Is the showdown really a victory for golf?

Tuesday night brings the long-awaited “showdown,” pitting LIV Golf's top talents Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau against the PGA Tour's best player – Scottie ‧Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. McIlroy and Scheffler dominated, winning every session of the match. But as a symbol of the times, the significance of this game is far greater than competitiveness.

We gathered GOLF senior writers Dylan Dethier and Sean Zak to break down the event's success, where it fell short and what it means for the future of the professional game What.

Dylan Detier (@dylan_dethier): Sean, it's the morning after the Crypto.com showdown and two things are stuck in my mind. First of all, no matter how many times he tells it, Charles Barkley's joke about losing money gambling gets me every time. They'd show footage of the Vegas skyline, and Chuck would say, “I paid for three of those buildings. The dealer said 11 is double and gives you 14 every time,” and I would laugh. The second one is the tweet that has stuck in my mind. LIV Golf sent it along with a photo of the four: “The game of golf and its fans won tonight”.

Detier: It's interesting that you're talking about the PGA Tour, and although you make a good point, I'll start by saying that LIV can actually have some small wins here. They embraced the showdown. They clearly consider it a win to have their players represent their league in front of a prime-time national audience. There’s a reason the PGA Tour isn’t keen on this, and that’s because they have a lot more to lose than they gain, giving LIV’s stars a big platform and LIV a chance to showcase themselves on an equal footing. LIV also had Charles Barkley on air to denounce golf's divisiveness. LIV even participated in the event as a sponsor, increasing its brand exposure. This is some kind of victory.

But I guess I'm not entirely convinced of my own argument. Not only are its people smoked, LIV's biggest victory continues external Limitations of LIV itself. Think Koepka’s 2023 PGA Championship, or DeChambeau’s 2024 U.S. Open, or even his huge YouTube viewership. So I'll let the other winner be the “meaningful golf event.” As the tournament dragged on into the night, the four contestants looked increasingly chilled each time they hopped into a golf cart, a reminder of the setting and context of a golf tournament even with four of its greatest stars. , we won’t see that until the New Year.

In the end, I'd say it was mainly these four individual players who won – Rory and Scotty going 1-2. Their crypto wallet wins. Their ability to host events outside the confines of the PGA Tour or LIV is a player empowerment muscle exercise. Now, if only Scotty could figure out what to do with his winnings…

Sean, what was your favorite part of the night? What's not?

Zack: My favorite part of the night was any time the players talked to each other, their caddies, themselves, etc., and no Broadcast team. We've seen nearly a dozen iterations of the modern TV game, and each one has a unique thread, proving that the words, actions, thoughts, and insights that naturally emerge from the game are some of the most fascinating. While Scotty and Rory were analyzing the high hook in the tree. When they talk a lot about creatine. as Brooks and Bryson discussed the firmness of the green and where they wanted to hit the ball. all These things come naturally.

But I want to make an important distinction: These moments are not enough.

Although the match was billed as one of the best on the rival tours, there were zero jokes about the golf divide. There is zero trash talk about the issues and factors that caused these people to separate. Brooks Koepka is one of the most confident, almost arrogant golfers of all time. We get no emotion from him. (It doesn’t help that he’s not playing well.)

I think for these games to reach their peak, two things have to happen: 1) players need to be more comfortable talking louder while playing, just like broadcasts need to devise a better way to capture every word, 2) if we Promote these contests as serious rivalries – just like this one! -Then actors need to help us believe that. Sorry to ramble on about this, but this was my strongest thought that night. And should serve as a warning/lesson for the upcoming TGL: we need players to talk, not just play golf.

Are there any elements that particularly inspire you? Or, if not, what do you feel is missing?

Detier: I don't know if I'm in the minority, but overall I think it was a successful event. Like, I love this watch. This is golf first and the broadcast has its moments, Shadow Creek is a weird and charming place with a Vegas feel to it, I'm also a fan of the format, it resets after four holes, and Not to get us into a blowout. It's solid background viewing.

That said, you're absolutely right when you say the best stuff is the jokes, and we don't get enough of them. I think it's really, really hard – how do you force interaction without forcing it? – But I actually think one approach might be to give these people microphones but cut them off from the broadcasters. Take YouTube golf lessons. No more headphones required unless they are in a golf cart. Have four people talk to each other. Lean on the piece of it.

The other option is to have Phil and Barkley get on the mic and let them go crazy.

Last question, Sean: Is there anything that can be done about this? [gestures vaguely] Is there anything else going on in golf that encourages you to reach a deal?

Zack: I wonder if these games have a hyperactive on-field reporter who can pop up at any time to relay questions (from broadcasters) – I think Colt Knost will throw in funny bits and we're all asking ourselves – —Would this allow them to get to…

Regardless, I'm encouraged by reports (albeit from mostly anonymous sources) that Bloomberg is reporting that the deal is progressing. I choose to believe that an agreement can be reached by March 1 (or within the first 100 days of the next president!) and look forward to 2026 being the beginning of the reintegration of Koepka, Rahm, Niemann and others into PGA Tour events. I am no However, I am encouraged by the players LIV has recently signed because they are golfers I have never heard of.

I think Rory McIlroy's presence to help push this game is encouraging because he's taking that back into his own hands. He also invites the best golfers on the planet to join him. They also invited some of the world's most high-profile golfers to acknowledge their desire to create a future together. This may all be a little too semantic for tired, irritated, eager golf fans, but like I wrote last week , at this point I'll go with it.

Detier: There are definitely signs. It appears that both the PGA Tour's new CEO position and LIV Golf's new CEO position point to a new future, one with friendlier relations between the tours. While I'm an optimist by nature, I admit I still don't quite understand how this solves everything. There’s—well, forget it. This is a chat with four interesting golfers playing a fun game. I welcome another one.