Greg Norman claims Bryson DeChambeau has only been successful on YouTube because of LIV Golf. Many others would argue that it is because of his big personality, winning a second major championship at the 2024 US Open, and his interactions with fans at tournaments like the Ryder Cup.
“I would say Bryson’s in the right place at the right time with the right personality and the right vision, but he can only have that because of LIV because we gave him his IP rights,” Greg Norman said on The Real Deal podcast. “
“When you’re not playing a LIV tournament, you can go do whatever you want; you can monetize your IP. If you want to wear blue jeans and a white t-shirt and make money, go for it. So he saw this incredible moment of time for himself, and I’m so happy and so pleased for him that he has maximized it.”
The PGA Tour’s social media policy is much more limiting than LIV Golf
“If he stayed with the PGA Tour, he would have no chance, because the PGA Tour would own his IP, unless that’s changed in the last couple of years,” Norman continued. “That gave him the opportunity, and I bet you there’s a lot of players on the PGA Tour saying, ‘why am I not doing that?’ So kudos to him, I think he’s done a phenomenal job with how he’s balancing himself with this.
“And again, LIV allowed him to do that because he only had 14 events and then the major championships, of course, so he had the time to be able to go and focus on other things that could move on in perpetuity for him beyond LIV and beyond the PGA Tour.”
Given the meager TV ratings and LIV Golf’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing a few days ago, it’s a little dubious to claim LIV Golf is the only reason for Bryson DeChambeau’s social media success.
Perhaps it’s a chicken-egg question. Is Bryson DeChambeau successful on YouTube because of the freedom LIV Golf gives him, or is he popular on the LIV Golf tour because of his entertaining videos on YouTube, which have garnered over 2.7 million subscribers?