Eugenio Chacarra wanted more. After Sunday’s win at the Italian Open, his second in a row on the DP World Tour, he has it in his grasp.
Chacarra was one of the top amateurs in the world when he left for LIV Golf in 2022. His future was bright, and his decision to bolt for the rebel league was seen as a big coup — a way for LIV to siphon off emerging young talent before it got to the PGA Tour. Chacarra won on LIV in its inaugural season but then saw his play dip as he dealt with injuries. Sergio Garcia’s Fireballs didn’t renew his contract at the end of the 2024 season, and Chacarra said he left LIV Golf with renewed perspective about what he wanted out of professional golf. He said on LIV there was “only money,” and pointed to the success and acclaim Ludvig Aberg, who was in Chacarra’s amateur class, received on the PGA Tour. That was something he wanted, something he had always wanted before he strayed from his initial plan.
“I see what it’s like to win on the PGA Tour and how your life changes,” Chacarra told Flushing It in 2025. “How you get major access and ranking points. On LIV, nothing changes, there is only money. It doesn’t matter if you finish 30th or first, only money. I’m not a guy who wants more money. What will change my life is playing in Hawaii and qualifying for the majors, qualifying for the Masters, the Ryder Cup.
“I know this is what my heart tells me is right and it works for my motivation to wake up and grind and get better, and to say I can be a PGA Tour player one day,” Chacarra told Flushing It. “So this decision is what’s best for me. I’m very thankful for what they’ve done, but my mind is different now and I want to get to what I was dreaming about when I was little. Because obviously LIV didn’t exist when I was growing up. I was watching Tiger Woods winning on the PGA Tour, and I want to do that.”
So Chacarra left LIV Golf, served a mandatory one-year PGA Tour suspension and played on the DP World Tour via sponsor invites to try to climb the professional ladder to where he wanted to be — the PGA Tour. He won last year’s Hero Indian Open, but his play tailed off at the end of the year, causing him to miss out on a promotion to the PGA Tour, which is given to the top 10 players in the DP World Tour final standings who aren’t already exempt.
This year, Chacarra has played even better.
One month ago, Chacarra left a playoff at a U.S. Open qualifier early before he had a chance to earn an alternate spot. Chacarra needed to catch a flight to get to Belgium to prepare for that week’s Soudal Open. Playing in the U.S. Open is important, but Chacarra’s path to his dreams is by playing well on the European circuit throughout the remainder of 2026. He finished T22 that week and T12 the following week in Turkey. Then he won the next week at the KLM Open. That win vaulted him to No. 6 in the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai Standings, placing him on the cusp of his dreams.
On Sunday at the Italian Open, Chacarra all but secured the goal he has been chasing — the one that was deferred by his move to LIV Golf.
He entered Sunday at Circolo Golf Torino with a two-shot lead over Joaquin Niemann and Matt Wallace. Facing two top 100 players in the world, Chacarra handled his toughest test on the DP World Tour to date flawlessly. When Wallace chipped in for eagle at the first and birdied the fourth, he pulled even with Chacarra.
Then, Chacarra lifted and separated from his challengers. He birdied 5, 8, 9 and 10 to grab a commanding lead and then made an eagle at the par-5 15th to put the tournament on ice.
The final tally for Chacarra on Sunday? A bogey-free 64 and a five-shot win. That win moves him up to No. 3 in the standings and second on the promotions list behind only Patrick Reed.
“Yeah, winning is always great, but that’s what we work for,” Chacarra said after his win in Italy. “I’ve been doing [some] incredible work these last couple of years, and I’m very proud of myself.
“I think it was a good fight; two world-class players, probably two of the best players in the world. That’s what I was dreaming of since I was little, to play against those kinds of players down the stretch. I’m very proud how I played and how I managed myself today.”
Chacarra’s win also got him a spot in the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. It will be his first-ever start in the Open Championship. He’ll likely play the co-sanctioned Scottish Open before that.
He still has a long summer of golf ahead. But Eugenio Chacarra, once one of the best young talents in the world, is finally on the doorstep of his dreams, proving that dreams deferred don’t have to be dreams forgotten.
“I’ve proved myself already,” Chacarra said Sunday. “When I was an amateur, I was one of the best in America and I want to be one of the best players in professional golf.”
