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Brooks Koepka should face penalty if he rejoins PGA Tour, golf pundit says

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Brooks Koepka should face penalty if he rejoins PGA Tour, golf pundit says


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Brooks Koepka’s decision to leave LIV Golf years after becoming one of the notable faces to join the renegade league sent shock waves through the sport this week.

Koepka played in the LIV Golf series for more than three seasons, winning five events and taking home the PGA Championship in 2023.

Golf commentator Brandel Chamblee on Friday offered his two cents on fans clamoring for Koepka to return to the PGA Tour, writing in a post on X he disagreed with the notion.

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Brooks Koepka of Smash GC plays his shot from the third tee during the quarterfinals of the LIV Golf Michigan Team Championship at The Cardinal at Saint John’s Resort Aug. 22, 2025. (Aaron Doster/Imagn Images)

“I certainly disagree with this,” he wrote. “Allowing Brooks Koepka to return to the PGA Tour with no consequence, would undermine the very meritocratic foundations that make the PGA Tour legitimate — not because of who he is, but because of what his return (will) signal.”

Chamblee said there should be a penalty of some kind for Koepka or anyone else who jumped to the league, which is backed by the Saudi Arabian government.

“LIV did not merely offer an alternative league, it fractured fields, diluted competitive meaning, triggered legal warfare, undermined sponsorship stability, and forced structural change across all of professional golf,” he continued. “Koepka was not a passive bystander, he was a marquee legitimizer.

“You don’t punish him for being influential, but you cannot pretend his influence didn’t matter. His credibility made LIV viable, his stature normalized defection and his success (especially after joining LIV) validated the disruption.”

Brooks Koepka at the British Open

Brooks Koepka acknowledges the crowd on the fifth green during the first round of the British Open at the Royal Portrush Golf Club in Northern Ireland July 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Morrison, File)

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU TALKS RYDER CUP, SQUASHING RIVALRIES WITH PGA PLAYERS AND LACK OF RESOLUTION WITH LIV

Chamblee suggested a penalty would suffice and being reintegrated into the PGA Tour would be the route that officials should go with.

“A penalty would not so much be a punishment as it would be an acknowledgment of choice and the consequence does not need to be punitive to be meaningful,” he added. “He could be made to re-qualify for the PGA Tour (his 5 year exemption for winning the PGA Championship for majors may stand but not for the PGA Tour).

“He could have limited season eligibility and/or a suspension tied to prior contracted breach. The players who stayed on the PGA Tour paid a price. They had to absorb the uncertainty, play in weaker fields, shoulder reputational risk and take on a greater responsibility of protecting the tour’s continuity.”

Ultimately, Chamblee wrote, the penalty wouldn’t be about punishing anyone but rather the consequences for sending a ripple effect through the sport and protecting the PGA Tour.

“It is about whether the PGA Tour believe commitments mean something. If elite players can destabilize the system, take guaranteed money and then return instantly because they are popular or successful, the message is that rules apply only to the expendable,” Chamblee wrote.

“If excellence alone erases consequences then the PGA Tour ceases to be a meritocracy and becomes a marketplace of convenience. Great players most certainly deserve respect, but institutions deserve protection.”

Brooks Koepka in the sand trap

Brooks Koepka plays a shot from a bunker on the second hole during the second round of the U.S. Open June 13, 2025. (Charles LeClaire/Imagn Images)

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LIV Golf said Koepka was leaving the series to prioritize the “needs of his family and staying closer to home.”

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Minnesota wide receiver makes incredible diving catch to win bowl game

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Minnesota wide receiver makes incredible diving catch to win bowl game


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Minnesota Golden Gophers wide receiver Jalen Smith made an incredible diving touchdown catch to help the team to a Rate Bowl win over the New Mexico Lobos on Friday night.

Minnesota trailed by three points in overtime and needed a field goal to extend the period or a touchdown to win the game. 

On third down, Drake Lindsey found Smith between three Lobos defenders. Smith dove and made the wild catch to give Minnesota the 20-17 win.

