Thomas Pieters made an appearance on the Dan on Golf Podcast on Monday and made a variety of extremely transparent statements about LIV Golf and his future.
Pieters has been with LIV Golf for just over three years now, although he’s still waiting for his first victory.
The 34-year-old was a big deal when he burst onto the DP World Tour scene more than a decade ago now.
At just 24, Pieters made the European Ryder Cup team at Hazeltine and he went on to record six DP World Tour victories before joining LIV Golf in 2023.
However, with LIV Golf now facing a very uncertain future due to Saudi Arabia’s PIF pulling their financial support from the end of the 2026 season, Pieters is not entirely sure where he will be playing his golf next year.
Pieters even admitted that he could easily walk away from LIV Golf and retire from the sport if need be.
He said if the purses were to drop, he may consider playing on the DP World Tour once again.
Thomas Pieters has shown every LIV golfer the way forward
It was so refreshing to hear Pieters talk about LIV Golf’s current situation on Monday night.
“I’m definitely never going back to the PGA Tour,“ Pieters said.
“I’ve never liked that life. And that’s not me having a go at the PGA Tour, it’s not for me.
“I tried it and I just wasn’t happy there. If it (LIV) goes away, I’ll probably try and play some on the European Tour or I don’t know. I really don’t know.
“I’m not fussed about it at this point because I feel like I still have a duty to focus on these next six, seven tournaments on LIV and then we’ll see. They’re obviously trying to get it together next year. We’ll see.
“We got paid. We are getting paid. It was a week late. Some got it early, some got it a week late, but I’m not sure these guys check their bank accounts every two seconds,“ Pieters admitted.
“I think whatever comes out officially from LIV is what we’re getting half a day before it goes out. Scott is telling us that he’s going to a broader market and trying to fund this for next year.
“I guess it’s a massive challenge. But we just have to wait and see.
“We are just guessing right now. But if we’re playing for 5 million next year or I could play on the DP World Tour for 3 million but be close to home that’s something I’d have to look at it when it comes.“
Every other LIV golfer would do well to learn from how the Belgian handled himself, as would the entire leadership group of the league.
There was no chest-thumping and no cult-like brainwashing on display.
Pieters just told it how it is.
LIV Golf players simply must learn from Thomas Pieters’ attitude
He showed real humility and his honest comments regarding LIV Golf’s uncertain future were a joy to listen to.
Sometimes, all golf fans want is for players to be down to earth and real. Crucially, that is something that everyone involved with LIV Golf has failed to grasp.
The biggest mistake that LIV Golf as an entity, their players, and the leadership group have made is trying to browbeat golf fans into liking their product.
Sport simply doesn’t work that way and nor does life in general.
Perhaps if they had taken more of a neutral approach, more golf fans would have at least given them a chance.
It turns out that golf fans do not enjoy being told what they can and cannot enjoy. Funny, that.
Thomas Pieters highlighted all of LIV Golf’s failings with one very simple interview.
And it’s such a shame that the ownership, the powers that be, their financial backers and, indeed, the players, haven’t sung from a similar hymn sheet throughout their four-year existence to date.
