Another unexpected withdrawal has hit the golf community. The PGA Tour is preparing for its third event, the American Express, with a significant $8.5M purse. Nine-time PGA Tour winner Xander Schauffele is out of the competition. The two-time major winner who recently showed his softer side on Bob Does Sports, will not be teeing off at La Quinta. The golfer has withdrawn without giving any reason.

Schauffele last played at Tiger Woods’s tech-savvy league, TGL, which was a remarkable success, drawing in 3.2M viewers for its debut. Before that, he participated in the Sentry, where he managed a respectable total of 17 under par. While it may not have been his top-notch performance, he still racked up an impressive 22 birdies and even made an eagle in the second round. It’s surprising, given his solid stats, that he’s now missing out on the California event, where he dazzled last year with a stunning score of 27 under par, including 28 birdies and an eagle.

For some fans, this news is disheartening, especially since Xander Schauffele was one of the last few big names remaining in the field. Even Scottie Scheffler, who was to start his 2025 at AmEx withdrew stating his injury needed more time to heal. A few might see WD as the trend. At the first full-field event in Hawaii, over three PGA Tour pros withdrew.

We do not doubt that the 2X Major winner’s exit hasn’t sparked an emergency meeting among Monahan’s team. But do you think golf fans will refrain from discussing and speculating about the reasons behind it all?

Fans associate LIV with Xander Schauffele’s sudden WD

One fan wrote, “Another $500M LIV guy?” Jon Rahm defected to LIV for almost $500 M as per the reports. Schauffele had been in talks about joining LIV Golf more than one time in the past, especially after his PGA Championship victory in May of last year. But later, his father clarified.

“Xander is not chasing the money. Xander is about legacy. And as for my opinion—just as his father—there was never a chance,” Stafan told golf.com. But according to fans, there is still a possibility. This was proven again when a user commented, “Yep. He is going to LIV. Why not? Going where the oil money is. PGA and LIV are both cooked.”

There was another group of fans too who just believed that his WD was because of TGL. The 31-year-old is part of the NYGC team in Tiger Woods‘s new league. He played in the debut  match, where his team lost. This made fans shoot comments like, “Prepping for TGL.” While a social media user expressed, “Crank up the rumor mill! Of course, he’s in the TGL league, so I don’t think there’s anything to worry about.” When Tyrrell Hatton switched, he was replaced with Hideki Matsuyama in TGL, so fans are not all worried for Scheuffele jumping the ship.

However, not everyone was talking—LIV and TGL. Some fans are also assumed to be the pro facing an injury. They posted, “I hope he’s not injured, but if he isn’t and this is just a regular WD, that’s pretty disappointing for those who bought tickets to this event. Scottie is out, and now Xander, the 2 biggest names in the field, are not playing.” 

What do you think? Is the golfing world speculating right? Which side are you on? Let us know below!