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Eugenio Chacarra doesn't regret his decision to join LIV Golf four years ago.
The former world No. 2 amateur left Oklahoma State early to join the upstart league, where he won in his fifth start in 2022 and played three seasons to begin his professional career. However, last year he left and became the first former player to openly criticize the league, citing failed promises, favoritism to stars and meaningless tournaments.
"It’s frustrating, but I’m excited for the new opportunity and to see where my game takes me," Chacarra said in early 2025.
Chacarra declared early last year his goal was to forge a path to the PGA Tour, a place he has dreamed of playing since he was a kid in Spain. Next week, Chacarra has an opportunity to earn his PGA Tour card.
On Tuesday, Chacarra was announced as a sponsor exemption for the Puerto Rico Open, the opposite-field event of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. It will be his second PGA Tour-sanctioned start since leaving LIV Golf, having played last year's Genesis Scottish Open as a member of the DP World Tour. Chacarra, 25, has three worldwide wins on three different tours, but a win next week in Puerto Rico would finally fulfill a lifelong dream.
"I'm excited to finally get a chance to play on the PGA Tour," Chacarra said Tuesday. "I've been working a lot of these couple weeks at home. I needed some time to reset and focus on what's the most important thing for me right now, that's to get on the PGA Tour as quick as possible. Yeah, super thankful, obviously, for the opportunity that I got awarded by the Puerto Rico Open and the PGA Tour, and I'm excited to be there next week, and hopefully I can perform at my highest level, and hopefully good things come with it.."
Shortly after leaving LIV, with limited status on any tour, Chacarra won the Hero Indian Open in New Delhi while playing on a sponsor exemption, earning full DP World Tour status and paving a pathway to earn a PGA Tour spot via the Race to Dubai. He didn't earn his PGA Tour card by year's end, but his Indian Open win meant he was exempt for 2026 to try again.
He has one made cut on the PGA Tour, a T-45 finish at the 2021 Sanderson Farms Championship. Last year's win at the Indian Open earned him a spot in the PGA Championship, where he missed the cut.
Based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Chacarra sits 27th on the DP World Tour Race to Dubai rankings in the early part of the year, though he has missed two of his last three cuts. He finished solo third at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in December.
Chacarra also knows with a win in Puerto Rico, he won't have to chase his PGA Tour card while traveling around Europe, Africa and Asia.
"I'll try to play as much as possible, and obviously I will try to perform well so I can get more sponsor invites, or maybe win or maybe finish top 10, we will see," Chacarra said. "Just we all know how golf is and how everything can change in a week."
By playing in Puerto Rico, Chacarra is passing up a chance to earn a Masters invitation by winning the South African Open this week. That's a risk he's willing to take. As Chacarra sees it, he believes a PGA Tour card will pave the way for him to play in multiple majors for years to come.
Even with his LIV frustration, he's not playing the "what-if" game. He understands the decisions he made, at the time, were what he thought was best for himself and his family. However, he always yearned for the PGA Tour and the grind to become one of the world's best. That's why he doesn't have any qualms about his path.
"I think it was a good space in my life, that I learn a lot. I had a chance to make friends," Chacarra said. "I had a chance to learn from really great players and historic players of the game of golf. I don't know what would have been different if I made the decision in college and be on the PGA Tour University, one of the best ones and see where that will lead me.
"But I know I'm happy what I did, the decision that I made, and I'm excited for my future and I feel like that will make me, the decision I made made me a better person and it got me a lot of other things that maybe I wouldn't have if I had made another decision. So, yeah, we will never know what happened. That's kind of what life is about. You make a decision in the point of what you think is best for you. And I don't regret it. I think I'm thankful for what they did for me, how they treat me out there too, and what other things they give me for my family right now, and for my future family. So I'm excited for the next chapter of my life."
That next chapter begins next week at the Puerto Rico Open, with Chacarra in charge of determining the content of its pages.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Former LIV winner gets PGA Tour exemption to Puerto Rico Open
Continue reading...
