College dropout Eugenio Chacarra ‘enjoying life’ after earning $11m on LIV Golf tour

SINGAPORE – Eugenio Chacarra’s peers in Oklahoma State University are balancing golf and books, but this 23-year-old has ditched college life to play professional golf on the LIV series, a move that has seen him playing alongside his idols while banking in a cool US$8,291,250 (S$11.07 million) in prize money.

In June 2022, the 23-year-old Spaniard dropped out of college before his senior year and turned professional after accepting an invitation to join the controversial Saudi-backed LIV Golf series.

Making his LIV debut in Portland a month later, Chacarra was paired in the final round with his childhood hero Phil Mickelson. Surrounded by a crowd of 20,000 spectators, the rookie had to pinch himself to make sure he was not dreaming.

Chacarra, then ranked No. 2 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, told The Straits Times: “Playing with Phil Mickelson in my first tournament, that was unique. This is one of my idols since I was little, a guy that I’d been watching on TV for 15 years and winning Majors.

“It was really nervous for me just getting to that first tee with Mickelson. This is something that I’ll never forget and I would say one of the two best moments of my golfing career so far.”

The second “best moment” was last October when he won the Bangkok Invitational to collect the winner’s cheque of US$4 million on only his fifth professional LIV tournament.

Chacarra said: “I just wanted to win to show the world that I’m one of the best players in the world when I’m playing my best. That win gave me a lot of confidence, knowing I can play and compete with them. Now, I’m way more relaxed.

“Winning four million dollars is always fun but I got lucky enough that the money that I got (for signing with LIV) was already life-changing. After that, money became a second part and I’m not playing for money any more. I’m playing to get better as a player.”

The Spaniard, who was Madrid’s top junior golfer for eight consecutive years until he turned 16, was referring to a three-year deal he signed with LIV, which is believed to be worth a seven-figure sum.

The fresh-faced rookie went on to play 11 LIV events in total and has amassed US$8,291,250 in prize money.

In comparison, 2016 US Masters champion Danny Willett, who has played 126 events on the PGA Tour since 2015, has earned a total of US$7,994,181 on the PGA Tour.

Critics of LIV Golf have accused players of leaving the PGA Tour for money, with six-time Major champion Mickelson reportedly paid US$200 million to join the breakaway circuit.

But Chacarra explained that LIV offered him job security that his peers do not have.

He said: “At that time, I was dominating college golf and I saw my best friend Austin Eckroat (from Oklahoma State) who was top five in the country... but he did not have a great season on the PGA Tour University and ended up playing Monday qualifiers.

“So I realised (the PGA Tour route) doesn’t give you any guarantee. LIV gave me a three-year guarantee to play with the best players in the world, so I thought it was a better choice. I’m really proud with the decision and hopefully I can be here for the rest of my life.”

But playing on the LIV tour could also mean that Chacarra may never fulfil one of his childhood aspirations to play in the Majors.

LIV players are banned from the PGA Tour and results from LIV events do not count towards the Official World Golf Ranking standings, which determines eligibility to the four Majors.

He added: “I’ve been watching the Majors since I was little and one of my dreams is to play in and win a Major. When I signed for LIV, I knew that was going to be hard. But I feel like life is to be happy. I’m enjoying life and doing a good job with LIV.

“If I can play (a Major), great. If not, I’m really happy where I am.”