LIV Golf is in the water hazard – forever. The bankrupt Saudi-backed company that shook up the world of professional golf after launching in 2022 announced its closure on Thursday.
An attorney for LIV told a New Jersey bankruptcy court that the young golf league’s debtors have decided not to proceed with a proposed reorganization and will instead wind down the company.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which had financed LIV, announced earlier this year that it would pull funding from the league after the 2026 season, ending its investment after investing more than $5 billion in LIV since its launch, CBS Sports reported.
The league, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on September 8, thought it had a lifeline in BC Partners Credit, which committed to investing $300 million to move to a more financially sustainable “LIV 2.0.”
But players like Jon Rahm and Sergio Garcia, Tyrrell Hatton and Louis Oosthuizen weren’t interested. Brooks Koepka, another big name in golf who signed with LIV, has chosen to return to the PGA Tour.
“BC Partners Credit supported a transaction that aligned the interests of players and investors, providing a credible path toward building a sustainable future for LIV Golf,” BC Partners said in a statement. “Although the league has enjoyed great support, we are disappointed that mutually acceptable terms could not be found between the various stakeholders.”
Rahm has already agreed to waive all claims against LIV – worth an estimated $100 million – to terminate his contract. He’s back on the European Tour, hoping there’s a path back to the PGA Tour. The tour is currently banned for one year from the players’ last appearance at LIV.
LIV Golf paid $15.6 million to retain seven of its executives, including $6.375 million to CEO Scott O’Neil, in the months between Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and LIV’s bankruptcy filing. These payments are not unusual for a company trying to emerge from bankruptcy. The question now is whether these payments can be canceled since LIV is not moving forward.
LIV suffered two big setbacks, before and after filing for bankruptcy.
The Asian Tour, which received financial support from LIV for an international series, decided in July to renew an alliance with the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour, known commercially in Europe.
Then European Tour CEO Guy Kinnings said last month that anyone signing up for LIV 2.0 did not need to apply for European Tour membership, putting European players at risk of not playing in the Ryder Cup.
But the biggest setback came in April, two weeks after the Masters and two months after the start of the war in Iran. PIF has changed its investment strategy and said it will no longer finance LIV Golf after the 2026 season.
LIV was initially managed by Greg Norman, who unsuccessfully attempted to start a world tour in 1994, but it was canceled by Arnold Palmer and the PGA Tour. Norman had Saudi money at his disposal and billed LIV as “Golf, but louder” with its blaring music, 54-hole shotgun starts and $25 million in funds – individual and team – at each event.
But the first year she didn’t have a broadcast deal, which meant she had to cover production costs. He got the CW network in 2023 and eventually got Fox Sports to sign on in 2025.
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