. A missed putt that disappoints one fan could please another because it helps their bet.
The PGA Tour is also trying to protect the sport’s integrity as betting becomes more common. Its Integrity Program bans players and other covered people from betting on professional golf, sharing inside information for betting purposes, or trying to influence an outcome. The rules have led to suspensions.
PGA Tour Champions player Matt Gogel was suspended for six months, from August 23, 2026, to February 22, 2027, after the Tour found that he had violated the Integrity Program by betting on PGA Tour competition. The Tour said he did not bet on tournaments in which he played, but it did not say which events he wagered on. Gogel said the bets were small, recreational, and placed in 2024 and 2025. He said they were not on regular PGA Tour or PGA Tour Champions events, or on any tournament in which he played. He called it “an honest mistake.” His was the first betting-related suspension since 2023, when Korn Ferry Tour players Vince India, Jake Staiano, and Ben An were suspended for similar violations.
Chamblee also directly blamed Phil Mickelson and Greg Norman for what he sees as golf’s growing focus on money. “I blame that on Phil. And I blame that on Greg Norman,” he said, arguing that the two had “irreparably tilted the game towards greed.”
That is Chamblee’s personal view, not an established fact about either man. Mickelson’s history with gambling is well documented, though. In 2022, he admitted that his gambling had become “reckless” and “embarrassing.” Chamblee connects his criticism of LIV Golf and its huge financial changes to his broader fears about gambling in golf.
In the end, Chamblee’s comments return to the question he raised at the start: what does golf want to become? The PGA Tour is expanding its betting partnerships while also taking action against betting violations. Chamblee’s worry goes beyond cheating, though. He believes the bigger risk is that a growing betting culture could change why people watch golf and how they react to what happens on the course.