‘It’s called a joke. Deal with it’: Pro opens up after viral LIV remark

Chris DiMarco, Rocco Mediate says, was joking. 

That comment he made last week on GOLF’s “Subpar” podcast? Where he thought LIV Golf should buy the 50-and-over PGA Tour Champions circuit that DiMarco and Mediate play on?

Mediate said Monday it was made in jest. 

“So Chrisy said that, and that is a complete — joking, like, yeah, I want the LIV tour to buy us so we can play for more money,” he said on “The Rocco Hour,” his SiriusXM show. 

“He knows, we all know — are you kidding me? If we’re playing for any money at our age, we’re happy. So back off Chris. Back off him. He was joking around. It was hilarious. It’s never going to happen. And we’re happy, trust me on that. Chris DiMarco’s quite happy where he’s playing golf. I don’t want to hear any of this beating him up. Stop it. Just stop it. Please.”

That response came six days after DiMarco’s thought quickly went viral in light of the now-three-season-long feud between Saudi-backed LIV and the PGA Tour. On “Subpar,” DiMarco had been asked whether PGA Tour Champions players were talking about LIV and “all the money that’s being thrown around” — to which DiMarco replied:

“Well, we’re kind of hoping that LIV buys the Champions Tour, to tell you the truth. Let’s play for a little real money out here. I mean, this is kind of a joke when we’re averaging 2 million [dollars]. There was like seven guys last week from TPC that made more money than our purses.”

From there, the comments came. And DiMarco apparently saw a few. 

On his show, Mediate said DiMarco talked with him last week, wondering how he should respond. DiMarco told him then he’d been joking.    

Mediate said he should let it go. 

“They’re not buying the Champions,” he said on his show. “They’re not even looking at our tour. Our tour is just fine the way it is. OK. We’re playing for 2 million bucks a week, good. We’re 100 years old. No problem. So everybody that’s busting his b***s, just stop it. Just stop it. Please. 

“It’s called a joke. Deal with it. Next.”

The talk on the topic ended with a story, followed by another plea. For clarity, here is the complete exchange, started by a member of Mediate’s show:

“You know, I just happened to be up in Madison caddying for you when the whole LIV thing started to break,” he said. “And we were on the putting green and obviously being inside the ropes as a caddie and I will not say any names — that will go with me to my grave — but everybody was, ‘Screw these guys. They shouldn’t be taking this money. This blah, blah, blah, blah.’ And you said, ‘And if they call you with 5 million?’ And the other Tour player says, ‘What time’s my tee time?’” 

Said Mediate: ‘What time is my tee time? When do I leave?’ No, please, everybody calm the hell down. Then they got to attack his character. It’s embarrassing. Just stop it. He’s joking around. We’re having fun. Too bad. 

“That’s — yeah. But we’re happy. Trust me, we’re very happy. And we’re right where we’re supposed to be. I always say that to people. You’re always where you’re supposed to be. You want to be somewhere else. But you’re where you are. … I always say that. And it’s true. Nothing you can hide with that. 

“Yeah, I had to get that out because I’m like, wait a second, he’s one of our guys. If he was being serious and demeaning, then yeah, we would have taken him apart. But he wasn’t. He was joking around. So please — enough is enough.”