Brooks Koepka’s coach blasts Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee as a ‘paid actor’ and hits out at the presenter for discussing LIV Golf’s sportswashing after NBC televised the Russia and China Winter Olympics
Claude Harmon III – coach of PGA championship winner Brooks Koepka – has ripped into Brandel Chamblee after the studio analyst for Golf Channel suggested no player from LIV should feature at the Ryder Cup this fall.
On Sunday, Koepka won at Oak Hill for the third time of his career. His victory made headlines in the aftermath, with the 33-year-old becoming the first player from the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf Tour to win at a PGA major championship.
Speaking on the PGA championship’s broadcast, Chamblee and Brad Faxon were involved in a heated exchange when the latter – once ranked as high as No. 11 – said that Koepka may deserve a spot on the USA Ryder Cup team, though Chamblee is strongly against that happening.
‘The PGA of America runs the Ryder Cup,’ Faxon said, explaining Golf’s governing bodies to his telecast partner. ‘I don’t think this has anything to do with… they’re not playing for money at the Ryder Cup, Brandle. They’re playing for their country. He’s an American.’
Following the point, Chamblee repeated the lines ‘they’re playing for their country’, later adding: ‘there’s a certain sense that the Europeans are playing for their tour.’ Faxon then state that ‘they’re playing golf’, before an awkward silence emerged on air, with both former pros starting each other down.
Brook Koepka’s coach Claude Harmon III (R) blasted those against LIV Golfers competing at the Ryder Cup in the fall (seen with Koepka, left, in 2017)
Brad Faxon makes the case that Brooks Koepka may deserve a spot on the Ryder Cup team and Brandel Chamblee was not having it.
Chamblee can¿t fathom the fact a LIV golfer just won a major. Awkward. pic.twitter.com/PhCVp6qBV8
— Mark Harris (@itismarkharris) May 21, 2023
Brandel Chamblee, of The Golf Channel, questioned if LIV golfers would play for their country
And on Tuesday, two days after Koepka’s PGA championship win, Harmon III did not hold back against critics of the LIV Tour, such as Golfweek writer Eamon Lynch and Chamblee.
The latter previously used the term ‘sportswashing’ abound Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund bankrolling the PGA Tour’s rival.
‘Brandel is a paid actor by NBC and Golf Channel… And I mean, I love him, I think Eamon is a fantastic writer, but for Eamon Lynch and Brandel Chamblee, who worked for NBC Golf Channel to utter the words ”sports washing” when the company they work for televised the last two Winter Olympics in Russia and China with the same leaders that they’ve had. It’s not like they were good leaders back then,’ said Harmon III via Golfweek.
‘It’s not like Putin was a good guy, right?’
Koepka became the first ever LIV golfer to win a PGA major championship at Oak Hill, Sunday
After Sunday’s finale at Oak Hill, US Ryder Cup captain, Zach Johnson, made it clear that he wouldn’t rule out LIV players from his 12-man roster.
‘Yeah, he’s on the team. He’s got direct ownership in that, absolutely,’ said the 47-year-old. ‘Essentially, Koepka could earn a spot via the six automatic spots or, if he were to miss out, via one of the six captain’s picks.’
The Ryder Cup is usually held at the end of September every year, with USA’s qualification wrapped up after the BMW Championship on August 20.
Whoever finishes among the six-highest ranked player at that point will automatically qualify, with Johnson selecting his six captain’s picks after the 2023 Tour Championship.
This year’s Ryder Cup will be played for the first time in Italy at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome.
