Is Xander Schauffele moving to LIV? Is this the first time you’ve heard this? Not quite! And Schauffele won’t pledge to the PGA Tour. And he knows what typically follows. “People are just like, my god, he’s leaving,” he had said last year. His name keeps popping up in LIV Golf rumors. Of course, he’s not completely a one-off. Since the start of LIV two years ago, and the promise of guaranteed millions, there’s been a continuous chatter of the is-he-going-or-is-he-staying game. But Schauffele’s case is interesting.

He’s admitted he’s met with LIV, and he turned them down. He’s been critical of Tour commissioner Jay Monahan after the Tour started negotiations on a funding deal with LIV’s backer, the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. Then there is mostly a hard stop. It could also be an approach others have taken, especially as the Tour continues its negotiations with the PIF. Players could want to keep their options open, thinking, Why not go to LIV, when the Tour is talking with its money source? Though LIV could also fold. Or it could blend with the Tour. All are potential options. When there is lack of confirmation, there is speculation. At the Fore Play podcast last year, Schauffele opened up on it.

“It’s funny,” Schauffele said. “I mean, I’ve just tried — when asked about it, I feel like I’ve just tried to be as honest as possible. And I just dodge the question. Because I don’t really — I’m not going to pledge to the Tour. And I’m the only guy — there’s maybe a handful of guys who’ve done this — but I’m not like, ‘I’m going to play here forever.’ And I’m not saying, ‘I’m going to go there forever.’ I just say, I’m here right now. Which is just a fact and then I get wrecked on the matter,” he had said. That has not yet stopped.

After featuring in the inaugural TGL game on January 7 this year, Schauffele did not play in the Sony Open in Hawaii and no reasons were given for the same. While that did not raise any major alarm bells, his sudden withdrawal from the American Express 2025 Open, got fans concerned and speculative.

“Yep. He is going to LIV. Why not? Going where the oil money is. PGA and LIV are both cooked.” “Another $500M LIV guy?” said fans after hearing the news. Big names from the field like Scottie Scheffler (injury), and Rory McIlroy were already missing might have been irksome for the fans who were looking forward to good competition at the PGA West.

Xander Schauffele, however, now has turned most of the rumors and speculations into concerns as he announced two more consecutive withdrawals. The 2x major winner is not competing in the Farmers Insurance Open. The reports are that his persisting medical reasons are keeping him out. The 2024 PGA Championship winner had finished T9 at the event last year. He is now expected to return to Pebble Beach for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am just like #1. The event is scheduled from January 30 to February 2nd.

He is also out of the TGL on Jan 21 with the lineups being released. New York Golf Club will feature Cameron Young, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Rickie Fowler against Justin Thomas’s Atlanta Drive featuring Billy Horschel, and Patrick Cantlay. The third week of the TGL will mark JT and his team’s debut in the tech league. This double withdrawal could be concerning for Schauffele fans, who have been waiting to see him in action since January 7.

Notably, the 31-year-old is coming off a stellar 2024 PGA Tour season in which he won two majors. He and his fans would have been hoping his momentum to be carried over to this year. His first and only event was the Sentry where he finished T30 with a score of 17 under par.

Speculations and rumors surrounding his future on the PGA Tour are not something Schauffele has had to encounter for the first time. In 2024, after his first major win at the PGA Championship, rumors were aplenty regarding his possible defection to LIV Golf.

LIV rumors are not new for Xander Schauffele

The PGA Tour had already lost big names like Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Lee Westwood, and Dustin Johnson to the PIF-backed golfing venture. Money was one of the factors everyone switched but “Xander is not chasing the money. Xander is about legacy. And as for my opinion—just as his father—there was never a chance,” said Stefan, Xander Schauffele’s father after his victory at the Valhalla Golf Club.

Majors bring glory! LIV does not have OWGR points, and the fate of playing in majors, and Ryder Cup hangs in balance for LIV stars. It’s not something Xander Schauffele is a fan of. “What we told LIV in Saudi Arabia, with Xander beside me, was that if there is no path back to the PGA Tour and if there is no chance at world ranking points, we do not have anything to talk about. Even if you throw hundreds of millions of dollars at him. That word still stands,” Schauffele’s father added.

LIV is known to offer lucrative contracts to big names. If reports are to be believed, Tiger Woods was offered $700M to $800M to join, but he refused. Jon Rahm’s offer is believed to be a whopping $500M. While the speculations and rumors continue to swirl around Schauffele, fans will be eagerly waiting to see the two-time major winner in action on the Tour. They will also be hoping for his quick recovery so that he can weave his magic on the course again.