Stephen A. Smith is known for his hot takes, but his latest rant about the LIV Golf saga has golf fans seeing red. On Thursday's First Take, the ESPN loudmouth unloaded on the PGA Tour, claiming the organization's own negligence is why stars like Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau jumped ship to the Saudi-backed league in the first place.
Smith's outburst comes after Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund announced it would stop funding LIV Golf after the 2026 season. The move has sent shockwaves through the golf world, with speculation that some of LIV's biggest names might try to return to the PGA Tour. But Smith argues that if those players come back, the Tour should welcome them with open arms—not penalties.
“If the PGA decides to punish these golfers, we should stay in their [expletive] like white on rice,” Smith fumed on air. “They should not be punishing anybody. It was their negligence, it was their abuse, it was their taking golfers for granted that forced the existence of LIV to begin with. The players didn’t want to leave the PGA, they were forced to because they were looking for better opportunities because of the manner in which they were treated.”
Smith doubled down, accusing the Tour of being arrogant and dismissive toward its players. “All they wanted was to be treated better. And the PGA stuck their nose up like the arrogant people that they were, and they mistreated these guys. Now that this is going away, supposedly, and these players from LIV are looking to come back, I don’t want to hear anything about punishment. They should be embraced, they should be accepted, and PGA should learn from this and treat them more fairly than they did in the past, which forced LIV’s existence to begin with.”
But golf fans aren't buying what Smith is selling—and they're not shy about saying so. Social media lit up with criticism, with one fan calling Smith's take “asinine” and another declaring, “If it ain’t NBA, SAS literally has zero clue what he’s talking about.” A third user joked, “It’s gotta be tough coming up with a take each day dumber than the previous day. But Steve gets it done.”
The numbers tell a different story. DeChambeau reportedly pocketed $125 million from his initial LIV deal, while Rahm's contract was a staggering $300 million. That's not exactly the picture of players being “forced” to leave—it's a picture of players cashing in on a life-changing offer. As one fan pointed out, “The LIV golfers wanted it easier for their life. Guaranteed money. Shorter tournament. Less travel. AND they didn’t have to COMPETE anymore (no cuts) because they already had their big contracts. Basically, just playing golf rounds with the boys.”
Smith's track record outside the NBA has been shaky at best. He's already taken heat for his comments on NASCAR athletes—Kevin Harvick blasted him as 'clueless'—and his feud with the racing world has only escalated, with Joey Logano firing back. Now, he's wading into golf, and the backlash is just as fierce.
While Smith paints the PGA Tour as the villain, the reality is that players made a business decision. They took the money, plain and simple. There's nothing wrong with that—but pretending they were victims is a stretch. The Tour may have its faults, but it didn't force anyone to sign a nine-figure contract. If LIV golfers want to come back, they'll have to deal with the consequences, just like anyone else.
As the LIV experiment winds down, the golf world is watching. Will the PGA Tour show mercy, or will it make an example out of the defectors? Either way, Stephen A. Smith will have something to say about it.
