Saudi Arabia set to withdraw LIV Golf funding after 2026 season, per reports
LIV Golf’s launch in June 2022 aimed to disrupt and challenge the existing structure of professional golf, creating a rival league to the PGA Tour and aiming to steal the game’s biggest stars to rebuild golf under a new image. Four years later, the league, financed entirely by the Saudi Public Investment Fund, could be on the brink of insolvency.
LIV Golf is informing players and staff that the PIF is withdrawing its funding from the league at the end of the 2026 season, ending its investment after investing more than $5 billion in the tour since its launch, according to the Wall Street Journal and CNBC.
PIF Chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan, founder of LIV Golf, resigned as chairman of the league’s board of directors on Wednesday. LIV Golf announced Thursday that it has created a new “independent board of directors led by Gene Davis and Jon Zinman,” which will seek to find “long-term financial partners to support [LIV Golf’s] transition from a fundamental launch phase to a diversified, multi-partner investment model.
Saudi Arabia is reassessing its substantial financial commitments to sports and the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran.
While LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil initially pushed back against reports that the PIF was dissolving its multibillion-dollar investment, noting two weeks ago that the league was fully funded for its 2026 campaign, the tour is now facing the reality of its situation as it prepares for the future.
LIV Golf has already postponed its next event in New Orleansand it must now find investors willing to provide significant funds to continue operating until 2027 and beyond.
“The management team, along with Jon and I, see a clear opportunity to help the league formalize its structure, attract and secure long-term capital, and position the company for growth while continuing to promote the game across the world,” Davis said in a press release.
Given that the league has struggled to break through with fans and generate media rights revenue or television audiences, it will be difficult to find financiers willing to back nine-figure guaranteed contracts and massive purses. Still, LIV Golf plans to consider strategic alternatives rather than closing its doors, although it’s difficult to see how that will help the league retain stars like Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau.
As such, LIV Golf’s future is now precarious after years of failed efforts to recruit top PGA Tour players and establish a substantial following. While the PGA Tour itself added private investment and increased purses for its flagship tournaments, LIV Golf struggled to attract big names after an initial wave of substantial signings while bleeding cash.
Losses have been estimated at $500 million to $600 million each year, although LIV Golf is on track to improve its revenue forecast by $100 million in 2026 after signing several brand partnership deals, O’Neil said previously. Thursday’s press release cites “record engagement and a 100% year-over-year increase in revenue” as reasons the league will survive.
Critics have accused LIV Golf of serving as a sporting arm for Saudi Arabia, an operation that aimed to improve the country’s reputation amid accusations of human rights abuses and corruption. Supporters suggested it was advancing the game of golf, by offering an alternative product with a different format.
However, LIV Golf failed to gain recognition from the sport’s primary rating body, the Official World Golf Ranking, due to its 54-hole, shotgun-start, no-cut tournaments, and the team competition element failed to appeal to fans. LIV Golf was therefore forced to change its format and only recently received recognition from the OWGR, a move that appears to be too little, too late, given that interest in the league has not increased.
What will happen to LIV Golf’s best players?
Two-time US Open winner DeChambeau and two-time major champion Rahm are the two biggest names under contract with LIV Golf, although other emerging talents like Joaquín Niemann and Tyrrell Hatton are joining them on the tour. (Five-time major champion Brooks Koepka and 2018 Masters champion Patrick Reed recently left the league for the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, respectively.)
The PGA Tour has already shown its willingness to create pathways for the return of top stars; however, it did so while being mindful of the feelings and perspectives of its members, many of whom turned down the prospect of getting rich quicker by signing with LIV Golf to remain loyal and continue playing in the United States.
After DeChambeau and Rahm turned down this offseason to join Koepka, that process needs to be re-evaluated if LIV Golf closes its doors or if star players attempt to forcibly remove themselves from the league. Koepka’s dealwhich included a $5 million charitable donation, ineligibility for the Player Equity Program for five years and no payment for the FedEx Cup in its first consecutive year, was presented as a one-time deal that “does not set a precedent,” according to the PGA Tour.
DeChambeau was also part of a group that filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour following his defection to LIV Golf. Although that lawsuit was ultimately dropped, it led to escalating tensions between the parties, and PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp told the Journal that “scar tissue” would be a factor.
“There were rules, and they weren’t followed,” Rolapp said. “Rules imply responsibility.”
These potentially homeless players would have no leverage in negotiations with the PGA Tour, putting them in a difficult negotiating position.
Representatives of several LIV Golf players have already contacted the PGA Tour to discuss the parameters of potential returns to the tour, according to Golf Digest.
One option could be for the PGA Tour to offer the same deal Reed received: serve a one-year suspension and regain his status via a major championship and DP World Tour competition. DeChambeau and Rahm would still have full-time status upon their return, as they have won majors over the past five years, but the path to reconciliation might not be as smooth as it was with Koepka and Reed.
“I don’t necessarily have scar tissue, but there are a lot of people around our tour who do,” Rolapp added. “It needs to be accounted for in one form or another.”
For non-stars, the road back to the PGA Tour will be more arduous. With the PGA Tour already talking about trimming fields and creating more “scarcity” in events to create stronger fields in 2027 and beyond, achieving status could be more difficult than ever, especially as LIV Golf players are short on world ranking points and the PGA Tour has little incentive to help them.
“We want to have the best players who can help our tour,” Rolapp explained bluntly. “Not every player can do that.”
LIV Golf’s ambitious recruitments
When LIV Golf began, some believed it posed an existential threat to the PGA Tour. With the backing of billions of dollars from Saudi Arabia, they have been aggressive in pursuing many of soccer’s biggest stars with lucrative nine-figure contracts. Greg Norman was at the helm of the company, with Phil Mickelson becoming the public face of the league, almost immediately sparking controversy.
Although LIV Golf has been successful in recruiting older players, it has only managed to win over a few big stars with promises of guaranteed money and a shortened global schedule.
Dustin Johnson was among the first to sign, followed by DeChambeau, Koepka, Reed and Niemann. Cameron Smith left the PGA Tour shortly after winning his first major at the 2022 Open Championship, helping the league improve its legitimacy outside of the legacy of Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, Henrik Stenson, Louis Oosthuizen and others.
The biggest shockwave came after LIV Golf’s second season when Rahm, who publicly denied any desire to join LIV when asked repeatedly, fled the PGA Tour in December 2023, announcing his move in a bizarre interview after receiving an offer worth more than $300 million.
Rahm’s decision came months after a notorious “framework agreement” was reached between the PIF and PGA Tour Enterprises that appeared to be a ceasefire, indicating that a possible merger was on the horizon. Years later, despite continued conversations and at least one meeting at the White House, the parties never became closer.
Cracks started to appear…
LIV Golf’s facade began to crumble in late 2025 when Koepka suddenly announced his departure a year before his contract expired. He was quickly brought back by the PGA Tour, signaling that the tour was more willing to negotiate with notable golfers who wanted to return now that CEO Brian Rolapp is in charge. Reed’s departure followed, and while others declined similar offers, LIV Golf continues to struggle to grow its ranks.
To try to accommodate top stars and better prepare players for majors, LIV Golf expanded to 72-hole events in 2026. However, while Rahm appreciated the move, DeChambeau was not enthusiastic about the move, noting that it was not what he signed up for. Retaining Rahm and DeChambeau is of the utmost importance to the league.
LIV Golf has successfully hosted on-site events, such as those in South Africa and Australia, where the PGA Tour is not held regularly, but the global schedule and lack of stars has led it to struggle to connect with fans, who simply don’t watch the product en masse.
