LIV Golf to pitch new business model amid bankruptcy report

LIV Golf is moving forward with its plan to take a new business model to potential investors despite a report that the league is laying groundwork for potential bankruptcy in the U.S. if it doesn’t find new financing beyond this season.

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which has funded the breakaway circuit since its inception in 2022, announced April 30 that it will not do so beyond this season.

Axios reported earlier this week that LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil is seeking $250 million to keep the league alive. According to that report, O’Neil is projecting that the league will be profitable in two years. He had previously said it would take 10 years for the league to turn a profit.

Bloomberg reported that LIV Golf is considering relocating its headquarters to the U.S., where bankruptcy restructuring laws are more favorable. LIV Golf has entities that are based in the U.S., in England and on the island of Jersey.

A source with knowledge of the situation told ESPN that LIV is exploring and considering a number of future pathways and long-term strategic partners. The source said the league has received significant interest from potential investors and would soon be presenting its go-forward business plan to those prospective capital partners.

“LIV Golf is firmly focused on securing a transaction that positions the organization for the long term,” a LIV Golf spokesperson said. “As we begin presenting our go-forward business plan to prospective capital partners, we are focused on achieving a sustainable future, and there are multiple pathways under active exploration.

“We continue to see great momentum on the course, and with support through the 2026 season and a clear plan to raise capital, leadership is focused on identifying the right long-term strategic partners who believe in our mission to grow the game of golf worldwide. These conversations are just getting underway, and as they progress, the company expects to gain further clarity around the structure and timing of a potential transaction.”

The PIF reportedly spent more than $5 billion funding the league the past five seasons, with much of the money being used to pay guaranteed contracts worth more than $100 million to star golfers such as Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, Dustin Johnson and others.

The PIF’s investment is expected to reach more than $6 billion by the end of the season.

At LIV Golf’s tournament in Virginia earlier this month, Rahm revealed that he has multiple years left on his contract, adding that he doesn’t “see many ways out” of the deal.

DeChambeau’s contract with LIV Golf expires at the end of the season. He suggested to ESPN in Virginia that the PGA Tour is prepared to hit him with severe penalties if he wants to come back. DeChambeau added that he would consider playing only in tournaments that want him, while growing his YouTube channel, if LIV Golf folds and he couldn’t return to the PGA Tour.