DETROIT — Rocket Mortgage has spent years building up an impressive stable of golf ambassadors.
Now, the Detroit-based home-lending behemoth has some decisions to make about the future of certain partnerships, particularly with Bryson DeChambeau.
DeChambeau has become the latest golf superstar to join the controversial Saudi Arabia-funded LIV golf tour, meaning he won't be playing in the PGA Tour's Rocket Mortgage Classic in late July at Detroit Golf Club. DeChambeau, with his booming drives, turned DGC into his own pitch-and-putt in 2020, when he won the tournament by three strokes.
After the tournament, Rocket Mortgage signed DeChambeau to a sponsorship deal to wear the company's logo on his clothing and appear at select company-sponsored corporate events throughout the year.
Officials from Rocket Mortgage didn't return multiple messages this week about DeChambeau's status with the company moving forward. Terms of DeChambeau's deal with Rocket Mortgage are not public knowledge.
Tournament director Jason Langwell also declined comment when asked about the status of the field. There have been no official player commitments announced by RMC officials
In joining the LIV tour — the tour starts play Thursday in London; DeChambeau is reportedly set to play his first event June 30-July 2 at Pumpkin Ridge in Portland, Oregon — DeChambeau is giving up his PGA Tour privileges for a significant cash grab. Reports Wednesday put his payday in the $100 million range; Phil Mickelson reportedly received $200 million, and Dustin Johnson $125 million.
That's on top of performance-based pay; the LIV purses are set to significantly trump those of the PGA Tour.
"Bryson has always been an innovator," DeChambeau's agent, Brett Falkoff, said in an interview with ESPN. "Having the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of something unique has always been intriguing to him. Professional golf as we know it is changing, and it's happening quickly."
DeChambeau, 28, is an eight-time winner on the PGA Tour, including the 2020 U.S. Open. At 28th in the world, he's the third-highest-ranked player to join LIV, behind Johnson (15th) and Louis Oosthuizen (21st).
Johnson, who like DeChambeau previously disavowed his interest in playing any tour other than the PGA Tour, lost his main sponsorship with the Royal Bank of Canada after jumping to the LIV tour. Mickelson, following sympathetic comments about the Saudis' poor human-rights record back in February, lost several sponsorships. After joining LIV on Monday, putting an end to the silly notion that he would play Detroit again in 2022 if the community did enough acts of random kindness, he arrived in London this week with just his own brand logo — the silhouette of his leap at the Masters in 2004 — on his hat.
DeChambeau also has a sponsorship deal with Rochester-based software company OneStream, as does Hudson Swafford, who also has joined the LIV. The status of those deals is unknown.
There also were multiple reports Wednesday that Patrick Reed, a former Masters champion, also is preparing to join LIV. Reed, ranked 36th in the world, has played the Rocket Mortgage Classic all three years. The PGA Tour has told its members they can't play on both tours, and those who choose LIV face permanent banishment (Johnson and Na have officially resigned from the PGA Tour). Those who sign up for LIV also are required by that tour to play all events; there's an LIV tournament being played opposite the Rocket Mortgage Classic at the end of July. So far, the majors, not run by the PGA Tour, are allowing LIV players to continue playing, including the U.S. Open next week at The Country Club in Massachusetts.
Rocket Mortgage officials also are keeping a close eye on the situation with Rickie Fowler, the company's longest-tenured ambassador who has been pitching for the business since 2015 with a series of humorous and popular commercials, as well as personal appearances. Fowler has said he is intrigued by the LIV situation, but remains committed to the PGA Tour for now.
LPGA star Lexi Thompson is the third member of Rocket Mortgage's team of paid ambassadors.
The LIV tour, which also has signed recent Michigan State grad and 2021 U.S. Amateur champion James Piot to a deal that will bank him more than $1 million, is fronted by World Golf Hall of Fame Greg Norman and funded with billions from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. The seven regular-season tournaments feature purses of $25 million, from $4 million to first place and more than $100,000 to last place. There are no cuts, the tournaments are 54 holes, and will feature shotgun starts. They'll air on YouTube and Facebook.
