LIV Golf’s 2026 Season Reportedly in Jeopardy Following PIF’s Withdrawal

LIV Golf had been backed by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia since its inauguration in 2021.

LIV Golf’s 2026 Season Reportedly in Jeopardy Following PIF’s Withdrawal

LIV Golf CEO Scott O'Neil (Image via X/@MirrorUSSports)

LIV Golf has been in turmoil ever since news regarding the Public Investment Fund (PIF) withdrawing its funding became official. On Sunday, reports emerged that the current season of the breakaway league is in jeopardy.

This week, the league hosted the LIV Golf Andalucia event from Real Club Valderrama in Spain. The event saw English golfer Tyrrell Hatton finish 2-shots ahead of his teammate and home crowd favorite, Jon Rahm, to win the tournament.

Meanwhile, their team, Legion XIII, defended its title in this event and captured its second team win of the season. Following this event, there is a 47-day gap between their next tournament in the United Kingdom.

Earlier, the league was supposed to take part in the LIV Golf Louisiana event later this month. However, this event was postponed to a later date due to weather conditions and the upcoming FIFA World Cup, in which the United States serves as one of the three hosts alongside Canada and Mexico.

This announcement came after reports of the PIF stopping its funding came out. The sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia had been the official financial backer of the league and had invested over $5 billion since the league’s foundation in 2021.

Reports claimed that the PIF will stop its funding and cut off its ties with them after the 2026 season. However, new reports from Front Office Sports now claim that the end of the league could be near.

Every remaining tournament is on the fence. … I truly don’t think anyone knows. LIV Golf doesn’t know if or when the PIF will shut off the spigot.

A LIV Golf executive told Front Office Sports as per David Rumsey

Earlier, LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil expressed that there would be some structural changes coming to the tour. He also claimed that the current season will also go “exactly as planned, uninterrupted and at full throttle.“

LIV Golf is currently scheduled to return to the JCB Golf and Country Club on July 23rd. This event is thus set to take place after the U.S. Open and the Open Championship. The league also has an event planned at the Trump National Golf Club Bedminster in New York in August.

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LIV Golf is planning a drastic change for the future

LIV Golf suffered a massive blow with the PIF backing out and ending its financial support. With their future under dark clouds, the league has started planning to make a drastic change.

LIV Golf star Jon Rahm
LIV Golf star Jon Rahm (Image via Imago)

The league has been in talks with several potential investors. According to reports, the breakaway tour is planning to focus even more on team golf.

For the 2027 season, the league is working on 10 events, with 5 of them being “team majors.” The other 5 would be “team signature” events.

The 5 “majors” are being planned to be played in LIV’s top 5 markets, like Australia and South Africa. The “signature” events are being discussed to be played in the United States.

Apart from this, they are also planning to host 8-10 national opens to provide more opportunities for players to earn Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) points. Earlier this year, the league adopted the 72-hole format and also got a green light regarding ranking points.

LIV Golf was founded in 2021. Along with former World No.1 and 2-time major champion Greg Norman, PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan kick-started this league.

Norman, who served as the CEO until his departure in 2025, brought in several top names from the PGA Tour on big-money deals. This caused a massive divide in the golf, with several relationships getting fractured.

Recently, the golf world marked the 3rd anniversary of Rumayyan’s shocking announcement with PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan about a potential golf merger. On June 6, 2023, the duo sat alongside and spoke about a merger that would reunite the game and bring all golfers back under one tour.

Since then, there have been several talks regarding this. U.S. President Donald Trump also got involved in it. However, nothing concrete took place after the meetings at the White House in early 2025. Only time will tell what will happen with LIV Golf.

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