Two-time major champion Bryson DeChambeau has amassed 2.89 million subscribers on YouTube, with his latest video, published just seven days ago, already surpassing 1.5 million views. Clearly, the 33-year-old has built a successful career away from LIV Golf and the PGA Tour. Yet, according to former LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman, none of that would have been possible without LIV Golf.
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“I would say Bryson’s in the right place at the right time, with the right personality and the right vision,” Norman told Golf Digest. “But he can only have that with LIV, because we gave him his IP rights. When you’re not playing a LIV tournament, you can go do whatever you want. You can monetize your IP… So he saw this incredible moment in time for himself… If he stayed with the PGA Tour, he would have no chance.
“Because the PGA Tour would earn his IP, unless that’s changed in the last couple of years, I’m not too sure… And I bet you there’s a lot of players on the PGA Tour saying, ‘Why am I not doing that?’ So kudos to him. I think he’s done a phenomenal job with how he’s balancing himself with this. And again, LIV allowed him to do that because he only had 14 events and then the later championships, of course.
“So he had the time to be able to go and focus on other things that could move on in perpetuity for him beyond LIV and beyond the PGA Tour. That’s the secret.”
DeChambeau left the PGA Tour and joined LIV Golf in June 2022, making his debut with the breakaway league the following month. At the time, Norman was the league’s CEO, so it’s fair to say he would have been familiar with the details of DeChambeau’s deal. Norman would eventually step down from his position as CEO in September last year, while DeChambeau’s contract with LIV Golf expired at the end of this year’s season.
Regardless, DeChambeau started his YouTube channel in 2020, while he was still competing on the PGA Tour. At the time, the Tour’s player-content policy restricted golfers from filming certain types of videos for social media. DeChambeau himself told Beyond the Clubhouse that the PGA Tour did not allow him to film YouTube videos during his time on the Tour.
However, this year, the PGA Tour has loosened its content policies, giving players more freedom to produce and share videos during tournament weeks. Players can also use more archived PGA Tour footage without giving the Tour ownership of their YouTube channels, while monetization has been expanded to include content filmed during practice rounds and pro-ams.
Restrictions on commercializing competition content and working with non-PGA Tour-approved sponsors, however, remain in place. In any case, YouTube has become a significant part of the 33-year-old’s career and earnings. Connor Lindeman of MyGolfSpy told Forbes last year that DeChambeau could have earned around $700,000 from his YouTube channel in 2025.
Considering that, it’s easy to understand why DeChambeau may have valued the greater freedom to create content while playing on LIV Golf. Not to mention, LIV Golf offered DeChambeau a signing contract worth more than $125 million. However, the league now reportedly owes him around $5.8 million after filing for bankruptcy this month, with that amount reportedly stemming from the third quarter of 2026 alone.
DeChambeau has not yet revealed whether he plans to renew his contract with LIV Golf or depart from the league. In the meantime, PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp has confirmed bad news for the two-time PGA Tour winner.
Bryson DeChambeau and others can’t use the Returning Members Program
The PGA Tour’s decision not to extend its Returning Member Program could complicate Bryson DeChambeau’s potential return to the Tour. Speaking on Tuesday, Rolapp confirmed that the organization is “not currently contemplating a returning-member program like the one you saw in January.” This means LIV Golf players seeking reinstatement will likely have to follow the standard process.
The temporary program allowed Brooks Koepka to return for the 2026 season after he left LIV Golf and applied for reinstatement. DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith could also have used the pathway, but only if they had applied and accepted its terms before the February 2 deadline. Now, that route is no longer available.
Rolapp stressed that “meritocracy, membership rules, accountability and discipline” remain guiding principles for the PGA Tour. As a result, DeChambeau, Rahm and other LIV golfers who seek to return could face a suspension and reinstatement process similar to Patrick Reed’s, with full-time membership potentially not coming until 2028.
That being said, it appears LIV Golf was the reason Bryson DeChambeau was able to build his YouTube channel. However, LIV doesn’t appear to be in the best place right now, and the PGA Tour has shut its doors.