LIV Golf has revealed its future survival strategy in the wake of Saudi Arabia's PIF's reported decision to withdraw funding from the league, confirming news that was widely reported for the first time on Thursday. The league shared the news in a press release, stating their hopes of transitioning from a “foundation phase” to a “multi-partner investment phase.”
Here's what you need to know.
LIV Golf creates independent board, searches for new investors
For weeks, reports have swirled about LIV Golf's dire future. Wednesday, sources said GOLF.com that Saudi Arabia's PIF will withdraw funding following the 2026 season, confirming a previous report by The Wall Street Journal.
Journal of Sports Business later reported that PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan would leave the league's board.
In their statement on Thursday morning, LIV Golf did not specifically mention the PIF cuts or Al-Rumayyan's departure, but what they revealed seemed to confirm both facts. They announced “the appointment of a new board as the league focuses on finding long-term financial partners to support its transition from a grassroots launch phase to a multi-partner investment model.”
By the “foundation phase,” LIV refers to the five years of its existence from 2022 to the present, when PIF was the sole sponsor, owner and operator of the league. That will no longer be the case after the 2026 season.
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In the absence of PIF's multi-billion investment, LIV Golf needs to find new investors with large capital, possibly from multiple sources to fill the large capital gap. The division's hope is that transitioning to a “diversified, multi-partner investment model” will secure its future for years to come.
The unit also announced a “newly established independent board” as part of an “evolution strategy,” a departure from the model the unit operated under with Al-Rumayyan as board chairman.
LIV appointed Gene Davis and Jon Zinman to the board “to guide the league into its next phase.”
While this is the first time LIV Golf has officially acknowledged its new reality, the division's CEO Scott O'Neil let the news slide in an interview that was deleted two weeks ago, where he said, “The truth is you're funded all season long. And then you work like crazy as a business to create a business and a business plan to keep us going.”
LIV players reach out about the return of the PGA Tour: Report
What are the big stars of LIV Golf thinking when considering the difficult post-PIF future of LIV? None of them have spoken about it publicly, but another report that dropped on Thursday shed some light on the answer.
Golf Digest reports that “representatives for several LIV players have contacted the PGA Tour to discuss a possible return.” In addition, the report said the PGA Tour will offer a way back to LIV Golf's remaining professionals, citing “people familiar with the discussions.” However, that route will be “more restrictive” than the one taken by Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed earlier this year.
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The PGA Tour created a new policy known as the “Returning Member Program” to give Koepka a direct path back to the Tour. It required Koepka to make a $5 million charitable donation and barred him from FedEx Cup bonus money, among other penalties.
That plan was also available to three other LIV stars, Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith, but none of those players took the Tour up on its offer before the plan expired.
Patrick Reed has decided not to re-sign with LIV Golf before the start of the 2026 season. Instead, Reed chose to play this season on the DP World Tour, hoping to return to the PGA Tour later this year. To do that, Reed is first required to serve a one-year suspension for the last LIV game he played in August of 2025.
By the end of August this year, Reed will be eligible to play in PGA Tour events as a non-member with sponsor exemptions and open eligibility. Beginning in 2027, Reed will be fully reinstated as a member of the PGA Tour under the category of past champions.
Reed's situation was made easier by the fact that he canceled his PGA Tour membership before joining LIV and violated Tour rules.
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