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Minnesota wide receiver Jalen Smith scores a touchdown in overtime in front of New Mexico safety Austin Brawley (21) during the Rate Bowl Friday, Dec. 26, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

The Golden Gophers led 14-6 after Darius Taylor scored a touchdown. But on the ensuing kickoff, Damon Bankston returned a kick 100 yards for a touchdown. New Mexico’s trick play two-point conversion tied the game.

The bowl victory marked Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck’s seventh since he became the Golden Gophers’ head coach. Minnesota hasn’t lost a bowl game under Fleck and hasn’t lost a bowl game since the 2014 season, when Jerry Kill was the head coach.

GEORGIA TECH COACH BRENT KEY DEFENDS STATE OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL AMID WIDESPREAD CRITICISM

New Mexico players upset

New Mexico safety Austin Brawley and safety Tavian Combs (7) react after losing to Minnesota in the Rate Bowl Friday, Dec. 26, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

Lindsey was 18 of 28 with two touchdown passes, both to Smith.

The Lobos went viral during the game for their turquoise uniforms, but they didn’t do enough to distract Minnesota’s defense.

New Mexico quarterback Jack Layne was 14-for-25 with an interception.

PJ Fleck raises the Rate Bowl trophy

Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck, wide receiver Jalen Smith and safety Albert Nunes lift the trophy after defeating New Mexico in the Rate Bowl Friday, Dec. 26, 2025, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

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Minnesota finishes the season with an 8-5 record. New Mexico fell to 9-4.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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NBA Christmas winners and losers: No holiday cheer for the Lakers

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Los Angeles had no answers on an epic holiday on the hardwood, but the Spurs reached new heights and Nikola Jokic bolstered his MVP case.



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Athletics sign young star to record-breaking $86 million deal: reports

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Athletics sign young star to record-breaking  million deal: reports


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The Athletics reportedly gave one of their young stars a very nice Christmas present. 

The Athletics and left fielder Tyler Soderstrom agreed to a seven-year, $86 million contract on Thursday, according to multiple reports. 

The contract is the largest the team has ever given out. The deal also includes an eighth-year club option and has escalators that bring the maximum value of the contract to $131 million. 

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Athletics left fielder Tyler Soderstrom (21) reacts after hitting a home run against the Houston Astros in the seventh inning at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, California, on Sept. 24, 2025. (Cary Edmondson/Imagn Images)

Soderstrom, 24, broke out in 2025. He debuted in 2023 as a catcher and first baseman, and struggled to hit in his first taste of Major League Baseball, hitting .160 with just three home runs and a .472 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) in 45 games. 

The Turlock, Calif., native came back up to the big leagues in 2024 and was much better. In 61 games, Soderstrom had a .233 batting average with nine home runs, 26 RBI and a .743 OPS while still primarily playing first base. 

EX-MLB STAR TAKES ISSUE WITH DISNEY CRUISE LINE OVER MAN DRESSED AS A WOMAN

Tyler Soderstrom looks on

Athletics left fielder Tyler Soderstrom (21) reacts after being caught stealing second during the third inning against the Houston Astros at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, California, on Sept. 23, 2025. (Sergio Estrada/Imagn Images)

In 2025, Soderstrom played primarily left field and thrived at the plate. He started 145 of the 158 games he played this year — 100 of those starts in left field — his first full major league season.

In those 158 games, he batted .276 with 25 home runs and 93 RBI with an OPS of .820, cementing himself as a key piece of the Athletics’ young core. 

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Tyler Soderstrom in action

Athletics left fielder Tyler Soderstrom (21) scores a run during the fifth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, California, on Sept. 26, 2025. (Sergio Estrada/Imagn Images)

Soderstrom was on track to become eligible for arbitration after the 2026 season and for free agency after the 2029 season. Instead, he joins outfielder/designated hitter Brent Rooker (five-year, $60 million contract) and outfielder Lawrence Butler (seven-year, $65.5 million contract) as another part of the young, dynamic lineup that is locked in long term. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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