LIV and let die: Big names start to abandon ship, Loss of revenue

 And this is probably the first time that you have heard of it. When a guy named Elvis wins a huge international golfing tournament; people should know. It’s just the latest example of the issues that are facing Greg Norman’s breakaway golfing venture. Gone is the gusto and devil-may-care rebellious spirit that marked the early stages of the LIV venture. Rising financial restrictions and consumer apathy suggest that the US PGA Tour may have lost a few battles, but are well positioned to win the war.

Losing its sex appeal

A few years back, LIV Golf was an existential crisis that could not be escaped. High-profile major winners like Kopeka and DeChambeau were lured by the ridiculous sums of cash, jeopardizing future major and Ryder Cup participation. The signing of Jon Rahm felt like a watershed moment that could tip the balance of golfing power in LIV’s favour. But since Rahm, LIV hasn’t been able to acquire a single marquee name. Tom McKibben was their standout singing in 2024, while Belgian journeyman Thomas Detry appears to be this season’s big draw (not exactly box office stuff). Also, rumours suggest that the likes of Akshay Bhatia and Si Woo Kim- strong mid-tier PGA Tour professionals- have rebuffed recent LIV advances. The major LIV power brokers are clearly changing their approach, tightening up the purse strings in response to certain realities.

Big names start to abandon ship

It doesn’t help that the likes of Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed are returning to the PGA Tour with the unbridled joy of returning World War 2 soldiers. Added to that, DeChambeau and Rahm (the two guys lending LIV whatever legitimacy it still has left) appear to be stalling on new contract negotiations. It’s clear which way the wind is blowing.

Loss of revenue

Let’s get down to the brass tacks. The LIV Golf league is hemorrhaging money. Yes, we all know that the Saudi backers have an almost infinite supply of capital. But I think they understand that their attempt to reshape the power dynamics of world golf has failed. Put simply: not enough people are tuning in to golf’s Saudi-backed sideshow. The average number of people tuning into the live telecast is five to ten times lower than corollary PGA Tour events. The early stats for 2026 are even more damning, with the average PGA Tour Sunday attracting 3 million viewers while LIV could only muster 175,000 last week. Ouch! This product is on life support and the bigwigs know it.

Flopping in America

One major issue is that LIV hasn’t been able to break into golf’s biggest market: the USA. The US PGA Tour is deeply engrained into the psyche of the American golfing fraternity, making it nigh on impossible for LIV to leave any kind of cultural footprint. It has enjoyed more success in areas of the world that have been deprived of top-level golf. The Adelaide event stands out as a notable LIV success story. Even if LIV were to collapse tomorrow, I think that the LIV Adelaide event would be incorporated into either the US PGA Tour or DP World Tour. I think you will find that the upcoming LIV event in South Africa will enjoy similar success (it’s been a long time since Els and Woods’ nighttime duel at Fancourt). And I think this points to LIV becoming more of an ‘World Tour’ in years to come.

Resurgent PGA Tour

LIV has been crippled by increased interest in the PGA Tour in recent seasons. I think that Rory’s Grand Slam triumph at Augusta was a underappreciated deathblow to LIV’s ambitions. It transcended the sport, bringing new eyes to a game that is always looking to broaden its appeal. That victory did more to drum up enthusiasm for the sport than any gaudy LIV trick could ever do. Scottie Scheffler has also been creating waves, drawing comparisons with Tiger in his pomp. Also, the PGA Tour realized that they were in a fight to the death and substantially increased prize money across the board (even if I’m not a massive fan of their so-called Signature Events). LIV’S attempts to win the hearts and minds of golfing fans has been greatly compromised by the PGA Tour’s current renaissance.

A little ray of hope (sort of)

There was one bit of good news for LIV (though I suspect that it may be a little too late). Since the inception of the LIV Golf series, Greg Norman and his cohorts have been promising players that they would eventually be playing for official world ranking points. They have finally delivered on that promise. Just over a week ago, the Official World Golf Rankings board revealed their decision to award LIV players points for the first time. That not only goes some way to legitimizing the tour, but it may also help dissuade other potential defections. But it comes with a potentially debilitating caveat: only the top ten players in any LIV event will receive world ranking points. So, mid to lower-tier LIV players are still going to be significantly hamstrung (little wonder that the likes of Bhatia and Greyserman apparently said no). I think that the tour is one key exit away from becoming completely irrelevant (if it isn’t already).