Out of 10 LIV Golf players in the 2026 Masters field of 91, not a single one managed to shoot under par on Thursday. As the leaderboard reflected a collective failure for the Saudi-based circuit, Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee delivered a hot take on the group’s competitive readiness, especially on the tour’s primary flag-bearers, Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm.
“They’re not being challenged, they’re not being tested, and so they’re not ready. If every single week you go out and you’re not challenged—when I look at the statistics, it’d be like if Steph Curry was shooting free-throws with a hula-hoop-sized rim and thinking he’s 100%. That’s the false arrogance they would have coming in here,” Chamblee said.
“Remember, early on they had some nice finishes, Brooks[Koepka] won a major, Phil[Mickelson] won a major, and Bryson[DeChambeau] won a major….But as time has gone on with LIV, they’ve gotten worse and worse and worse.”
It must be noted here that none of the LIV players, barring the Promotions graduates not at the Masters, have made a single competitive trip to the USA this year since August. They also had two weeks off after the South African event, whose soft layout is in stark contrast to Augusta’s fast nature – this comes after Trump National Doral was part of the week before The Masters in 2025. On the other hand, PGA Tour and DP World Tour players have been preparing at courses like Pebble Beach, Riviera, and TPC Sawgrass.
- After a strong start to his LIV career, Cameron Smith suffered a catastrophic 2025 season. He became the only player to tee it up in all four majors and miss the cut in every single one.
- Despite winning the 2023 PGA Championship while on LIV, Brooks Koepka’s form in 2025 was so “subdued” that he missed three of four major cuts. According to so many people, it prompted his high-profile exit from LIV before the 2026 golf season.
- And Jon Rahm? Since his blockbuster move to LIV, the 2023 Masters champion has failed to add a third major to his trophy case.
The same pattern has followed several others. Just look at this season’s stats. Entering the 2026 Masters, Data Golf and several other sportsbooks ranked Rahm as the second favorite and DeChambeau as the third, trailing only Scottie Scheffler. DeChambeau arrived with back-to-back victories in Singapore and South Africa, while Rahm had secured a win in Hong Kong and finished in the top five of every 2026 LIV event. But at Augusta, they both collapsed.
DeChambeau’s opening 76 (+4) was a masterclass of his struggle regarding control. His round began inauspiciously with a pulled tee shot into the left bushes on the par-5 2nd, leading to an immediate bogey. On the par-3 6th, his erratic driving continued as he struck a patron with his tee shot, later handing them a golf ball as an apology. And the ultimate disaster struck at the par-4 11th. After a massive 347-yard drive into the fairway, DeChambeau’s approach drifted into a greenside bunker. He then needed three attempts to escape the sand, resulting in a triple-bogey 7—his seventh score of ‘7’ or higher at Augusta.
Chamblee was particularly dismissive of DeChambeau’s downward technical evolution since joining the LIV circuit.
#NOT READY — Brandel Chamblee SLAMS LIV golfers after Round 1 at The Masters
“What Bryson did with his iron play is what Bryson has been doing with his iron play since the first year that he played here… I’ve really not seen any change in it.
It’s like (Jon Rahm)… pic.twitter.com/tJCMtaR8bJ
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) April 10, 2026
“What Bryson did with his iron play is what Bryson has been doing… since the first year that he played here. I’ve really not seen any change in it.”
Rahm’s performance was even more shocking, carding a 6-over 78—the highest single round score of his 37 career Masters rounds. For the first time at Augusta, Rahm failed to record a single birdie. His collapse began with a bogey on the 1st and continued with dropped shots at the 3rd, 6th, and 9th. Even when luck was on his side, such as his drive on the 13th bouncing back into the fairway, he followed it by hooking an 8-iron into the shrubs for a double-bogey.
Expectedly, Chamblee’s critique of Rahm’s swing was more brutal.
“It’s like (Jon Rahm) forgot how to play the game…it’s amazing to me. On every tee, he’s swinging as hard as he can, it’s like he’s in a long drive contest. I’ve never seen anybody swing it as hard as he’s swinging it on every tee shot. It’s like there’s no nuance or no niche to his golf swing.”
Rahm would have agreed, as he himself was searching for answers between every swing.
“It’s a hard golf course. Some of the players might have been able to manage a respectable round. But when you have no feel with the swing whatsoever, it’s just not an easy one,” Rahm said.
So, what’s next for the LIV Golf players?
Bryson described the day as weird and noted he felt ‘shell-shocked’ by his lack of iron control. He spent the evening hitting over 100 balls on the practice range, hoping to find his lost form for the second round.
His goal remains survival: “Just going to give what the golf course gives me. I have to try to hit my irons better.”
Rahm, too, is focused on the immediate cut line, which Data Golf predicts will be at +3 or +4. To play the weekend, he likely needs a round in the 60s on Friday.
“Hopefully, get some physio, get some dinner, get something positive going in that sense. Tomorrow is a new day. It’s going to be a very much more uphill battle right now,” Rahm said. “I’ve done that a few times, yeah. I’ve done that a few times, but it still sucks to be in this position… Need a Herculean effort the next two days to give myself a chance to maybe sniff having a chance to win.”
Other LIV players also struggled, particularly those with less experience at Augusta. Carlos Ortiz, in his second appearance, shot an 8-over 80, including bogeys or worse on his first five holes. Tyrrell Hatton (-1) and Cameron Smith (+2) are also fighting to stay inside the cut line.
