Eugenio Chacarra realised that at the end of a career nobody remembers the name on a cheque but it’s the name engraved on trophies that will live long in people’s memories.
Chacarra was a rising star in the game when he moved to LIV Golf in 2022 but now that he has left the Saudi backed breakaway tour people are starting to notice him. Not satisfied with taking the petro-pumped dollars on LIV, he is taking the long route to the top. Following back to back wins on the DP World Tour he is well on his way to the PGA Tour.
The Spaniard was the world number two amateur when he was poached by LIV. It’s understandable that he sold out at that stage the leap from amateur to professional level comes with no guarantees. LIV saw it as a coup as they went down the route of pinching young talent from under the nose of the PGA Tour. Chacarra won on LIV in 2022 but injuries caused a dip in form and he was released by Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs in 2024.
What a blessing it has been for him, he now has three DP World Tour wins and is third in the Race to Dubai with the top-10 not already exempt earning PGA Tour cards for next season.
Chacarra stated upon leaving LIV that it was “only money” with no actual career benefits. Motivated by the success of Ludvig Åberg who was in his amateur circle, he decided to chase the PGA Tour dream. He is on the cusp of it.
“I see what it’s like to win on the PGA Tour and how your life changes,” Chacarra told Flushing It in 2025. “How you get major access and ranking points. On LIV, nothing changes, there is only money. It doesn’t matter if you finish 30th or first, only money. I’m not a guy who wants more money. What will change my life is playing in Hawaii and qualifying for the majors, qualifying for the Masters, the Ryder Cup.
“I know this is what my heart tells me is right and it works for my motivation to wake up and grind and get better, and to say I can be a PGA Tour player one day,” Chacarra told Flushing It. “So this decision is what’s best for me. I’m very thankful for what they’ve done, but my mind is different now and I want to get to what I was dreaming about when I was little. Because obviously LIV didn’t exist when I was growing up. I was watching Tiger Woods winning on the PGA Tour, and I want to do that.”
Chacarra isn’t the only one to have seen his competitive candle burn out at LIV Golf. Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed have cut ties and have plied their trade on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour respectively and have both shown up well this season.
The 26-year-old will make his Open Championship debut at Royal Birkdale and he will arrive as one of the game’s in form players. He is still a very exciting talent and looks set for the chance to live out his PGA Tour dream next year.
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