His contract with LIV ended. Why it’s moving away from ‘just money’

Beyond Brooks Koepkas and Bryson DeChambeaus, who both joined LIV Golf in 2022 with mega-million dollar contracts, there were some less heralded but perhaps just as exciting signings made by the new league. Eugenio Chacarra was among them.

The 24-year-old was a recent graduate then and no. 2 ranked amateur in the world. If Koepka and DeChambeau thought they were LIV’s present, then Chacarra was LIV’s future. But here in 2025, he is now LIV’s past.

Chacarra is leaving LIV now that his contract has expired and has not been retained by Sergio GarciaThe Fireballs team. He’s also a bit upset about the promises he felt he made to LIV and how few “big” tournaments he’s played as a result of not earning world ranking points and access to majors. Chacarra spoke to multiple sources this week — namely Flushing It Twitter account and Hugo Costa, a journalist for the Golf Channel Latin America – saying how frustrated he is with how few wins have gotten him on the golf course.

“I see what it’s like to win on the PGA Tour and how it changes your life.” Chacarra told Flushing It. “How do you get big access and ranking points. In LIV, nothing changes, it’s just money. It doesn’t matter if you finish 30th or first, just money. I’m not a guy who wants more money. What will change my life is playing in Hawaii and qualifying for the majors, qualifying for the Masters, the Ryder Cup.”

Chacarra went on to quote Ludvig Aberg, no. 6 in the world, against whom he competed in Big 12 collegiate events just a few years ago. Aberg has won multiple times since turning pro – once on the PGA Tour and once on the DP World Tour. Chacarra has also won multiple times – once at LIV and another at the Asian Tour. However, Aberg’s wins have come against stiffer competition and have gone well beyond his world ranking and invitations to majors. Chacarra has only played in one major championship, having qualified for the 2023 US Open. (Notably, DataGolf ranks Aberg eighth and believes Chacarra is the 282nd-ranked player in the world.)

While he says he’s grateful for the opportunity LIV gave him, Chacarra was disappointed by the promises that didn’t materialize.

“When I joined LIV, they promised OWGR and degrees,” Chacarra said. “But it didn’t happen. I trusted them. I was the first new guy, then the others came after I made the decision. But OWGR and the degree still haven’t happened.”

Now, he’s ready to continue chasing his PGA Tour dream. Only he may have some difficulty in doing so.

With the PGA Tour and the Saudi PIF (LIV’s owner) still stuck at the negotiating table over a deal on how to reunify the sport, Chacarra will likely face a sanction for competing at LIV. The tour has suspended LIV players for one year from action in any tour-sanctioned event (Korn Ferry, PGA Tour Americas, etc.) from their last competitive day at LIV. This means Chacarra is expected to be suspended from Tour action until the end of September 2025.

Chacarra was never a member of the PGA Tour, nor its affiliates, nor a member of the DP World Tour. This distinction may give him some preference since he never signed his own annual media rights as, say, Patrick Reed did in early 2022. Therefore Chacarra never violated any contract by playing LIV events.

How the Tour decides to rule on his eligibility remains to be seen. Chacarra will be able to compete in the Asian tournament as soon as IInternational series in India later this month. He will likely be able to compete in DP World Tour events as well, but will rely on sponsor exemptions at the start of that trip. After all, he felt that LIV’s schedule was not enough action for him. Fourteen annual events did not motivate him, sufficiently, Chacarra told Hugo Costa.

“It’s a question of motivation,” he said, “and LIV was just about the money.”

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