LIV Golf namedrops Premier League club in $500million bankruptcy decision

LIV Golf has used Leeds United as an example of how they intend to survive as the breakaway league filed for bankruptcy on Tuesday.

The struggling golf circuit is restructuring for what it describes as ‘LIV Golf 2.0’ – with liabilities of between $500million and $1billion (£370m-£739m) from the pre-existing version.

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The filing of bankruptcy means players who are still under contract will be permitted to leave LIV Golf or chase the money owed to them through the courts.

At the top of the list of unsecured creditors is Jon Rahm with an claim of $7.5m (£5.5m).

Meanwhile, 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, as well as Brooks Koepka, who left to re-join the PGA Tour in January, with an unsecured claim of $1.7m (£1.25m).

However, this only reflects the amount owed to players in Q3 of 2026 and not the full value of remaining contracts.

According to the Financial Times, players are collectively owed tens of millions of dollars.

LIV Golf will offer players the chance to become majority owners in the relaunched version of the league as a way to restructure this debt.

BC Partners has now been named as the new lead investor after the Saudi Public Investment Fund [PIF] hastily withdrew its backing earlier this year.

The PIF will provide a loan of $49.6m (£36.6m) to see LIV Golf through the bankruptcy process but will not fund the league any further.

‘Look at Leeds’

LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil pointed to a number of successful ventures that were forced to go through a similar process in order to survive.

In a letter to fans, O’Neil said: “Plenty of well-known companies have taken this path before us, including Marvel Entertainment, Delta Airlines, and Caesars Entertainment, along with sports franchises like the Los Angeles Dodgers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Leeds United F.C.”

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The Saudi-backed breakaway tour invested £3.6billion in luring golf’s top talents away from the PGA prior to its inception in 2021.

However, the tour’s long-term future was plunged into doubt earlier this year when the PIF opted to discontinue its funding beyond the 2026 season.

LIV, who cancelled two events this season, informed its staff that it would be laying off the majority of its employees.

Last month, LIV Golf cut the prize money for their event in Indianapolis.

LIV Golf 2.0 in the works?

O’Neil added: “The people of LIV Golf, led by the players, have continued to show incredible resilience, commitment, and a shared belief in what we are building.

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“Thanks to their tireless work, LIV Golf has created a foundation to entertain and inspire the next generation of global golf fans around the world.

“This process gives us the structure and time to pursue a landmark transaction and begin the next chapter of LIV Golf.” 

However, ‘no definitive decisions regarding the 2027 schedule or individual events are being announced at this time,’ the LIV statement added.

The futures of high-profile stars such as Rahm and DeChambeau are unclear.

They have been linked with returns to the PGA Tour but commissioner Brian Rolapp has insisted there will be no easy route back.

Pressed on his future at LIV Golf amid concerns over its future, Rahm gave little away ahead of the Irish Open this week.

Quizzed on whether he was aware of the future picture, he said: “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.

“I still have a contract with LIV 1.0 that I’m more than willing to fulfil, so like I said, time will tell.”