The former world No. 2 amateur left Oklahoma State early to join the upstart league, where he won in his fifth start in 2022 and played three seasons to begin his professional career. However, last year he left and became the first former player to openly criticize the league, citing failed promises, favoritism to stars and meaningless tournaments.
"It’s frustrating, but I’m excited for the new opportunity and to see where my game takes me," Chacarra said in early 2025.
Chacarra declared early last year his goal was to forge a path to the PGA Tour, a place he has dreamed of playing since he was a kid in Spain. Next week, Chacarra has an opportunity to earn his PGA Tour card.
On Tuesday, Chacarra was announced as a sponsor exemption for the Puerto Rico Open, the opposite-field event of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. It will be his second PGA Tour-sanctioned start since leaving LIV Golf, having played last year's Genesis Scottish Open as a member of the DP World Tour. Chacarra, 25, has three worldwide wins on three different tours, but a win next week in Puerto Rico would finally fulfill a lifelong dream.
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"I'm excited to finally get a chance to play on the PGA Tour," Chacarra said Tuesday. "I've been working a lot of these couple weeks at home. I needed some time to reset and focus on what's the most important thing for me right now, that's to get on the PGA Tour as quick as possible. Yeah, super thankful, obviously, for the opportunity that I got awarded by the Puerto Rico Open and the PGA Tour, and I'm excited to be there next week, and hopefully I can perform at my highest level, and hopefully good things come with it.."
Shortly after leaving LIV, with limited status on any tour, Chacarra won the Hero Indian Open in New Delhi while playing on a sponsor exemption, earning full DP World Tour status and paving a pathway to earn a PGA Tour spot via the Race to Dubai. He didn't earn his PGA Tour card by year's end, but his Indian Open win meant he was exempt for 2026 to try again.
He has one made cut on the PGA Tour, a T-45 finish at the 2021 Sanderson Farms Championship. Last year's win at the Indian Open earned him a spot in the PGA Championship, where he missed the cut.
Based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Chacarra sits 27th on the DP World Tour Race to Dubai rankings in the early part of the year, though he has missed two of his last three cuts. He finished solo third at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in December.
Chacarra also knows with a win in Puerto Rico, he won't have to chase his PGA Tour card while traveling around Europe, Africa and Asia.
You must be registered for see images
"I'll try to play as much as possible, and obviously I will try to perform well so I can get more sponsor invites, or maybe win or maybe finish top 10, we will see," Chacarra said. "Just we all know how golf is and how everything can change in a week."
By playing in Puerto Rico, Chacarra is passing up a chance to earn a Masters invitation by winning the South African Open this week. That's a risk he's willing to take. As Chacarra sees it, he believes a PGA Tour card will pave the way for him to play in multiple majors for years to come.
Even with his LIV frustration, he's not playing the "what-if" game. He understands the decisions he made, at the time, were what he thought was best for himself and his family. However, he always yearned for the PGA Tour and the grind to become one of the world's best. That's why he doesn't have any qualms about his path.
"I think it was a good space in my life, that I learn a lot. I had a chance to make friends," Chacarra said. "I had a chance to learn from really great players and historic players of the game of golf. I don't know what would have been different if I made the decision in college and be on the PGA Tour University, one of the best ones and see where that will lead me.
"But I know I'm happy what I did, the decision that I made, and I'm excited for my future and I feel like that will make me, the decision I made made me a better person and it got me a lot of other things that maybe I wouldn't have if I had made another decision. So, yeah, we will never know what happened. That's kind of what life is about. You make a decision in the point of what you think is best for you. And I don't regret it. I think I'm thankful for what they did for me, how they treat me out there too, and what other things they give me for my family right now, and for my future family. So I'm excited for the next chapter of my life."
That next chapter begins next week at the Puerto Rico Open, with Chacarra in charge of determining the content of its pages.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Former LIV winner gets PGA Tour exemption to Puerto Rico Open
Continue reading...
