Melissa Tamez-Imagn Images
Bryson DeChambeau is easily the most marketable name who’s currently affiliated with LIV Golf, and it’s hard to blame him for trying to take advantage of his profile. However, he found himself down a sponsor after the owner of the company that made the clubs he’s currently using accused him of attempting a takeover that ended up backfiring.
Being a professional golfer can be a very lucrative career if you’re one of the best players on the planet, as the top guys on the PGA Tour took home tens of millions of dollars in tournament earnings alone during the 2025 season.
Scottie Scheffler led the way with a little more than $50 million in official earnings, but he’s just one of many golfers who are able to supplement thier on-the-course income with the lucrative endorsement deals from the many companies that are willing to fork over a sizable amount of cash for some exposure.
That includes brands that don’t necessarily have anything to do with golf but will still pay to have their logo emblazoned on a hat or shirt, as well as the apparel companies that devote a fair amount of resources to scripting the outfits that turn the golfers they sponsor into de facto models.
Virtually every pro golfer also has a relationship with the brands that make the clubs, balls, and other pieces of equipment they use. That includes Bryson DeChambeau, who has been sponsored by club and shaft manufacturer LA Golf since becoming an official partner in 2018.
However, that marriage ended in a divorce that can seemingly be traced back to a very bold attempt to increase his ownership stake.
The owner of LA Golf says it parted ways with Bryson DeChambeau after he tried to acquire a 51% stake in the company
DeChambeau has a reputation for his almost painfully analytical approach to golf, and it’s no surprise he’s very particular about the equipment he uses.
The 32-year-old has spent close to a decade using shafts designed by LA Golf, the company that Louisiana native Reed Dickens runs out of Southern California. Last year, he debuted some new clubs with faces that he designed in conjunction with the brand’s engineers, so it appeared the relationship was only growing.
However, according to Golf, it recently came to an end, as Dickens shed light on what led to the two sides parting ways in an interview where he said he rebuffed DeChambeau’s attempt to essentially take control of the entire company:
“Bryson and I actually have some of the same tendencies, and I have nothing but respect for him. But he has this new consultant, a McKinsey-consulting type guy, and this guy says to me that Bryson is gonna walk unless he gets 51 percent.
Bryson’s got 2 percent of the company. And I think the guy doesn’t realize that he’s dealing with a redneck. And I say, ‘There’s no path for that.’ They played chicken with me, and now we’re going to graciously part ways.”
That development doesn’t exist in a vacuum, as LA Golf reportedly laid off around close to 80% of its workforce earlier this month while pivoting to a direct-to-consumer model.
Golf writer Laz Versalles has also suggested there’s evidence that the pricey shafts that served as the foundation for the company were simply repainted stock acquired from a bankrupt brand as opposed to proprietary technology, but it’s worth noting there’s no concrete proof to support those accusations.
It’s unclear if DeChambeau plans to switch up his bag moving forward (he certainly doesn’t need a club sponsorship based on how much he makes), but that will also be worth keeping an eye on.