LIV files for bankruptcy protection with over $45m owed to players
LIV Golf has filed for bankruptcy protection with at least $45m (£33m) owed to players, who will now have the option to leave. The Chapter 11 petition, filed in the United States on Tuesday, is meant to “preserve the company’s business” as it tries to restructure after Saudi Arabia withdrew its multibillion-dollar funding.
The breakaway league says it has found a new investor in BC Partners. That news follows the decision in April by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) to pull its money.
Players owed the most money
Court documents outline the 30 largest unsecured claims against LIV Golf. Two-time major winner Jon Rahm tops that list with an unsecured claim of $7.5m (£5.5m).
Bryson DeChambeau ($5.7m – £4.2m), Dustin Johnson ($5.5m – £4.1m), Cameron Smith ($4.8m – £3.5m) and Tyrrell Hatton ($3.4m – £2.5m) are also among the top 30 creditors. Brooks Koepka, who left to rejoin the PGA Tour in January, has an unsecured claim of $1.7m (£1.25m).
The total owed to the 14 current and former LIV players in the top 30 creditors is just over $45m (£33m).
A source familiar with the figures told BBC Sport the creditors list outlines the “amount owed and not paid for Q3” of 2026, not the full amounts.
What the court filing shows
The documents show LIV estimates its assets at $100m-$500m (£74m-£370m). Its liabilities sit between $500m and $1bn (£370m-£739m).
Chapter 11 protection postpones a US company’s obligations to its creditors. It gives the company time to reorganise its debts or sell parts of the business.
PIF is providing a bankruptcy loan of $49.6m (£36.6m), called ‘debtor in possession’ (DIP) financing, to help fund the process.
The filing was made in the federal district court of New Jersey, where LIV Golf set up a subsidiary earlier in the summer.
Player contracts and the way out
LIV Golf intends to commence its new majority player-owned league early next year. The Chapter 11 process allows it to start talking to players about their participation in LIV’s future.
BBC Sport understands there is no obligation on players to sign on to LIV 2.0, regardless of whether they had previously signed multi-year contracts with LIV Golf.
Sources have said contracts under the previous iteration of LIV Golf will finish because of this court filing. Amounts owed to players and other creditors will be addressed through the court process.
However, it remains unclear when players would then be able to enter discussions with other tours.
Rahm was tight-lipped when pressed on his future on Tuesday, speaking before this week’s Irish Open.
Asked if he knew what the coming months held, he told BBC Sport: “Yes and no. It hasn’t really changed from my last interview in Indianapolis.
“There’s just a lot of things in place, right? There’s a lot of things that could happen and it’s one of those things where time’s gonna tell.”
Rahm added: “I still have a contract with LIV 1.0 that I’m more than willing to fulfil, so like I said, time will tell.”
The money spent since 2021
Since LIV’s controversial launch in 2021, more than $5bn (£3.7bn) has been spent by PIF. Major winners including Rahm and DeChambeau were lured by lucrative contracts and vast prize money.
However, the future of the concept — and its star players — has been shrouded in uncertainty. The 2026 season ended early.
When announcing its decision to withdraw funding, PIF said the “substantial investment required by LIV Golf over a longer term” was “no longer consistent” with its strategy.
Despite its decision to stop bankrolling LIV Golf, PIF added it “remains committed” to its “substantial current and future investments in various sports as a priority sector”.
BC Partners and the letter to fans
On Tuesday, LIV confirmed international investment firm BC Partners as its proposed new investor. The news came in a letter to fans outlining its “next phase”.
“LIV Golf has entered a court-supervised restructuring process that provides us with the time and framework to address previous financial obligations and complete a transaction that will make the league’s next phase a reality,” said the letter.
“Put simply, this process is designed to build a stronger and more sustainable future for LIV Golf.”
LIV Golf chief executive Scott O’Neil added in a statement: “This process gives us the structure and time to pursue a landmark transaction and begin the next chapter of LIV Golf – one built around the fans, an innovative, player-first ownership model, and a part of the global golf ecosystem.”
The letter said the new league would be “built around a sustainable business model”. That is a clear sign the free-spending days of LIV 1.0 are over.
Players are set to be given equity. Individual commercial rights are set to be returned to players, giving them greater earning potential.
In terms of prize money, LIV Golf purses are set to be lower than events on the PGA Tour — which has risen in part because of the existence of LIV — but higher than events on the DP World Tour.
Format changes on the table
The letter also outlined proposed changes to the league’s structure.
- Field sizes expanding to 75 players
- The introduction of a cut
- Creating qualifiers
- Having more teams that “embrace national identities”
- The ambition for teams to “grow into enduring global sports businesses”
O’Neil told the BBC at the final event in Indianapolis last month he had “high levels of confidence” in achieving a “critical mass” of players to make the new league a reality.
DeChambeau said at the conclusion of that event he felt there was “a lot of potential moving forward” and he believed there was “something fun coming”.
The strange end of the season
The filing comes after a strange finish to the 2026 season. That end has been described as one of strained smiles and uncertainty.
LIV’s future had been in doubt for months. Saudi Arabia’s decision to stop funding the league next season was announced on 30 April.
The bankruptcy filing is the latest step in a process that has reshaped professional golf since LIV’s arrival.
What the filing means next
The Chapter 11 process gives LIV time to reorganise. Players will have the option to leave, and there is no obligation to sign on to LIV 2.0.
That is a major shift. Players who signed multi-year contracts with LIV Golf are no longer bound to them.
The court process will determine how much creditors are paid and when. It is not yet clear when players can enter discussions with other tours.
The cost of the experiment
The filing marks the end of LIV 1.0. PIF spent more than $5bn (£3.7bn) since 2021 to build a rival to the PGA Tour.
That money bought star power. Rahm and DeChambeau were lured by lucrative contracts and vast prize money.
It also bought disruption. PGA Tour purses have risen in part because of LIV’s existence.
Now the league is seeking to rebuild on a smaller scale, with players as owners.
The court filing does not guarantee LIV 2.0 will succeed. It only guarantees the company time to try.
Rahm’s words may be the best summary of where things stand.
“Time will tell.”
Source: bbc.co.uk
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