Tranlate this title Former LIV Golf player admits he joined for money and now has PGA Tour ambitions in spanish

Eugenio Chacarra is getting closer to achieving one of the biggest goals of his career, earning a PGA Tour card.

The Spaniard has enjoyed an excellent 2026 season on the DP World Tour, winning the KLM Open and Italian Open in successive starts. Those results came after his breakthrough victory at the Hero Indian Open in 2025 and have put him in a strong position to earn PGA Tour status.

Chacarra also made his Open Championship debut at Royal Birkdale in July, where he made the cut in a major for the first time in his career. It was another important step for a player who left LIV Golf at the end of 2024 partly because he wanted more opportunities to compete for world ranking points and play in the biggest tournaments.

The 26-year-old has now opened up about the decision that initially took him to LIV Golf. Chacarra admitted money played the biggest role, but stressed that he has no regrets about spending three years in the league.

Eugenio Chacarra explains why he joined LIV Golf

Chacarra was one of the best college golfers in the United States before turning professional in 2022. However, his path to the PGA was far from guaranteed at the time.

Speaking on the Sliced Golf Podcast, Chacarra pointed out that the opportunities available through PGA Tour University were different when he was making his decision.

“When I was number one on the PGA Tour University, the number one didn’t really go to the PGA Tour. I was lucky enough, the year before Austin Eckroat finished third in the ranking, and he only got a couple of tournaments,” Chacarra said.

“If you don’t start playing well, you have no status or anything. So as a European they offer you the money they did, and they changed my life. It was something I really needed to take.”

Chacarra joined LIV and became part of Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs GC. He won the LIV Golf Bangkok event during his first season and also experienced success as part of the team competition.

The Spaniard explained that his coaches also believed accepting LIV’s offer was the right decision at that stage of his career.

“I sat down with the coaches and they told me that they are saving up for life and your family right now. This is something that you need to take, you need to go and learn from Sergio, that is one of the best Spanish players in the world.

I was lucky enough to play there individually, I won five or six times as a team. I learned a lot from the best players in the world too, but my time was done.

I knew when I went there I went to learn from the best players in the world, to play a lot of golf courses and to get better but mainly it was because of the money.”

While Chacarra is now attempting to reach the PGA Tour, he stressed that he does not look back negatively on his LIV Golf decision.

“I am very grateful for everything they did for me. For a 26-year-old to own all I own, to have life secured, to have a team and eight people working for me to make me better and not have to worry about if I miss a cut to have expenses. All that stuff takes a lot of pressure away from me when I’m out there playing.

I would not change my decision. My three years at LIV were important. It changed my life in a lot of ways, I learnt a lot and I am grateful for the opportunity they gave me.”

Chacarra is now closing in on his PGA Tour goal

Leaving LIV has given Chacarra the chance to pursue something that was difficult to achieve while playing in the league: establishing himself through the traditional tour system and earning his way onto the PGA Tour.

His results suggest the decision has worked.

Chacarra won the Hero Indian Open in March 2025 to secure DP World Tour membership. He then added another title at the KLM Open in June 2026, beating Oliver Lindell by one shot after making a birdie on the final hole.

The victory moved him much closer to a PGA Tour card, but he was not finished. Chacarra followed it by winning the Italian Open and later secured the DP World Tour’s European Swing.

His performances also earned him a place at the Open Championship. After opening with consecutive rounds of 70 at Royal Birkdale, Chacarra made the weekend at a major for the first time.

The Spaniard said during the tournament that winning three national opens was something he had dreamed about when he was younger and felt his success in Italy confirmed the progress he and his team had made.

More importantly for his long-term plans, Chacarra sits second in the PGA Tour Eligibility Rankings among eligible DP World Tour players following the Open Championship. The leading 10 eligible players at the end of the season will earn PGA Tour cards.

That would complete an impressive turnaround after Chacarra faced criticism both for joining LIV and for leaving the league three years later.

“I got a lot of criticism when I was number 200 in the world and player of the year. I was going to be number one from PGA Tour University and I went to LIV,” he said.

Chacarra pointed out that watching other players win on the PGA Tour and DP World Tour also changed what he wanted from his career.

“I saw other players playing on the PGA and the DP World Tour with wins that their life kind of changes. I won in Italy and I played the Open Championship. That is a dream that we both have of playing and playing major golf.

I thought it was time for me to leave and a lot of people said I was done, that I was not going to get that. That I was great in college but I was not good any more, I could not compete on LIV, even though I won individually.”

Rather than discouraging him, those doubts gave Chacarra another reason to prove himself away from LIV.

“That gave me more motivation to work hard and prove them wrong. Now I am probably one of the best players on the DP World Tour and hopefully I can be one of the best players in the world and the PGA Tour in the next couple of years.”

Chacarra still has work to do before PGA Tour membership is officially secured, but his position in the eligibility standings has put him firmly on course to achieve the goal he has spoken about throughout the season.