Kevin Chappell Retires From Golf

Earlier in 2025, there were talks about a few star players being close to retirement.  Most discussion revolved around Tiger Woods, as he had a year plagued by injuries and surgeries.  However, as the year is coming to a close, one player announced his retirement, citing a number of things, including complications from injuries.  That player is Kevin Chappell.

Chappell’s Injuries

The injury in question was a back injury Chappell got in 2018.  He went on the Subpar Podcast and described the struggle at the time.

“It was basically a year and a half when I didn’t play a lot of competitive golf, and I really struggled to find any form after that,” Chappell said.  

He did go through a corrective surgery, which is what put him out for a year and a half, but since returning, he never got back on top.  Chappell has been in 90 events, making the cut in half of them, and only making the top 10 once.  Further statements in the interview reveal that he doesn’t think that he has a chance of climbing back up to the top.  At least not without making some massive sacrifices in his life.

Changing Priorities

During his recovery, Chappell spent a lot of time with his family.  He sees this as a time when he really grew in his relationship with his family, away from the tournaments.

“I started to grow as a person, started to grow as a father, and priorities started to change. I realised my work ethic was going down and my results were going down.”

Later on in the interview, Chappell told the podcast hosts about his realization of his performance during the Zurich Classic.  Specifically, when he saw Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry play.  He realized that there was definitely a path to becoming a top golfer again.

“I’m watching Shane and Rory play, and I might not have ever been Rory, but I certainly was a top-30 player in the world, and I’m like, man, the amount of work it’s going to take to get back there, and the things I’m going to miss out on, I’m not sure this is worth it to me,” Chappell said.

There were a lot of things he didn’t want to miss as a father.  Moments that would have been taken up by the tournaments, the training, and all the work it takes to maintain a professional level.  In the end, Chappell decided that it was time to focus more on his family.  He will be putting his professional career behind him.

Chappel Retiring

With the 2025 season done, Kevin Chappell won’t be competing in any more events.  He will be missing from the line-up in the 2026 season and won’t be competing on a professional level in the foreseeable future.  Instead, Chappell will be enjoying his retirement with his family.  He may be retiring as a professional, but it is unlikely that he will be packing his clubs away completely.  He was a top 30 golfer; he’ll likely keep some eyes on the sport.